Availability Ukulele Cheat Sheets?

If you play the violin, there is a wonderful thing called "The Fretless Finger Guide" - I am wondering if any such thing exists for the Ukulele?

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00E9EC2K4/

Like this?
http://www.musiciansfriend.com/book...0@ADL4MF-adType^PLA-device^t-adid^92666429427

Thank you Jim, that's pretty much it!

Appreciate your quick help!

WoodGlue

Why does that just seem like such a bad idea to me?

seattle said:

Why does that just seem like such a bad idea to me?

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Bad as in terrible? Or maybe "not so bad..." ??? Could you help explain, thanks!

I found the plastic sheets helped me enormously when first starting out with the Violin - so why not some help on the Ukulele too?

Thanks,

Wood

Looks like an excellent learning tool for learning the positions of notes. I want to learn these along with staff notation. I might give these a go!

I contacted the manufacturers of the Fretless Finger Guides and suggested to them that they are probably missing out on a huge, potential group of future customers - Ukulele owners. The nice thing about the Fretless is that it's a big sheet of thin floppy plastic that slides under the strings and attaches on the back. So no potential for sticker/tape residue messing up your good wood.

WoodGlue

WoodGlue said:

I found the plastic sheets helped me enormously when first starting out with the Violin - so why not some help on the Ukulele too?

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Anything that helps anyone learn any skill is good. I think the difference, though, is that a violin is fretless, so these markers help with orientation quite a bit more there than they do with a fretted ukulele (where the frets and, especially, side markers provide orientation). I'd also not want to put sticky stuff on my fretboard. (Also, if you change the tuning, notes are in different places.) If you hold the ukulele properly, you won't see the stickers.

The nice thing about the Fretless is that it's a big sheet of thin floppy plastic that slides under the strings and attaches on the back.

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A ukulele neck isn't smooth under the strings, there are the frets. You're pressing close to the frets, which will put strain on the plastic sheet and potentially move or damage it. Hmm, I imagine it may also touch the string a bit from beneath, in the next fret, which might affect the tone.

WoodGlue said:

Bad as in terrible? Or maybe "not so bad..." ??? Could you help explain, thanks!

I found the plastic sheets helped me enormously when first starting out with the Violin - so why not some help on the Ukulele too?

Thanks,

Wood

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Bad as in not such a good idea (to me). If it helps you then it is a good idea of course.

I see it as a crutch (but maybe it's a learning aid?). It's not that hard to learn the notes on an instrument and I think that it would slow the process down to have them labeled.

To me, it's kind of like have math problems at the end of a chapter and then having the answers right there rather than at the back of the book.

You may feel that you know how to do the problem but how do you know since the answer is staring you in the face?

There are certain patterns for notes on an instrument and I think it's better to learn those patterns rather than to label them but this is just my opinion.

The 12th fret is the same as the open string, two of the 5th frets are the same as the following open string, notes on one string repeat two strings over and 3 frets up (octave).

I think it's better to just (as a practice) sit down with the ukulele and play each of the 7 notes one at a time on each string. So play the "A" on the 4th string, 3th string, 2nd string, and 1st string and then repeat with "B" and so on.

It doesn't take long to learn the notes that way and it's fun. Just my opinion and way of doing things though.

I understand your way of thinking Seattle.

I contacted the people who make the Fretless Finger and they are already working on making a Ukulele version, so all is good there. The owner of the company just bought a Ukulele himself. Time will tell if it's a workable helpful tool

In any case, maybe it will help me learn more quickly, or whatever!

Wood

WoodGlue said:

I contacted the people who make the Fretless Finger and they are already working on making a Ukulele version

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I wonder how they will be able to overcome the physics of what Mivo said:

Mivo said:

If you hold the ukulele properly, you won't see the stickers.

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Actually I would be pretty surprised if they could...

Off topic on topic so here it goes... Just in case not everyone knows about this on the ukulele underground youtube page.

Cheers!



Free to print out and you dont have to stare at the fret board.

http://ukuleleunderground.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/fretboarddiagram.pdf

Inksplosive AL said:

Free to print out and you dont have to stare at the fret board.

http://ukuleleunderground.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/fretboarddiagram.pdf

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That is awesome! My husband would rather finger pick than strum, and he likes to pull out music, make me write down what the notes are (because he doesn't want to learn to read music), then try to figure them out on the ukulele. That will make the process go much faster!