Ukulele epiphany

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mudflap

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I'm a beginning uke player (~3 months now) and I had an epiphany last night thanks to Ukulele Fretboard Roadmaps.

I've had the book for a few weeks now and was stuck in the beginning until I realized how the different chord shapes (D, G, B) really work. D and E are still hard, but now I understand how they are related and how to use the G-D-B pattern to make different chords all along the fretboard. I highly recommend the book, though it did take me a few weeks of working with it to finally get it through my thick skull.

Now the hard part is trying to make my fat fingers produce good chords at the 10th fret.

Here's the link to the book...
http://www.amazon.com/Fretboard-Roadmaps-Ukulele-Essential-Patterns/dp/1423400410

Don't buy the kindle version because it doesn't come with music which is very, very helpful.
 
Hey there. Just wanted to commend you for making progress on your own through Ukulele Fretboard Roadmaps! The author is one of my ukulele instructors, and I'm slowly making my way through the book with his help - and even with help it's not easy :)

The beauty of it? After going through Roadmaps, you'll never fear the dreaded E chord again.
 
Congrats for making progress. I am trying to improve, but my brain sees these exercises as "math problems" and doesn't want to process and remember the info. It's hell getting old.
 
That's great! I got the book about a year ago and the same happened to me! All of a sudden it clicked just when I was about to give up!! I still am not very good, but I can play chords other than the 1st position!
Keep it up!!
 
Aloha Mudflap,
Welcome to the UU and our forums. and the ukulele...Have fun and enjoy..Google Musicteacher2010 and Keonepax for some ukulele video tutorials and Dr Uke for songs, chords and instructions..
As for the ukulele Fretboards roadmaps..we have a club here..http://www.ukuleleunderground.com/forum/group.php?groupid=156 check it out..Happy strummings...MM Stan
 
Hey mudflap - I'm right behind ya, I've been playing nearly 2 months now. I've been using Ukulele Boot Camp but am outgrowing that and am looking for my next challenge. After reading some of the reviews I think this is it! One review mentions that it's somewhat mathematical in nature, which is right up my alley. Thanks for sharing!
 
Ukulele Epiphany, that should be the name of your first album.
 
It seems for us beginners a good progression of materials would be first Uncle Rod's Ukulele Boot Camp, then plenty of playing along with Ukulele Mike's videos on YouTube, then going through the Fretboard Road Maps book. I'm at the Boot Camp level and working on the easier videos by Ukulele Mike. (I've got the Road Maps book just not working on it yet).
 
I had the same problem. I decided to forget the math. I still remember getting stumped by 3rd is 4 frets away. Then they tell you to find 5 and 7 with no hints. It's starting to click. What really did it for me was forgetting the math and following the cord shapes up and down the fretboard. I'll go back to the math when I'm more comfortable.
 
Thanks for sharing your progress, mudflap!

As you can see, these are the threads that really help other players!!
 
Thanks everyone. The support here is awesome. I'm now trying Fingerpicking Solos. It's also pretty good. I play Through the Night for my kids all the time. It really does calm them down.
 
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