Hello! D/F#?

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P4ttheb4ker

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Hello fellow ukulele lovers!

Hi, I'm p4ttheb4ker, and I'm new to this forum although I signed up a while ago.
I recently got a ukulele and I'm in love with it. I hope to be a faithful member to the forums. :D

One question though, what is the slash chord D/F#? I searched almost everywhere and can't find it. Without it, I can't fully play Showstopper by AJ Rafael.
 
Well, on the guitar that is just a D chord with an extra F# played on the 6 string so I'd say on the uke it's just the same as a regular D chord.
 
grappler said:
I think you just play the D chord man.

the / is there for when you have another person playing with u.
So when you play D
Your friend can play the F#
Click to expand...

I think p4ttheb4ker is probably looking at guitar chords, in which case the D/F# is an actual chord that can be played on the guitar... it goes 232002, but there just aren't enough strings on the uke to play it, so what you end up with is a D chord. It contains the same notes as the guitar version except on the guitar, you end up with both a high and low F# in your chord.
 
A D chord has 3 notes D, F# and A. D/F# means the F# is the lowest note(or bass note).
You can play it like this with high G tuning.
5
5
6
7
The C string 6th fret is F# and is yhe lowest note.
Even though the g string 7th fret (D) looks lower the G string is tuned higher so it's not.
Does that make any sense?
 
TokyoUketarist said:
A D chord has 3 notes D, F# and A. D/F# means the F# is the lowest note(or bass note).
You can play it like this with high G tuning.
5
5
6
7
Click to expand...
While this is technically true, slash chords are usually specified in order to build a bassline (such as a descending scale). This works with guitar chords since the root note of a chord is usually the lowest note. It doesn't always work with uke chords, however, and shifting a chord up the neck to try to fix the problem can cause other issues.
 
It's a slash chord. Some say the rule of thumb is to play the first chord on the uke and ignore the second chord.

Personally I give both a chance and then go for the one that sounds the best in the context of the song and the neighbouring chords. So play the song, and when you come across that chord, play a D. Then play it again and swap the D for an F#. Whichever of the two sounds best to you is the one you use.

If they sound roughly equal on the sounds-good-scale, then go for the chord that will best set you up to swap to the following chord. Otherwise, choose whichever matches your ability.

If you're playing with another uker, then you can try playing one chord while he/she plays the other. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't.
 
Last edited:
whetu said:
It's a slash chord. Some say the rule of thumb is to play the first chord on the uke and ignore the second chord.
Click to expand...
Please take the time to read the posts before yours in the thread (they are all correct)...it is NOT two chords.
 
P4ttheb4ker said:
Hello fellow ukulele lovers!

Hi, I'm p4ttheb4ker, and I'm new to this forum although I signed up a while ago.
I recently got a ukulele and I'm in love with it. I hope to be a faithful member to the forums. :D

One question though, what is the slash chord D/F#? I searched almost everywhere and can't find it. Without it, I can't fully play Showstopper by AJ Rafael.
Click to expand...


Welcome to the site P4ttheb4ker :shaka:
 
whetu, you clearly stated that we are dealing with two chords, and you suggested using one or the other or both together. Your contribution to the thread was misleading. That is no assumption.

Ukantor.
 
whetu said:
It's a slash chord. Some say the rule of thumb is to play the first chord on the uke and ignore the second chord.

Personally I give both a chance and then go for the one that sounds the best in the context of the song and the neighbouring chords. So play the song, and when you come across that chord, play a D. Then play it again and swap the D for an F#. Whichever of the two sounds best to you is the one you use.
Click to expand...

No, it is not two chords. It is a chord (the first letter) and a bass note (the second letter). This is done when the bass note is a note other than the root of the chord.

But on a uke that isn't tuned to a low G, it's often most practical just to play the chord (the first letter) in whatever position sounds and flows the best.

Caveat: If the second note is not a part of the regular chord (such as C/A), you should try to add that note (in this case, an A) into the chord. But for chords where the second note is already one of the notes in that chord (such as C/G), I'd go with whatever variation of the chord sounds and flows the best.
 
:worship:

Guys, I don't dispute that it's one chord. See my last response.

Fact of the matter is, it IS represented with two, in this case D / F# and when beginners come across these, they ask "which should I play?"

I was simply trying to point out (without a big music lesson attached) that the standard response of "just play the D" might not always be the best rule of thumb to follow, just because I worded it badly doesn't mean you should all jump on me. It's that holier-than-thou attitude that turns people off.

"Just play the D" in a way treats it as two chords anyway, so why don't you go and attack the people who give that advice? And what's inherently wrong with me saying "whichever sounds best" (something Thumper has just gone and said anyway)?

So relax guys, because I'm not here to argue semantics, I'm here to help out fellow ukers.

:cheers:
 
whetu said:
:worship:

Guys, I don't dispute that it's one chord. See my last response.

Fact of the matter is, it IS represented with two, in this case D / F# and when beginners come across these, they ask "which should I play?"

I was simply trying to point out (without a big music lesson attached) that the standard response of "just play the D" might not always be the best rule of thumb to follow, just because I worded it badly doesn't mean you should all jump on me. It's that holier-than-thou attitude that turns people off.

"Just play the D" in a way treats it as two chords anyway, so why don't you go and attack the people who give that advice? And what's inherently wrong with me saying "whichever sounds best" (something Thumper has just gone and said anyway)?

So relax guys, because I'm not here to argue semantics, I'm here to help out fellow ukers.

:cheers:
Click to expand...

What up, Whetu? LOL... No one disputes that you are only trying to help out your fellow ukers. Kudos to you for helping out.

But slash chords are not either/or. When you see D/F#, it does not mean that you can play either a D chord or an F# chord. It means that you play a D chord that has an F# note as its lowest note.

If I was telling my buddy how to play a song that had a D/F# chord, I would say, "play a D chord with an F# in the bass."

I hope this clears up the confusion a little, buddy. No one's attacking you! :D We just want to make sure that the correct information is on the site.

Peace.
 
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