Different tuning for "classical" playing?

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kjmillig1

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I really want to start practicing finger picking and simpler tunes for classical uke, but from what I've seen on YouTube it sounds like the ukes are tuned differently, perhaps with a low G. Am I hearing it right or wrong? :confused:
BTW, I have a concert ukulele.
 
It really depends if and when you want to add lower notes than what high G tuning can offer. I haven't tried it for myself but I heard that low G on concert ukuleles aren't that great since the length isn't enough for the low G string to pack a punch, but who knows, maybe you'll like it!
 
kjmillig1 said:
I really want to start practicing finger picking and simpler tunes for classical uke, but from what I've seen on YouTube it sounds like the ukes are tuned differently, perhaps with a low G.
Click to expand...

Dig up some of John King's videos on YouTube. If that doesn't open your eyes to the wonders of high-G, nothing will. :)

JJ
 
Both tunings are used. The John King book The Classical Ukulele is all re-entrant tuning.
You can use a low g on a concert scale, but you might need to go with a wound string to make it resonate better. I have a lot of ukes tuned to low G and high G. I even have a soprano that is in low G, so it kind of depends on the uke, and the strings. You will have better success on a tenor, in general, with low G. I think you need 2 ukes.

–Lori
 
I really want a tenor, but my budget doesn't allow for that right now. I may try it out for a while and see if I like the sound. And I have seen some of John King's videos. He was a genius on the uke!
 
Another question, will a typical C string work as a low G? My local uke shop doesn't know what a low G string is (I'm in Taiwan). Or should I ask for a particular guitar string?
 
If you can't get something locally (not surprising at all) and don't want to order through the internet, you could try fluorocarbon fishing line. The Worth unwound low g strings are all 0.0358 inch or 0.91m/m. You could see if you could get a similar string thickness. If you can order from the internet, then Living Water Strings has a low g concert set,http://www.kenmiddleton.co.uk/Pages/LWS.aspx, and Southcoast Ukes http://www.southcoastukes.com/ has a wide range of strings.

–Lori
 
kjmillig1 said:
Another question, will a typical C string work as a low G? My local uke shop doesn't know what a low G string is (I'm in Taiwan). Or should I ask for a particular guitar string?
Click to expand...
If you want to go for a wound string a classical guitar D string will do. The C wouldn't sound (& feel) right with that little tension.

But having tried a wound low g (Aquila) on a concert size I would highly recommend an unwound string - I found the wound string way to boomy and loud, it kind of muted the other strings. The Living Water set has a much better balance and sounds pretty nice.
 
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