Your ukulele voice....

mm stan

Mystery Man
UU VIP
Joined
Feb 5, 2010
Messages
28,195
Reaction score
28
Location
Honolulu, Hawaii 5min away from waikiki
I don't think anyone has a worse voice than me...sometimes it's hard to match with my
ukuleles voices...I've gotta pick and choose the right ukes for that or drop the tuneing
to accomadate my voice....What do you do...when your voice doesn't match up to your
ukulele???? MM Stan...
 
hi Stan

Great question mate. Hmmm...I find that it's a process of elimination...

I start by voicing the uke to the song: that is , on the basis of theme, tone, emotional content etc to find whether it needs a brighter snappy rhythm or a deeper, warmer sound depending on the style/genre of the song. Then I just go with that and find where the voice naturally sits. Sometimes I need to alter the tunings. Often I'll either just transpose the music to a more vocal friendly key,or on odd occasion, use a capo.
 
yes I definitely have the same problem. I have low baritone voice and matching my vocal range ( mostly D below the C below Middle C and a high of Middle C) is many times difficult to match to most melody lines. When the melody line goes two or three notes above the high C, I sound too strained and false, so that is why I rewrite most things 3 steps down. What works best for me is I usually go to the musical notation and rewrite the melody line 3 steps below the melody line and then try to work most keys to key of G if I can. I also keep most of my ukes strung to C tuning with low G. Once I have it worked out it on the notation, it then becomes easier to come back to it and enjoy it. I am not too sure others (family) agree with me :) Lozark
 
Mahalo Kevin and Eugene nad Lozarkman,
Thank-you for your responses...I have a couple ukuleles no matter if you use alternate tunings of transpose the keys it simply doesn't work....and let me tell you their high end ukes...really disappointed buying
them...my cheap ukes have a sweeter voice that matches my voice rather well....what's up with that one..the expensive ones sounds really bright and harsh....and I'm not talking even with aquila string..took
them off and put thicker heaver strings on and the harshness is still there....sheesh...What next guys, and suggestions....only one last thought, take out the bone saddle and nut, what do you think!!! MM stan..
and Larry, that's when I drop mine 2 half steps but some ukes even that doesn't work....sheesh...
 
Last edited:
Well, I got a huge problem, or maybe not depending on the perspective. I do have a voice. I been told a good one altho I"m not as sure as others. My Mother and Father both had awesome singing voices. My mother being an unbelieveable soprano, and my father the richest of rich baratones. My oldest sister also has the voice of an angel, altho my nest oldest sister has the voice of a geko with a head cold. But my oldest and myself (I guess) took on the pipes, altho I have never been able to sing in public with comfort. My daughter has carried it on, and sings like a bird with remarkable range. She has since about 2 years of age. She sang, before she even talked. Now since I never liked to sing in public, I took on the guitar back when I was 15 years old. It was my excuse, because I NEVER been able to sing and play at the same time. And still can't today. I sing, then I pick up a Uke and start playing but as soon as I start to sing with it, I mess up playing. I just can't chew gum and walk at the same time. Not sure what it is, just never have been able to do it. My daughter has the same problem. She plays guitar, and I want her to sing along with her playing, but she can't either, it's either/or for the both of us I'm afrade.
 
Aloha Bruddah Tudorp,
I'll swap your voice for my troubled uke anytime....but happy to hear you've got a good voice that runs in the family....MM Stan
I do side by side comparisons of my cheap uke and my expensive one and I am a compete aw...same song, same style, same strings, etc...
 
Last edited:
I sing in the key of Uke.

C? G? A? No clue. I strum the chords and sing in a comfortable voice. I am vaguely aware of the need to go higher or lower from time to time, but mostly I just sing the darn song and "let that baby fly". Maybe that's why I like to sing goofy songs as opposed to ballads, country as opposed to rock, and Ringo as opposed to John.

If I really wanted to, I am certain my singing voice could be exercised into something nice. A simple recording device, honest appraisal, and a few pointers from a professional is all it would take. Well, that and practice, practice, practice. But if you are already singing and are not happy with it, get some help. Think about it this way: if your car needs repair, do you go online, read the articles, then go fix it yourself? Or do you go online, get educated, then seek a pro to help out?
 
I've had my "main" uke for about 2-1/2 years. She has a very pretty tone that blends well with my voice. She also is very responsive to different styles of playing to give me a different "sound." I have played many ukes and purchased several others and have not found any of them as well suited to me. That definitely cured my UAS.

I transpose nearly everything to a key that works well for me, vocally. It's not uncommon for me to try out a song in 3 or 4 different keys before settling on one.
 
I've had my "main" uke for about 2-1/2 years. She has a very pretty tone that blends well with my voice. She also is very responsive to different styles of playing to give me a different "sound." I have played many ukes and purchased several others and have not found any of them as well suited to me. That definitely cured my UAS.

I transpose nearly everything to a key that works well for me, vocally. It's not uncommon for me to try out a song in 3 or 4 different keys before settling on one.

I just watched your Halleluja video. Awesome.. I love that song, and really came out nice on the Uke.. I need to learn to play that now..
 
Thanks! It's a beautiful song. I wish the winds had been calmer the day I recorded it.

yeah, I noticed that, but ya can't complain because there aint no better place to play the uke than on a boat. My family used to love singing and playing on our pontoon out on lake Don Pedro in the foothills of the serias. We used to have church on the boat many Sundays. Was a blast.. But, you should record that again in a more mic friendly enviornment. It was really good.
 
Well, I got a huge problem, or maybe not depending on the perspective. I do have a voice. I been told a good one altho I"m not as sure as others. My Mother and Father both had awesome singing voices. My mother being an unbelieveable soprano, and my father the richest of rich baratones. My oldest sister also has the voice of an angel, altho my nest oldest sister has the voice of a geko with a head cold. But my oldest and myself (I guess) took on the pipes, altho I have never been able to sing in public with comfort. My daughter has carried it on, and sings like a bird with remarkable range. She has since about 2 years of age. She sang, before she even talked. Now since I never liked to sing in public, I took on the guitar back when I was 15 years old. It was my excuse, because I NEVER been able to sing and play at the same time. And still can't today. I sing, then I pick up a Uke and start playing but as soon as I start to sing with it, I mess up playing. I just can't chew gum and walk at the same time. Not sure what it is, just never have been able to do it. My daughter has the same problem. She plays guitar, and I want her to sing along with her playing, but she can't either, it's either/or for the both of us I'm afrade.

I feel your pain on singing and playing at the same time!
 
I also have a pretty crappy voice and so when I sing at our local pub where a load of us meet and "jam" with lots of different instruments, I tend to sing " silly" songs where the lyrics are more important than the tone of my voice, goes down well and I dont feel embarrassed.
 
I don't think anyone has a worse voice than me...

I can prove you wrong, unless you're the singer in this video...



John
 
Aloha Harold,
Don't get me wrong, I can sing some but with these two ukuleles voice, I cannot..tried everything..with my cheapo I can get by and no problems on some songs...I know which chords is best for my voice
and key..It's these 2 ukuleles...uke voice that is harsh and bright that changes that...anybody has any idea or should I just get rid of these two ukuleles and move on.. any Ideas anybody..Halp!!!MM Stan..
 
Oh lawd. Why is that video almost 4 minutes long. I had to shut it down in less than a minute.. Ekkk..

BWAAA-HAAA. The funny thing is, if you can force yourself to watch the whole thing it gets better (meaning worse) as time goes on. Not only does the singer suck and the band not gell - by the end you realize that each and every band members is truly atrocious in his own right! At some point some guy wanders on stage and turns the guitarist down then wanders away again. It's truly an inspirational video for those of us who occasionally become discouraged at the meager amount of talent we were blessed with...

John
 
BWAAA-HAAA. The funny thing is, if you can force yourself to watch the whole thing it gets better (meaning worse) as time goes on. Not only does the singer suck and the band not gell - by the end you realize that each and every band members is truly atrocious in his own right! At some point some guy wanders on stage and turns the guitarist down then wanders away again. It's truly an inspirational video for those of us who occasionally become discouraged at the meager amount of talent we were blessed with...

John

I guess I need to donate 4 minutes of my life then. I will simply keep reminding myself that it is only for it's comedic value, lol..
 
Top Bottom