Who says ukulele's are small maybe guitars are just big!

smgold101

smgold101

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So I used to dabble (and i mean at its minimum) on guitar and even bass some. So obviously i'm still very new at uke but its literally all i do...like i don't understand how my roommate haven't shattered it into a million pieces by now. But anyways so I'm on break and me and my friends went to guitar center and I tried playing on some of their acoustic guitars and two things...idk so used to my uke that I felt the guitar was HUGE like ukes are more comfortable to play in my opinion and then when trying to just fool around and play some stuff i couldn't remember any of it! Like nothing at all...lol Did anyone else have this issue switching from uke to guitar and vice versa?

Thanks
Seth
 
Hahaha. An endless debate. I like both but am definitely devoted to my ukuleles vs my (1) guitar. Some music noobs and a few guitar people crack on the uke like it's a joke. Lot of that comes from the Tiny Tim days way back. Hell the fewer people that play.....I'm ok with that. I dont want to see it get to ingrained in pop culture so that we all here about the "uke fad" that is going on. Anyway....I hear ya.
 
In my rambling I forgot to answer. Yeah, if I don't pick up the guitar regularly....it all slips away. Thats one reason I may pick up a bari because it strung DBGE like the bottom 4 strings of the guitar. That my help my retention some.
 
I actually played a small guitar before picking up the uke, so I can say that the ukulele is nothing of the sort. :cool:

That said, I never learned anything worthwhile on guitar, so my transition was smooth as silk.
 
i agree. i have 4 ukes. and 1 guitar. although i love the mellow tone of the guitar. my ukulele's are my first love.
 
I have played both for over forty years. It is funny, but when family members get together to sing and play music, if I have just ukuleles with me, my father makes no secret of the fact that he prefers it when I play one of my guitars (the Martin in particular). My older brother prefers the ukes. My younger brother prefers guitar. I prefer ukulele many times and for many tunes, but it is true that I will grab a guitar first for some tunes.

IF you don't play guitar for quite some time, the distance between strings takes some adjustment.
 
Guitars now seem HUUUUGE to me.

JJ
 
Whats a guitar? You must be talking about those super mega 6 string baritone ukulele. Man those things are big but I don't play one, I have 4 fingers for 4 strings.
 
I started playing guitar years before I touched a uke, but I'm more comfortable on a soprano than I am on a Strat now. I've been jamming with some friends lately and playing bass, and it feels freakin' massive!

The transition from guitar to uke was very easy because the chord shapes are all the same. Learning the proper chord names was a little tough (C is F, G is C, D is G), but I drilled it into my brain from strumming through songs in ukulele songbooks.
 
i must say i play both. guitar for 3 years and ukulele for 6 months now.. i would say that the ukulele has helped my guitar playing! mainly by keeping my interest! music is music and i love both. i can say that it does catch peoples eye a little bit more when i play ukulele at the local open mic/mike/stage but that is just because you don't see a lot of ukes here in KC Missouri... i like to go back and forth..

as i am still new to uke, all my songs i have written on guitar, and the covers i know are also on guitar.. but i am adding more and more to my uke collection everyday..

right now it seems i am more into the uke.. but i try to pick up the guitar everyday if i can..

also i can slap a capo on the 5th fret and use just the bottom 4 strings of the guitar!!! its a HUGE ukulele!!

i might pick up a Koaloha D6 this summer if i have the cash!!

d
 
Four strings better than six strings!

I have a talking ukulele that immediately wants to fight anyone who calls him a small guitar....

Wanguruwe Speaks!
 
I came from a guitar background, and now everytime I play an acoustic guitar, it does seem huge. I think I was destined to play the uke, because long before I had ever seen a ukulele, I was complaining that the guitar had too many strings too close together, and I kept putting a capo way down the neck... no lie
 
Finding the perfect match

I started on the guitar when I was 12 years old. Took classical lessons for 3 years. Picked up the 5-string banjo in my 20's, and no real transition problem there. Got really busy for a long time, and got out of practice. So, I have picked up the guitar again (and soon the banjo too). Then the ukulele caught my eye! I love it! It has inspired me to practice, and the callouses on my fingertips have never been this developed! I do have to pick up the guitar every day or two, because it does seem HUGE. And the new acoustic guitars in the music store look even bigger! I want to keep on speaking terms with the guitar and banjo, since I do like the sound of the lower notes. But the ukulele is definitely taking the front seat right now. I think people are mysteriously drawn to particular instruments. Some people like plucking and strumming strings, others like pounding drums or playing keyboards. It is a great thing when you can find the instrument that is right for you.

–Lori
 
i dont know if i could ever say guitar is too big, or ukulele is too small. to me they are completely different instruments... with a lot of similarities. i play all my instruments fairly evenly. so i guess my brain just knows what im playing by the position of my body, and it turns that switch on.

so when i have my hands out in front of me and my fingers arched, i know im in front of a keyboard.

when i have a chamber sitting on my right thigh and my right elbow pointing outward... acoustic guitar

when im clutching a chamber between my elbow and my trunk... ukulele

standing with 9lbs hanging from my neck and right shoulder... elec guitar

but i also try to keep dimensions to my comfort. my acoustic guitars are all grand concert size. thin bodied, narrow waist, cutaway. very comfortable playing sitting or standing. my ukulele are concert or tenor. most have strap buttons installed. but also have large lower bouts to make it easier to grip under my arm while standing.
 
hmm well i really am relieved that it is not just me who has this issue lol Like I couldnt believe it when i went to guitar center i was like what the heck??! lol But yea I think for now, my uke is riding shotgun and the guitar can chill in the back seat! Well the Uke will share it with my drums but thats a completely different subject haha.
Thanks for all your input
-Seth

side note, i'm lookin to transfer colleges and was at Northeastern in boston and drove around berklee and i was shocked how i didnt see not one person with what looked like could have been a uke case! your telling me berklee doesnt offer ukulele in their curriculum! shameful lol ;)
 
hoosierhiver said:
Guitar seem ridiculously big to me.I got to grin when I see one and wonder if they are trying to compensate for something else.;)
Click to expand...

the flipside is that no one is ever going to tell a ukulele player he's compensating. :D
 
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