Practice or Play?

[gustophersmob]

I’d say most of what I do is play. Maybe more accurately, “noodling.”

 

[LorenFL]

I guess I don't specifically practice just for the sake of practice. As many others have stated, I play to relax and unwind. My default mode is to just noodle. I'll noodle around some scales. I'll noodle around some chord progressions. Play bits of songs that I can manage to remember. And the more I do it, the more I'm able to make it cohesive and "improvise". But, I don't think of it as practice.

Another thing I do is play through chord progressions. I'm working on a list of my favorites, but I'll often go here:

Nothing But Great Ukulele Chord Progressions

Looking for some new ukulele chords to throw together?

ukulelego.com

And I'll play a progression... try to play it with different rhythms and strums. Try to find the "songs" that I know that are hidden in those progressions. So, in some ways, that becomes not practice, not really "playing songs", but more "playing a game".

And when I feel like it, I've got way too many tabs open on my laptop with songs that I like to play. I'll just pick something at random and play it a few times, then play something else. I have to be in the mood to do it, though. It requires me to look at the screen and keep up because I don't fully remember all of these songs and "what's the next chord?"

Is all of this practice? I suppose it's a matter of opinion. It IS, of course. But, it's not structured practice. The more you "practice" playing different chords and transitioning between them, learning common chord progressions and how they fit together, different strum patterns, and scales and such... the better you get, and it makes you more versatile to be able to play whatever song you want to play, improvise whatever you want to improvise, and... dance in that area Ripock lives in where you're doing a little bit of both.

 

[captain-janeway]

I try to do both but mostly play. I keep choosing songs with different chords etc so I build them into muscle memory.
I not much of a strummer. I keep replaying the song until my fingers feel how to pick it.
If you tell me to use X,Y, or Z strumming patterns my fingers gets get lost in the strings. For some reason my picking is much cleaner.

 

[ploverwing]

Too much play and you don't get much better, too much practice you don't want to play. I am not looking to be a professional so I would rather just play but there are some things I try to make time to practice. I don't practice until I am frustrated though.

This is truth.

 

[peanuts56]

One thing I'll do is take a song I've learned and work on it in another key. I don't really strum and sing so ninety nine percent of my playing is finger style. Classical, pop and old jazz standards make up my repertoire. I did that today with Back Home In Indiana. I learned it originally in G. Today I worked on it in F. When that's comfortable I may move it to a few other keys. I may work on substitute chords in these pieces. If you are learning something new, it's practice in my opinion.
I'll work on improvisation of old standards with backing tracks that are available on Youtube.
I don't do a lot technical exercises unless it can enhance a piece I'm working out. I did enough of that when I was a practicing regularly as a trumpeter. In brass it's about building endurance and chop strength but it's incredibly boring.

 

[UkeOkay]

When people ask me, I tell them I don’t play the ukulele, I play with the ukulele.

 

[LorenFL]

When people ask me, I tell them I don’t play the ukulele, I play with the ukulele.

Ditto!

 

[Doug W]

Lately I've decided to try to learn all the pieces in this book of 110 Irish tunes on the mandolin and ukulele. Doing this has led me to listen to a lot of players on the Web in an attempt to work on my tone and try to figure out all the subtleties of Irish music. I listen to mandolin, concertina, accordion, fiddle, penny whistle, banjo and any other instrument in an attempt to get it down.

I doubt if my brain will ever be able to store 110 tunes but I am enjoying trying, it may be practice but it is fun trying to learn note for note at this time.

If at any point, it feels tedious, I will do something else.

 

[Jan D]

For both strumming and fingerstyle, I’m primarily a player. Sometimes, if there is a more challenging section of music, I will play it more slowly, so that I can get it right. If it’s particularly problematic, I might even repeat the section once or twice. But as long as I’m just playing for my own enjoyment, I rarely feel the need to belabor the point.

However, I do play through music a number of times in a row when it’s going to be part of a performance. It’s not quite what I would call practicing, but I do whatever I need to do so that I don’t let my co-performers down. Every performing group - large or small, amateur or professional - deserves to have well-prepared members. At home, I enjoy being a solo musician, but as soon as I leave the house, I’m all about the group effort. That‘s my comfort zone when it comes to playing music in public.

 

[RafterGirl]

I always have music that I'm working on for Sundays at church, group jams, group performances, solo performances. I'm always finding new songs & things to work on. I guess I'm doing a combination for play & practice.

 

[kissing]

Most of the time I just play.
However when there is an upcoming live gig, I do some practice

 

[hendulele]

I’d say most of what I do is play. Maybe more accurately, “noodling.”

That‘s me in a nutshell. I have some sort of mental block about learning new techniques. I try (I really do), but I get bored. It has held back my development, I know, but occasionally I’ll incorporate a new technique into my noodling and have a minor breakthrough.

If I had started playing earlier in life (earler than my mid-50s), maybe I would be more patient. But life is precious. I love my ukuleles and the uke community. And I’m never going to make a living at it anyway. I guess my goal is to be decent enough not to embarrass anyone when I play with others.

 

[gustophersmob]

That‘s me in a nutshell. I have some sort of mental block about learning new techniques. I try (I really do), but I get bored. It has held back my development, I know, but occasionally I’ll incorporate a new technique into my noodling and have a minor breakthrough.

If I had started playing earlier in life (earler than my mid-50s), maybe I would be more patient. But life is precious. I love my ukuleles and the uke community. And I’m never going to make a living at it anyway. I guess my goal is to be decent enough not to embarrass anyone when I play with others.

That's kind of my approach. Its unlikely ukulele will ever be what puts food on the table for me, so my goal is to have fun.

I do come from a guitar background, so I have some level of technique already developed. If starting with no prior instrument experience, I would probably approach it differently.

 

[BBegall]

My "playing" is often committing to memory a chord melody arrangement of an American standard like "Misty" that I really like. I'm building a number of songs that I can just pick up the ukulele and play a recognizable tune without tabs or singing .

When I "practice" I'm usually trying to make a new strum or picking pattern part of muscle memory.

 

[Rllink]

A combination of both. It is hard to tell when practice becomes playing and playing becomes practice.

 

[Renaissance-Man]

Practice? We don't need no stinkin' practice!

It used to be I'd get together with others and play or jam, but the Pandemic changed all that, and it hasn't come back for me. I play solo now.

 

[JJFN]

I prefer 5757 for C6. Seems a bit easier to me

Agreed, it is easier and a beautiful chord. A little too high pitched for some uses.

 

[Mike $]

Guess what people. Every time you pick up your ukulele, you are practicing. Ha ha. I can see most of you would prefer to think that you don't practice, but you do. When you play, even a song you've played a million times before, you are practicing. When you learn something, or improve just a bit...practicing again.

 

[Oldscruggsfan]

One thing I'll do is take a song I've learned and work on it in another key. I don't really strum and sing so ninety nine percent of my playing is finger style. Classical, pop and old jazz standards make up my repertoire. I did that today with Back Home In Indiana. I learned it originally in G. Today I worked on it in F. When that's comfortable I may move it to a few other keys. I may work on substitute chords in these pieces. If you are learning something new, it's practice in my opinion.
I'll work on improvisation of old standards with backing tracks that are available on Youtube.
I don't do a lot technical exercises unless it can enhance a piece I'm working out. I did enough of that when I was a practicing regularly as a trumpeter. In brass it's about building endurance and chop strength but it's incredibly boring.

I plan to emulate your style of practicing. I generally transpose everything to the Key of F because it’s where I feel most comfortable singing, but will begin working on melody fingerings for each tune in at least 2 different keys.

 

[Voran]

Neither, I sonically vomit and defecate