Concert sized fretboard for a small 8yr old

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mornando

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I have just ordered a Kanile'a K-1 soprano for my 8 year old little girl off santa. She has been practicing for about 3 months once a week at school on their cheap ones and really loves the uke. Its definitely overkill for someone just starting but I can afford it so why not! Saves me buying again :D

She is more the size of a 6 year old though and I am worried that the size of the fretboard would be too big for her. It has a concert sized neck.

Here is a picture of it -

2d4790226a7c4a85925df377942fcbd5.jpg

Thoughts?
 
mornando said:
I have just ordered a Kanile'a K-1 soprano for my 8 year old little girl off santa. She has been practicing for about 3 months once a week at school on their cheap ones and really loves the uke. Its definitely overkill for someone just starting but I can afford it so why not! Saves me buying again :D

She is more the size of a 6 year old though and I am worried that the size of the fretboard would be too big for her. It has a concert sized neck.

Here is a picture of it -

View attachment 73868

Thoughts?
Click to expand...

Well first of all, parent of the year to you to investing in such a fine instrument for your daughter. As long as it doesn't mean missing a house payment or something, investing in quality instruments almost always pays back. This is a uke she can play the rest of her life without and upgrade (and as my 1930 Martin will attest, they can last a lifetime and then some!).

Unless she has really, really tiny hands, I wouldn't worry to hard about the size of the fretboard. I see children her age playing banjos and guitars, which have much larger fretboards. With that being said, if you were concerned about the size, why not order a standard soprano?
 
What a wonderful Santa! :)

I'm an adult of a certain age with child-sized hands (smaller than a few 10-year-old girls I compared them to when one of them freaked out and said "OMG your hands are so tiny!") so my experience may be different than that of a child, who theoretically might have more flexibility than me.

That being said - when I first started playing, I had a Koaloha and a Kamaka and wanted to round out my collection with a Kanile'a. I was fortunate enough to be able to borrow a concert-sized Kanile'a for a few weeks - I'm so glad I did this, because for my little hands it was unplayable! Kanile'as are known to have a heftier/chunkier/thicker* neck than other K brands, and this one was no exception. With my small hands, I was unable to span three frets in first position, making things like Bb impossible.

I have no trouble with this on Koalohas, Martins, or Kamakas, but I have tried other Kanile'as and they just seem clumsy in my hands. Never tried a soprano though, so as RichM suggested that may be the way to go - IIRC they have more frets than most sopranos so that should give her plenty of space as her playing progresses.

Part of me wants to say "she'll grow into it" and don't worry about it, but I'm not so sure. Inevitably when this topic comes up, someone posts a video of a bunch of Korean 4-year-olds playing enormous classical guitars - I'm not sure if that implies that little kids' hands can adapt to big fretboards or not, but mine certainly couldn't.

*Sorry I don't know the proper term, someone always calls me out on this so I'll clarify by saying its circumference measured about 1/8" more than the other two IIRC.
 
RichM said:
Well first of all, parent of the year to you to investing in such a fine instrument for your daughter. As long as it doesn't mean missing a house payment or something, investing in quality instruments almost always pays back. This is a uke she can play the rest of her life without and upgrade (and as my 1930 Martin will attest, they can last a lifetime and then some!).

Unless she has really, really tiny hands, I wouldn't worry to hard about the size of the fretboard. I see children her age playing banjos and guitars, which have much larger fretboards. With that being said, if you were concerned about the size, why not order a standard soprano?
Click to expand...

janeray1940 said:
What a wonderful Santa! :)

I'm an adult of a certain age with child-sized hands (smaller than a few 10-year-old girls I compared them to when one of them freaked out and said "OMG your hands are so tiny!") so my experience may be different than that of a child, who theoretically might have more flexibility than me.

That being said - when I first started playing, I had a Koaloha and a Kamaka and wanted to round out my collection with a Kanile'a. I was fortunate enough to be able to borrow a concert-sized Kanile'a for a few weeks - I'm so glad I did this, because for my little hands it was unplayable! Kanile'as are known to have a heftier/chunkier/thicker* neck than other K brands, and this one was no exception. With my small hands, I was unable to span three frets in first position, making things like Bb impossible.

I have no trouble with this on Koalohas, Martins, or Kamakas, but I have tried other Kanile'as and they just seem clumsy in my hands. Never tried a soprano though, so as RichM suggested that may be the way to go - IIRC they have more frets than most sopranos so that should give her plenty of space as her playing progresses.

Part of me wants to say "she'll grow into it" and don't worry about it, but I'm not so sure. Inevitably when this topic comes up, someone posts a video of a bunch of Korean 4-year-olds playing enormous classical guitars - I'm not sure if that implies that little kids' hands can adapt to big fretboards or not, but mine certainly couldn't.

*Sorry I don't know the proper term, someone always calls me out on this so I'll clarify by saying its circumference measured about 1/8" more than the other two IIRC.
Click to expand...

Thank you to you both for replying. My main issue is I wanted one of the big K sopranos and unfortunately in the UK they are very hard to find! I managed to find the kanile'a but as mentioned it has a concert neck.

I play guitar and normally I would try it on for size in a shop. The problem is, its hard to do that with this since the only one I managed to find was around 300 mile away!

I guess I will just have to wait until it arrives at my door to find out. I just don't want it to be an expensive mistake if it doesn't work out on Christmas day.

It is my intention to give her something that will last a lifetime and that will only inspire her further. Fingers crossed!
 
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Not sure about your daughter but I remember seeing Sungha Jung playing a full size guitar when he first got big on youtube. The guitar looked like it was bigger than him. He turned out alright. The uke MAY be too big for her, but she will grow into it eventually, and she'll have the benefit of being accustomed to the bigger fret board. I dont think id be too worried.
 
Completely unrelated but I live in Canada where we have snow during the winter. It was common for our parents to buy us hockey skates that were too big, skiis that were too big, ski boots that were too big, snow suits that were too big. You get the point. .........kids quickly get use to things and they do grow into them

Bravo to you for giving such a wonderful gift. It will be something she will always remember.
 
Amazing gift! I wouldn't worry at all about the size. She is just as likely to find it easier to play since the cheap Uke she has been learning on is likely not nearly as playable.
 
In the past when this has come up, someone often posted the link of the little 6 year old Korean girl playing a 12 string jumbo.
 
Is there no way to measure the neck width against the neck of the uke that she is currently playing?
 
nerdgirl said:
Is there no way to measure the neck width against the neck of the uke that she is currently playing?
Click to expand...

I don't think it will be possible. The one she uses is at school so I have limited access.

They are talking about letting them take it home during the Christmas period, but by this point it will leave me very little time to sort something else.

By what she said to me its a £20 Stagg Soprano like this one -

ad71e7669a58aca2adf09c5c34a9e238.jpg

Unfortunately the dimensions don't mention the fret board size properly. Below is all I have!

Top: nato
Back & Sides: basswood
Neck: sepetir
Headstock: nato
Fingerboard & Bridge: nato
Tuners: geared pegs w/ "antique white" plastic knobs
Scale length: 349 mm, (13.74 in.)
Fingerboard Dim. 177 mm (7 in.), 12 frets
Neck & Head: 300 mm (12 in.)
Body: 240 mm, (9.3 in.)
Total length: 540 mm, (21.25 in.)
Finish: natural

Its arriving in the post later this afternoon. I think the best thing to do is to physically take a look and make a decision from there.

I think the general consensus is that its borderline, but she should be able to adapt.
 
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My daughter's always been small for her age too. She started playing a 3/4 scale guitar at the age of 5 and did fine. Those frets are quite a bit wider then a tenor uke. I don't think she'll have any problems.
 
Squintz said:
My daughter's always been small for her age too. She started playing a 3/4 scale guitar at the age of 5 and did fine. Those frets are quite a bit wider then a tenor uke. I don't think she'll have any problems.
Click to expand...

Thanks for that Squintz. Its definitely reassuring to know :eek:
 
mornando said:
;)

Well its just turned up at the door and it looks beautiful on the pic my wife just sent me!

Here she is -

download_20141209_145016_1.jpeg
Click to expand...

It's lovely! And it's got a 14-fret join, this will come in useful if/when she is playing further up the neck. Even those of us with little hands can appreciate that extra room :)

One thing that hasn't come up in this discussion is just what level of playing she's doing. Because of the slightly larger size she may run into trouble with barre chords in first position (like I did on a concert Kanile'a) but as she progresses up the fretboard I suspect she will do just fine on this.
 
janeray1940 said:
It's lovely! And it's got a 14-fret join, this will come in useful if/when she is playing further up the neck. Even those of us with little hands can appreciate that extra room :)

One thing that hasn't come up in this discussion is just what level of playing she's doing. Because of the slightly larger size she may run into trouble with barre chords in first position (like I did on a concert Kanile'a) but as she progresses up the fretboard I suspect she will do just fine on this.
Click to expand...
You have a very keen eye...I missed the fact it had 14 frets! Bonus :D

At the moment she is only doing open chord strumming but I suspect she will run in to barre chords by about mid next year at the latest. (Especially if she is practicing at home)

It's a very valid point Jane. When I get home tonight I will have a proper look at the size.
 
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Mornando, that is a beautiful uke! Has she ever tried to play your guitar? If she can, I would assume this would be good to go.
 
I can't see it being a problem. Ukuleles look like a guitar on a toddler. Any difficulty she has with barre chords or anything else will just be a matter of practice practice practice, which she won't mind doing if she loves playing.
 
D3B7 said:
Mornando, that is a beautiful uke! Has she ever tried to play your guitar? If she can, I would assume this would be good to go.
Click to expand...

Thanks D3B7!

My guitar is a jumbo and she could probably fit inside it :eek:

Sabantien said:
I can't see it being a problem. Ukuleles look like a guitar on a toddler. Any difficulty she has with barre chords or anything else will just be a matter of practice practice practice, which she won't mind doing if she loves playing.
Click to expand...

That's what I am thinking now too. I had a little go and it seems small enough for her....maybe she might struggle with barre chords but I am sure it will be fine.

The quality of the instrument is there to see and I'm sure that in itself will make it easier to play.

Thanks everyone for your comments. If I'm honest, I didn't really take the ukulele too seriously but after watching you tube and having a little go of my daughters, I am a fan now. I think I will be getting myself a tenor one at some point!
 
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