Ease of Reaching Hard to Reach Chords

johnnysmash

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While playing my baritone ukulele I was wondering. Because I can hardly use my left thumb would it be a little easier to play a chord that I have difficulty with on a tenor or would it not make enough difference to matter. I am thinking the slightly smaller reach might do the trick on some songs.

Also how much difference would it make playing on an electric?

My thumb to my neck will not get well without surgery which only has a 50% chance of success. So surgery is out. Avoidance is recommended and from trying to use the thumb, the pain tells me that is correct.

I can play most things on the baritone with out pain or very little which goes away by the next day.
 
It depends. Might be a little easier but I would think things like action height and string tension would have more of an effect that fret spacing. Also the shape and depth of the neck. All of these are very personal so no way to know for sure without trying.
 
I'm not sure what you're doing with the left thumb when holding chords.
I don't use my left thumb to press any strings, and it's conventional to use the other 4 fingers instead.
The left thumb just rests on top of the neck.

What kind of chords are you specifically struggling with?
Perhaps that might give some clues.

Generally speaking, chords are "easier" to play for most people on a baritone ukulele, since you have a bit more space between the frets, instead of having to cram your fingers closer together, especially on chords like D and E.

As for whether it's any different on an "electric ukulele", the short answer is no.
Because electric ukuleles are basically setup the same as acoustic ukuleles, just lacking a hollow body.
Unless you mean steel-string electric ukuleles, which still don't make a big difference in ease of play - on the one hand, you can have lower actions due to steel strings, but the steel strings themselves can be higher tension, making them harder to press down.
 
I cannot use my thumb to press on the back neck of the guitar or ukulele in any way because it causes too much pain. As you say, the thumb just rest at the back of the neck of the guitar/ukulele most of the time, however, to play F chords or any barre chords one must use the thumb to some extent and for me that is not possible. That is exactly why I am searching for a way to overcome the problem.

So what chords: all barre chords and all F chords on ukulele. I gave up guitar because of my thumb and will not play guitar again unless someday I can play a tenor guitar. I am at present learning to play ukulele and lap steel.

I like chord melody arrangements by Mike Lynch and would like to add fingerpicking. I am working on "A Time For Us" first song in book 2. In measure 8 barre 5th fret 5557,top to bottom. Measure 14 calls for a 3/4 barre on 2nd fret 5320, top to bottom, which calls for a stretch to reach the 5th fret and to do so requires some use of the thumb on the back of the neck of the ukulele.

So all barres and many stretches covering more than three frets I need to use my thumb and can't. I also have short fat fingers

Hopefully you can give me some advice on how to overcome the problem. Note, more practice and it will come is not an answer. I played guitar for a few years and could play all F chords and most barres. At that time I only strummed chords.
 
I understand thumb pain playing a lot of barre chords on a guitar. I don't have as much of a problem with the ukulele except for a few songs.

There is a guy in the San Diego area that makes 3 string ukuleles (no G string). It is almost like playing a standard linear tuned ukulele without the added depth, so the sound is not as full. But there are no barre chords, per se, and the typical E chord shape is not a problem. His name is Fred Shields.

It may be worth looking into, if the lap steel doesn't work out.

John
 
You can make Barr Chords without using your left thumb. Use your right arm to push the body of the ukulele towards you and force the headstock out as a lever. Use the fingers of your left hand as a counter balance as you make your Barr.
 
Could you use a capo and transpose everything you play into modes that avoid barred chords altogether?
 
I have noticed that some folks play an F chord, 3211, on baritone as a full barre chord. I find it much easier to play it as a partial barre, with the index only barring the first two strings. I don't see the point of barring all four strings when the 3rd and 4th strings are fretted above the barre.
There are alternate fingerings for some chords that use a full barre. F#7 can be made with a full barre, 2322, but to avoid any barre, you could play it with 4320 fingering. Going for the two finger A7, 2020,instead of the 2223 version avoids another barre.

Do you have trouble with non-barre chords that are closed like a 4535 D7?
 
With re-entrant ukulele and normal tuning, C6, you can many times play chords with just 3 notes, muting the 4th string. From reading you, I think barres are sort of out because of a damaged thumb. Keys F, C, G should work well in it. Even Bb chord is playable (your f chord) with a partial barre without thumb behind the neck, though thumb behind the neck helps.

Shorter scale might help too.
 
The suggestion about playing in the keys of G and C and playing semi-open chords up the neck or muting the G string is a good one. Much of Jake's older instrumentals were semi-open in G. Some of his stretches are insane so there needs to be work arounds at times.

I think the issue is trying to follow partucular arrangements (Ukulele Mike) that require chord shapes that will inherently be painful to play. It may be that you can change the arrangements to simplify them. I have a tendency to go that route when working on a song.

John
 
What about LoPrinzi ukuleles? I thought I had read somewhere that the neck is thinner than most? (Not sure that "thinner" is exactly the right word, but someone here will surely be able to fill us in.)

I end up modifying arrangements that don't work for my fingers, (which were all smashed in a garage door mishap), and can usually find a way around problem fingerings. I just play for myself, not in public, so I don't need to worry about anything other than how it works out for me and if I'm having fun.

I mentioned in the other thread on this, (in the Beginners forum), that a strap might be helpful, if you're not using one, and with your neck problems, there are still options for straps, like a uke leash used in one of the configurations that they have that avoids the neck.
 
Right now I am playing sitting. I will be 80 years old next month and suffer from osteoporsis in both knees. See, when you get old you can have all sorts of fun. So I sit and play as one would with guitar in the classical position. Left foot raised on a block of wood and ukulele on left leg. This position almost puts the ukulele in the right position for me to play. I think I need to maybe raise it a little higher. I am searching for some type of rack or stand for the ukulele or something for my lap to help raise the ukulele from about 4 inches to maybe 6 inches. When I sit like this and keep the ukulele in about a 45 degree position it seems to work alright, however, I would still like to find a way to adjust it up or down a little so as to find the perfect place.

I am also looking for a tenor ukulele so I will see if I can find one in Bangkok next trip and look for LoPrinzi or any other company that makes a good ukulele with a smaller neck. The back of the neck of my Kala is round and a little thick. I am going to lower the action some later this week, that should help some.
 
If you go to a tenor, you can tune it down from C to B or Bb. You might even be able to tune it to baritone G. As you lower the tuning you reduce string tension which should make it easier to fret the chords. The downside is that the strings may feel a little too loose. If you go that route you may want a lightly built tenor so the volume is not too low.

John
 
What about LoPrinzi ukuleles? I thought I had read somewhere that the neck is thinner than most? (Not sure that "thinner" is exactly the right word, but someone here will surely be able to fill us in.)

I would definitely say they make just about the slimmest necks I have ever played, personally. For what it's worth they are also up there as some of the lightest and most delicately built instruments I have ever played as well. I have played some of their koa instruments and was pretty impressed, though I've never played any of the other woods they build in pretty commonly (mahogany, cherry, spruce/maple, etc). Here is a sound sample of one of theirs from HMS: https://vimeo.com/259077919

I don't own one myself yet, but I will in a few weeks.
 
Would it be possible/useful to somehow pad your left hand in some way to increase the pressure that your palm exerts on the neck instead of the thumb? Maybe find some fingerless gloves and use extra foam-rubber to build up an area of the palm to act as a "fake thumb"?
 
You may want to look into a Basal Joint brace to relieve some of the pressure.

Something that will probably work would be to learn to play left handed, but I just tried to do that and both my co-ordination and perspective is so off, I'm not sure I could ever convert. But if it got to where I could no longer play, I might give it a go. I suggest playing left handed, fretting with the right, based on my bad left thumb from years of playing and how it has impacted my mountain biking.

I used standard trigger shifters for both front and rear shifts (left hand/right hand). After a short distance I couldn't shift with my thumb on my left hand due to the pain, (generally not a good thing), and I am using an older type of shifter that I can shift with my palm. But I can shift all day with my right thumb without pain, which is good because I shift the rear gears a lot more.

John
 
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