Ukulele

[Dubby]

Anyone here play ukulele or know a thing or two about them? Looking to learn a fun instrument and uke keeps coming up but I know nothing about them. Any recommendations for brands and such would be appreciated. For some reason I trust this board.

[Donn]

Magic Fluke is kind of a local favorite, though I see they're in Massachusetts. Well made, durable, decent sounding instruments made in the US at a modest price. I mostly see Flea and Fluke models, which I believe are soprano and tenor respectively. Tenor is effectively the same as soprano, but I think the tenor scale is longer and the body is larger, so choice of soprano vs tenor is partly just about how long your arms are. Past that, the soprano is arguably more strident and therefore rhythmically effective, the tenor might be more mellow.

[Three Valves]

Bass Uke, now we're onto something...

[iiipopes]

Bass Uke, now we're onto something...

Yes, I played a U-Bass Rumbler in concert about a month ago with the ukulele club started by a friend of mine at my undergraduate college for the students. It is a really nice instrument. It is tuned like a conventional bass guitar. I don't think I'll be getting one anytime soon, as that is the only gig I have ever played one, but it does have possibilities. Here are links to the ukulele club:

https://www.facebook.com/DruryDUkes/" target="_blank
http://www.drury.edu/student-activities/dukes/" target="_blank

Here is a picture of me, in fedora since it was a chilly outdoor concert, playing the U-Bass with my friend, the faculty advisor, at a "Sister Cities" exchange concert in October, not too long after the group got back from their trip to Japan.

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[iiipopes]

Which genre(s) of music...??

Mostly arrangements of various light pop and rock tunes of the last few decades that the students can sing as well as play, and including a few from the "golden" age of uke playing.

[DonShirer]

I prefer a tenor ukulele (with the first string tuned an octave lower than the normal G4). You can play the normal soprano uke music and add a little faux bass as well.

[Donn]

Brazilians tune their related cavaquinho D/G/B/D, or other tunings, including same as mandolin.

Pedacinho do Céu

[Dubby]

So for someone wanting to just play some covers of songs, primarily 60's and 70's music, would a soprano make more sense?

[Dubby]

Yeah thanks bloke. I've heard good things about Hawaii Music Supply and they seem to check over everything before they sell them.