Pesky down up downs!

Ipsofacto

Ipsofacto

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Coming from a background where I've dabbled with guitars and basses, I'm a bit ashamed to say that I'm having a little trouble with using my index finger for down / up strumming!

I can chugg away at the strings with the best of them ( I even find it pretty easy to chunk), but can't seem to stop concentrating on the strumming when it comes to using my index finger for anything other than down strums. As such, tend to either mess up and lose rhyme when I'm singing along, or end up tugging the strings too hard on my upstroke...

I am getting better with practice, but short of this, any pointers on this would be greatly appreciated :)
 
Don't worry. It took me two months of playing before I could even do an upstrum. (No prior music experience) And that was only after I put the uke aside for a vacation.

You strum down with your nail, and strum up with the pad of your finger, but it should be a natural motion.

However, there's no hard and fast rule that says you must use your index (though I find this the easiest). There are some that strum up with their thumbs and down with their index like they are using a pick (don't use a pick by the way- well, unless you like the sound). Either way, it takes some getting used to. Maybe put the uke aside for a day (I know, it's tough) and then try again afterwards.
 
I think you are getting it..........."I get better with practice." Many of us tried to move on too quickly, before we actually "mastered" the strum. When I started out, I used to mute the strings and just practice strums until it was smooth and natural, sometimes during TV commercials, etc. The speed follows automatically. Master the down, then the up, THEN do them together. My biggest mistake was trying to play faster than my skill level would allow me to do smoothly and comfortably.
 
The only thing I could think of is to be keep that hand relaxed. I'm still learning, but in the begining I was keeping my finger to rigid and stiff, my "up" strumming suffered because of it. Relaxed it a bit and everything became much more fluid.
 
hammer40 said:
The only thing I could think of is to be keep that hand relaxed. I'm still learning, but in the begining I was keeping my finger to rigid and stiff, my "up" strumming suffered because of it. Relaxed it a bit and everything became much more fluid.
Click to expand...

I think you've hit the nail on the head Hammer (badum tish). I think that's possibly my problem with it. I feel like my up strum is defiantly too stiff. I think after doing a little bit of air strumming at the office, that I'm tensing the finger and pulling 'up' while my hand is also going up, hence my less than gentle plucks.

I think I'll do that Phil... It'll give me a good excuse to crack out the metronome! Just do some downs, then some ups, then try and put them together. I think because I made leaps and bounds with the chords, I'm expecting the same with the strumming. I'll just have to keep at it and hope it comes in time :)

And maybe that's just what the doctor ordered Mister, I've been playing it nonstop since I got it (I do like throwing myself into things!), so maybe I just need to put it down a day or two and re-evaluate. And as a bassist, I know not to use a pick on anything that's not a guitar ;) Fingers are where it's at!
 
Never force learning, it gets fustrating, have fun and enjoy the journey..it will come naturally one day....when you get that aha moments....
You have to feel the music and only time and practice is the best way to get there....happy strummings..
 
Ipsofacto said:
I am getting better with practice, but short of this, any pointers on this would be greatly appreciated :)
Click to expand...

Don't short your practice. As you already mentioned - you are getting better with practice. It just takes time.
 
Uke Whisperer said:
Initially I had the same problem. I found this workshop lesson and incorporated into daily practice by itself, and while practicing chord transitions. Once I had the hang of it I tried to make the ups and downs using the same pressure on each. Then I started some different syncopations/timings. It worked well for me. Hope it helps you.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q_CmQEnSHpQ&list=UUH6E4xDfxBqrkoKdAyVu2dg&index=130&feature=plcp
Click to expand...

Wow! That video is incredible :) That down-down-up sounds very nice :D! I'll give it a try when I can get the down-ups sounding nice :)

I guess it's all about sticking to the practice regime then. I'm trying not to force it Stan, because as you say, it'll become more chore like! Cheers guys, any other videos like this would be greatly appreciated though!
 
Ipsofacto said:
Wow! That video is incredible :) That down-down-up sounds very nice :D! I'll give it a try when I can get the down-ups sounding nice :)

Personally, I would practice the DDU, then go back to DU and DD. Seemed that once I "got" the DD of the DDU, then making the U sound correct was easier. Why? I have no clue. May just be an old age thing. Have fun...
Click to expand...
 
I had a friend who was having the same problem. I had him put his strumming hand in the strumming position he wanted to use, then moved his hand up and down without actually touching the strings. Up and down, up and down about half an inch away from the strings. We did it together....then moved a little closer to barely touching the strings (Fretting hand was just muting the strings so there was no expectation of playing a chord cleanly). After doing that for a couple minutes it allowed his brain to not worry about it anymore and he had the up strum mastered. Perhaps that will help you....

Good luck, keep trying!
 
Just play very slowly and increase speed as the strumming becomes more second nature.
 
I strum up with my thumb. It just felt right, so I stuck with it. It works for me. I can go back up with the pad of the finger, but I like the up with the thumb better.

Try a simple down up down up repeat until you are comfortable with going in both directions, then start trying different patterns. I let the rhythm of the song determine my strum patterns. Again it was something that I didn't consciously think about, I just did a strum that seemed to fit the natural rhythm of the song. Sometimes you can concentrate too hard on your strumming patterns.
 
I've been going over Uncle Rod's Uke Boot camp and practicing down ups along with new chords, and I think I'm getting there slowly! I find I can do it with my thumb or index finger now at a pretty decent pace, with only the occasional mispluck of the strings :) Also took the plunge and picked up a paisley Kala Ukadelic, so enjoying wearing it a little :)
 
That is a great lesson you posted. I've been working on it for about 15 minutes and already getting a good feel for it. It's amazing how much more that adds to the sound and feel. Thanks for posting.
Uke Whisperer said:
Initially I had the same problem. I found this workshop lesson and incorporated into daily practice by itself, and while practicing chord transitions. Once I had the hang of it I tried to make the ups and downs using the same pressure on each. Then I started some different syncopations/timings. It worked well for me. Hope it helps you.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q_CmQEnSHpQ&list=UUH6E4xDfxBqrkoKdAyVu2dg&index=130&feature=plcp
Click to expand...
 
I usually do my ups with my thumb. As a previous poster stated. Can do both, but like using my thumb going up.
 
I practiced strumming on my cat before my first uke arrived. I'd sit with him in my lap and I'd say (out loud) the words as I slowly strummed his belly..."Down, up, down, up....."

I think this helped me become relaxed and comfortable with the up and down movement without having to think about the sounds (except some purring by the cat for the extra skritchings he got.)
 
BlueLatitude said:
I practiced strumming on my cat before my first uke arrived. I'd sit with him in my lap and I'd say (out loud) the words as I slowly strummed his belly..."Down, up, down, up....."

I think this helped me become relaxed and comfortable with the up and down movement without having to think about the sounds (except some purring by the cat for the extra skritchings he got.)
Click to expand...

I'll try the it on one of the dogs this evening and see how it goes!
 
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