Confessions of a Baritone Ukulele Player...

ukulelecowboy

Well-known member
Joined
Oct 27, 2010
Messages
820
Reaction score
2
Location
Columbus, Ohio
The Official Ukulele Collection of The Ukulele Cowboy Society has just turned 80 when the Regal Wendell Hall Master Concert that I got off ebay a week ago showed up.

The collection is made up of all sizes and types but when we go on stage, I play a baritone exclusively.

A few weeks ago, I started looking around for something a bit more "high-end" than the Pono Mahogany that I routinely play. After scouring Ebay and the web, it became even clearer that the Baritone was the minority. Oh, there were plenty of the high end "K" brands in those other sizes but not the bari.

I thought about a different approach. Maybe I was limiting myself. After all, I've been playing the ukulele going on seven years. I should be able to manage a smaller instrument. I looked over the collection and decided to change the G string from my Compass Rose Sycamore Tenor from re-entrant to linear G and see how it went. I practiced with my wife on a few songs from our songbook, and decided to perform with it at a gig that we did last Saturday.

I brought my Pono Baritone along just in case. (Hey I might have UAS but I ain't stupid!) Halfway through the first set, I started dreaming about my Baritone. The nice wide fretboard. The comfortable string spacing. The "miles" between the frets. I yearned for it, pined for it, wished I was playing it instead of this fabulous little tenor.

The first set ended. My performance was mediocre at best. I wanted my baritone but then I thought about how limited my choices were out there in the ukulele acquisition world. (Plus Baritones can be up to 25% more expensive!)

My wife could see that something was wrong and she knew what it was. Her and her small hands! She had been eying my beautiful Compass Rose ever since it entered the collection and she wanted it! She hoped that this experiment would fail! What was I going to do?

What can I say. I caved to temptation. The second set started and my Pono Baritone was back where it belonged, cradled in my loving arms. The Compass Rose was back in its case for the remainder of the gig and will be my wife's performance ukulele. The gig ended on a bittersweet note (no pun intended.)

My name is Michael Kaplan and I am a Baritone Ukulele Player.

Thanks for listening...
 
Hi Mike.

I just switched to baritone about a month ago. I have been playing for a bit over a year now, and I started on a Kala tenor. I bought a Baritone for my wife at the end of last year, so she could play along with the rest of the family. Sh wanted to play baritone because of the similarity to guitar cords. I tried it, and loved the sound, but agonized over leaving the re entrant tuning i had come to love, and which all of the songs I had learned were geared towards. Since i play mostly fingerstyle, the set up of the strings is important. I didn't want to start all over, and thought about maybe getting a small guitar, but i ended up getting a baritone, and tuning it high D. I love the sound, and i can play all the music I used to, but it sounds more mellow. If necessary, I can capo it and get the same key as before.

I have the basic Kala for my baritone, so the high end thing is not a concern for me as of yet. i hope to eventually make my own Ukes, so maybe it will never be an issue.

I love the Baritone! It turns out to be what I was really looking for when i discovered the Uke. Choosing to tune it re entrant has sealed the deal for me. If I need low tuning for any songs I may want to play, I can borrow my wifes baritone, and I don't have to worry about different spacing on the fret board.

Take care,

Tom

PS, My name is Tom McArdle, and I play baritone too!
 
Last edited:
Kanilea makes baritones. you can try contacting them
 
I love baritones, they have so much volume and tone. I don't know why they are not more popular?
 
I have two recommended baritones for you, Michael...

Ohana BK-35 and the Mainland "Classic Mahogany". Both of these baritones sound great. The Mainland is all solid mahogany bound with traditional looking rope binding. The Ohana is faux tortoise-shell binding and constructed of solid mahogany throughout.

I prefer the Aquila strings that Mike puts on his baritones to the GHS strings that come on the Ohana baris. On the Ohana, I used D'Addario strings in DGBE.
 
I saw some fancy Tenor Guitars in the sagamusic catalog... They might be a little bigger than Baritone Ukuleles though... can't tell.
 
Tenor Guitar. Longer scale length (23") and narrower at the nut (1 1/4")

Traditionally tuned CGDA (fifths)

Thought to be developed as a transitional instrument for banjo players to the guitar in the 20's.

Nick Reynolds of the Kingston Trio played a Martin...
 
Mike,
I am glad that you are good with yourself. Go with what you know.
 
Tenor Guitar. Longer scale length (23") and narrower at the nut (1 1/4")

Traditionally tuned CGDA (fifths)

Thought to be developed as a transitional instrument for banjo players to the guitar in the 20's.

Nick Reynolds of the Kingston Trio played a Martin...

Chicago tuning was DGBE and its fans included Scatman, among others.
 
I picked up a Kala baritone in a guitar store and it just felt right. Bari may be closer to a guitar missing two strings than to a uke, but I don't think there's any shame in that. More strings and more notes don't automatically make an instrument better, or we'd all be playing these...
 
Interesting thread on Baris! Definitely a mixed bag on people's regard for Baris. I also play mostly Baris, and with a set of Southcoastukes Strings, I think they are just hard to beat, on many levels. Glad you chimed in on your prejudice Mike, had me upset for a moment :) I keep one tuned DGBE and one tuned GCEA and have the best of both worlds. Yes one does have to adapt a bit to the chord names, but that really isn't that difficult. And as to ukulele sound, my Bari in C tuning ABSOLUTELY sounds like a UKULELE!!! Just sayin :) Capo a Guitar to C tuning and it will not sound like a ukulele!! Lozark
 
Because they are NOT ukuleles!
Of course they are. That's like saying Great Danes aren't dogs because they're bigger than Chihuahuas. Or that a tenor sax isn't really a sax because it's longer than a soprano sax.

I really like baritone for some songs. Others I prefer tenor. Oops. I guess tenor isn't a real ukulele because it's bigger than a concert. Oh wait, that's not a real ukle either because it's bigger than a soprano.
 
Top Bottom