baby questions: how to hold the uke? what's up with barre chords?

Some of the online uke teaching resources say that when you hold the instrument, you should be able to take away either hand without dropping it. Seriously?

There is no way I can hold it with just my right hand and still be able to strum. Is it because of the model I have, a Dolphin with that slightly convex plastic back? It slides all over. I've been practicing with it sitting in my lap, with the neck angled up at a comfortable angle and supported in my left hand.

It is pretty comfortable playing that way, except when I try to play barre chords. Thus my second noob question: any way to make those easier? I always have one string that is just muted and not actually producing sound, unless I mash down so hard that my fingers and thumb all turn white. Being that tense makes it really hard to change to a different chord without a break to shake out my hand. Do barre chords create a lot of tension for everyone, or will it eventually be possible to play them relaxed??! I'm afraid I'm going to strain something trying to play the fool things.

Sounds to me like you are pressing too hard. You should only ever press down just as much as you need. Try to avoid the bad habit of pushing too hard with your barre finger, as I often do, because you'll get a cramp in your hand after a while. Check your string height from the fretboard. The further from the fretboard the strings sit, the "higher" your action is, and therefore, the harder you'll feel you need to press to get the strings to sound right. Which can be a problem if the action is too high. In general, my electric guitar has better (lower) action than my acoustic. Barre chords are a lot easier on my electric. (Which probably means I need to bring the acoustic to the shop and have them adjust the action lower.)

As to holding the Uke in your (right) strumming hand only and still strumming....I'm not sure why you would ever do that personally. Maybe with a non-standard tuning where all open strings makes a more useful chord than a C6 or an Am7. I can hook my pinky in waist of the uke, and hold it to my body enough I can strum still with my thumb. But even if I play all open strings, I never completely let go of my (left) fretting hand.

Although it might be true that you can remove either hand without dropping the uke, there's no reason to ever hot dog like that. Besides, while sitting with the body of the uke on your lap, it's pretty tough to drop. Playing while standing is another matter.



Someone posted a video about barre chords recently. You want to apply pressure with the side of your finger; the part with more bone and less flesh. Try rolling your finger so that the palm-side of the finger is slightly exposed. You also want the first joint of your finger (nearest tip) to press on the G string. So the tip of your finger extends past the fret board a good bit.

J'aime said:

Some of the online uke teaching resources say that when you hold the instrument, you should be able to take away either hand without dropping it. Seriously?

Click to expand...

I think the key here is "hold" not play. You should be able to easily support the uke with one hand/arm. If you're right handed, in playing position you can easily support the uke in the crook of your right arm against your body.

And you can support it by holding the neck with your left hand.

I have had the same difficulties with bar chords and with actually holding the uke with one hand. I seem to be able to keep the left hand supporting the neck at all times, now. So, just having the fretting hand curled a tiny bit under the headstock keeps it from flying out of my hands. (This is much harder with the Risa Uke Solid, having no headstock) As for bar chords, this just gets better with time. I struggled for maybe six or seven months. Then the problem just disappeared. Just Practice. On occasion it seems to come back, when the position of the other fretting fingers puts my hand in such a position that the crease at the inside of my second finger joint is right at one string and it will not press down sufficiently, deadening that string. When I experience this, I don't press harder any more. I reposition the barring finger up or down a tiny bit so that the meaty parts of the fingers are on the strings. But, mostly it's just practice.

Could be too your action is too high and you need a set up....
Rest you bottom right bout on your upper thigh/ hip area
hold your uke at a 2 o'clock angle and let uke rest mostly on your thigh..
As for barre chords your thumb must be in the middle behind the neck...so you can apply
more pressure on the strings to the fretboard..also you uke might need a setup as the
action maybe too high and difficult to fret..and also the nut for the first fret Bb etc.

Your problems can be helped by using a strap. You will be amazed at how much easier it is to control the uke with a little support. See if you can get a strap button installed at your local music store. The Dolphin has a plastic back and sides, so it might need a block of wood installed inside to hold the screw. You could try one of my Uke Leashes, which do not require the use of a strap button, but holds the neck steady while you play.
Many professional ukulele performers use straps, so I don't see why more people don't use them.

The problem with the barre chords is common. You will get the hang of it with practice. You will build up more strength in your hands. You might consider lighter tension strings, which would be easier to hold down ( but probably sound quieter).

Good luck, and don't despair!
–Lori

Definitely consider a Uke Strap. It supports the headstock so you can concentrate fully on chord changes. A Uke Strap made a huge difference for me when I started. And Lori, who sells them, is great to do business with!

About barre chords, if your action and your technique are OK, building hand strength should help. The exercises in this video worked for me: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2CO7zryA668&lr=1

The sound quality is horrible (my playing isn't that great either) but here is a brief answer to your barre chord dilemma.


Practice barre chords higher up the neck first. The first fret is the hardest. A good setup is essential too. A high action will kill any attempts to barre cleanly. And yes, I used a strap for the demo. Without my left thumb for support I probably would have dropped it. My strap is a mandolin strap. Button hole on one end, simple loop around the headstock on the other.

I find that barre chords are more comfortable when I bring my left arm (my fretting arm) closer to my body---it feels like this angle is better for the required squeeze than my usual open-chord arm position.

This is a lot of great encouragement and advice, thanks everyone.

I got my uke from the fine folks at Uke Republic, who set it up for me, so I'm going to guess that the problem is more with me than with the instrument/set up.

DaveVisi, okay, I'm convinced, it IS possible to play barre chords without the death grip. Good to know.

I will be patient, keep practicing, and maybe get a strap...