Advice, please!

Very many thanks for that, Lynda ... and the joke! This "instrument" is actually really a uke made in the form of a bouzouki, in that it has a round body and is made to be tuned CFAD. The strings are, apparently nylon bar one wound string. Hope to find out more tomorrow when I speak to the chap in the shop. Apart from anything else, need to know what strings the maker used. Will keep you - and everyone else! - informed.
 
Thanks for that, Linda! (I have a feeling that this is going to involve making a noise ... and since I am currently sitting in bed next to my husband (who is fast asleep), I think I shall have to postpone this intriguing exercise till the morning.) Does anyone want to place bets on the outcome???
 
Thank you, Ubulele (what IS your name, please???) It's very kind of you to analyse my vids. - although I'm not sure I want to be a MALE TENOR!!! (I shall prefer to think of myself of as a "low contralto"!) That being the case, do you think that a bouzouki/uki tuned CFAD would suit my range? Very many thanks for going to such trouble on my behalf!

I think ubulele made a bit of a mistake referring to a Male Tenor. It would have been better if he'd just said 'Tenor'. While Tenor is predominantly a male voice it's not unknown for women to sing in the tenor range, particularly as they get older and as such will be tenors. One of our choirmaster's daughters (who is most definitely not an older woman, btw) can sing tenor and has been known to reinforce the tenor section of the choir at a concert as the number of tenors is small although lately we've lost a few basses so the numbers are a bit more in balance. Even so only a quarter of the choir's members are males.
 
Thanks for that, Linda! (I have a feeling that this is going to involve making a noise ... and since I am currently sitting in bed next to my husband (who is fast asleep), I think I shall have to postpone this intriguing exercise till the morning.) Does anyone want to place bets on the outcome???

Sure I will take a stab at it......because I don't mind being wrong.....as I often am!

You do sing most of your songs as an alto.......Hmmmm........but to me you sound like your singing in falsetto......so Im going to guess that you can go much higher than you've shown us and I'll put a dollar on.........Mezzo Soprano.

and I say that in my male bass voice :)
 
Most people ask me to sing Tenor. Tenor Twenty miles away, actually! :D
 
Lil:
Did you detune a bari and try the tuning? I was going to try it but didn't want to upset my strings. I think going down one note/two simitones shouldn't make the strings too rubbery.
 
Thanks all for your amazing inputs .... I'm honestly not sure what I've started here! "Ubu", I am totally confounded by the depth and breadth of your knowledge. Geoff, I am delighted that I may not have inadvertently changed sex. Jack, I HAVE tried a bari tuned down and liked the sound. Randy and Ubu ... thanks for the jokes! And, Linda, thanks so much for the reassurance ... the results of your test will be forthcoming once I have sorted out the intricacies of an almost overdue tax return. Meanwhile, all bets are on!
 
You DON'T surely ... I never would have guessed!!!!

Yep. Well, sometimes it's on purpose, like doing back up/call back vocals songs have, I'll do those in falsetto on purpose pretty often. But sure, certain songs on certain notes, I will do it, but I'll usually lower the key before having to do too much of it.
 
Hi Lil,
normally on a uke, guitar, bouzouki a.s.o. a slightly different tune with plus/minus 2 steps makes absolutely no problems.

If you wanna have the low tune (DGBE -> CFAD) for its "mellowness", the sound of the "chord shape" also moves down (here i. e. 2 frets), so the G-shape (0001) now _is_ a F-shape, the A (2220) now is the G-shape. You don't have to learn new shapes, but the names changes. (Tune-shifting is only counting frets/half steps, i.e. boring :rolleyes:)
This shifting is good for lot of errors :wallbash: but keeps the mind fresh. :nana:

If you need help finding chord shapes with your tune CFAD, I can recommend
ukulelehelper.com

You can set the tuning of the strings to CFAD, the length of the fretboard and you will get the chords shapes (better: a set of identical chords with different patterns), and you also can pick/click on string/fretboard, and get the information how the name of that chord should be.

Have fun :music:
 
Here you go Val. You tell us :)



This just can't be right. I got E2 to F5 when I still had my morning voice and in the middle of having a cup of coffee. That would put the bottom of my range at the bottom of bass territory and the top of my range above tenor. I figured I'd be a slightly high baritone, but that's just ridiculous. I must be doing something wrong. I imagine I'm going beyond "comfortable." I'll have another go at it later when I'm properly awake.
 
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This just can't be right. I got E2 to F5 when I still had my morning voice and in the middle of having a cup of coffee. That would put the bottom of my range at the bottom of bass territory and the top of my range above tenor. I figured I'd be a slightly high baritone, but that's just ridiculous. I must be doing something wrong. I imagine I'm going beyond "comfortable." I'll have another go at it later when I'm properly awake.

Trying to be conservative I get G3 to C5. Maybe I'm singing the high notes an octave low without meaning to. That would put me somewhere between baritone and tenor. Lets go with that.
 
Yep. I was getting a very odd result there. My back has seized up now, so all I can manage is a grunt. I'll have another go tomorrow. One Angry Dwarf is probably a good indicator of my range though. You'll notice that I have the capo on the second fret. I can sing it without the capo, but it is more comfortable with it. I can also sing it an octave high without the capo, but it strains my voice.
 
Yep. I was getting a very odd result there. My back has seized up now, so all I can manage is a grunt. I'll have another go tomorrow. One Angry Dwarf is probably a good indicator of my range though. You'll notice that I have the capo on the second fret. I can sing it without the capo, but it is more comfortable with it. I can also sing it an octave high without the capo, but it strains my voice.

Trust you didn't put your back out doing that vocal test, Robin ... sounds dangerous! "Ubu", I am getting more and more confused by the depth and breadth of your knowledge ... and still haven't done the test myself yet.
 
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