Yet again: Ukulele Size

Hi Y'all,

Yes, I have seen the 10+ previous strings on soprano versus concert versus tenor versus baritone. But nearly all of these conversations seem to focus on various players personal preferences. ("I like the sound of the tenor" "The soprano is too small for me." "Sopranos are the real thing!" "Baritones are perfect for me because I used to play guitar.)

So here's my question:

Putting aside personal preferences, are certain Uke sizes objectivly better for different type of playing?

Is a soprano best for tin pan alley type songs with singing because of its twangy sound and precussion effects? And considered too small for serious finger style playing?

Is a tenor best for a finger style virtuoso because it gives ample fret board room for flying fingers? And too large for simple strumming?

Is the concert a fair compromise between the above two or people who go back and forth?

So again, is there some sort of consensus about what style of playing / music goes best with which size uke? And if not a consensus, at least a general suspicion about what goes with what?

thanks!

u cant throw away personal preference bro! YOU CANT! if ur tied down to one genre and one uke size WHERE THE HECK IS THE EXPRESSION AND WHAT NOT! Its all about what size YOU LIKE! there you go! go to a uke store try em out c which size u like!

i have a feeling that this thread isnt going to go far so..

what ill do is.

ill answer those questions. BUT having answered those. this is just obviously another voice.

putting aside personal preference right.

soprano is not for tin pan alley type playing. it is NOT considered too small for serious finger style playing. I've seen heaps that can do some serious picking on sopranos.

The tenor is pretty good for "finger style playing" ASWELL as the others such as sopranos concert and baritone. I've seen people shred on all sizes of ukuleles.

it is quite impossible to ask a question without having the answer of "personal preference" in it.

my question to GreyPoupon is.

Have you found your own style of playing the ukulele? what size are you playing?

I agree with grappler, it's all about personal preference. However one thing can be said objectively and that is the tenor, because of it's size, has a greater note range and therefore in that respect is more versatile than a soprano or a concert. My next uke is a tenor for that reason.

My own style?!?

grappler said:

Have you found your own style of playing the ukulele? what size are you playing?

Click to expand...

My own style? Of course not. I am a super beginner. Just last week I developed the hard finger tips needed to play for an hour without pain.

But here is where I am: Right now I am playing soprano. And I like it. Actually, I like it a lot.

Mostly I enjoy finger picking more than strumming chords and singing. Probably because I enjoy the sound of the instrument more than the sound of my voice. (I think I have picked through Ken Middleton's (sp?) Simple Gifts TABS about a 1,000 times over the past two weeks. I need to write him a letter of appreciation. )

Now I love it's size and its look. But I do find that the higher notes are challenging to make sing. (especially 10 and beyond) Often, if my finger is not dead on in the middle of the fret, the note will come out as a high twink instead of a singing ring. And that is really what prompted this thread.

Maybe a larger size would make this easier?

Or maybe this is what a novice experiences with any uke?


And, yes, I need to go to a uke shop and try stuff out, but sadly that's not an option where I live.

Thanks in advance for any wisdom and advice!

GreyPoupon said:

My own style? Of course not. I am a super beginner. Just last week I developed the hard finger tips needed to play for an hour without pain.

But here is where I am: Right now I am playing soprano. And I like it. Actually, I like it a lot.

Mostly I enjoy finger picking more than strumming chords and singing. Probably because I enjoy the sound of the instrument more than the sound of my voice. (I think I have picked through Ken Middleton's (sp?) Simple Gifts TABS about a 1,000 times over the past two weeks. I need to write him a letter of appreciation. )

Now I love it's size and its look. But I do find that the higher notes are challenging to make sing. (especially 10 and beyond) Often, if my finger is not dead on in the middle of the fret, the note will come out as a high twink instead of a singing ring. And that is really what prompted this thread.

Maybe a larger size would make this easier?

Or maybe this is what a novice experiences with any uke?


And, yes, I need to go to a uke shop and try stuff out, but sadly that's not an option where I live.

Thanks in advance for any wisdom and advice!

Click to expand...

It seems like you answered your original question there: you said you love the sound and the look. It's really going to come down to compromise, are you willing to sacrifice the range of the uke for it's sound and look? If so just stay with soprano. If you value range more get a bigger uke and sacrifice the look and the sound you like.

Expressing love for something indicates that you want to stick with it!

You could try a long neck soprano to increase the range. I don't know if it will have good sustain, but if you get a well made uke it will probably be better.

I'll have to chime in with the chorus here. There are no hard and fast rules as to what you play on what size. That'd just be silly. You've got four strings and some frets. Quit worrying about whether or not it's too small or too big and play the damn thing already.

You may not realise it yet,but before you know it you will probably have at least one of each size,it's the nature of the beast.

My take
I prefer the sound of the Soprano but like the fret space of the Tenor.
It's not just a size ???? it can also be a wood type ????? too.

My Kala Spruce top Maple strung with D'Addario Pro's sounds like a giant Soprano, not deep and boomy like a Pono Mahogany Tenor, my Kala is even brighter sounding than my Pono Mahogany Soprano with Concert Aquilla's on it.


Oh yes I fingerpick songs my Soprano and strum songs on my Tenor and the other way around too...

I recently wondered what size ukulele was BEST for blues-ukers. I figured they'd all have tenors or baritones considering all those righteous scales so common in the blues. But some of the really kickin blues ukers are playing sopranos! Who knew? I'm also researching strings for blues. Is there a certain sound that is more blues than another? So I've gone through three different sets of strings and have come to this conclusion:

The blues are righteous on any size of ukulele and ANY set of strings. Furthermore, the uke kicks SOOoOOoo much (edit)butt, that any musical genre can be achieved with maximum awesomeness on any size ukulele.

Music comes from the heart (or is it the soul? I forget.). Music comes from WITHIN. Once one taps in to that, then the size of the uke is a formality.

I don't think any size is exclusive to picking or strumming. Personally....(oh wait, never mind) Tenors, like you mentioned, are great for "flying fingers" and for strumming (take Mika, for example)

Thank you

Thanks for the thoughtful responses. I am aware that six months from now these answers will seem painfully obvious but as someone with zero experience with string instruments this is a big help.

Hopefully a year from now I will pay my dues by taking the time to answer other people's mickey mouse questions.

Thanks!

Meh. Don't sweat it.

It seems kind of odd to me but it seems that some folks are always going to be afraid of "doing something wrong" when faced with an open ended creative endeavor. They get positively paralyzed. It's like they need somebody to give them permission to do what they already want to do.
(I suppose it's part of our social programming. Don't rock the boat and try and fit in with what everybody else is doing.)

Just feel free to grant people (and yourself) that permission.

And quit wasting time on the Interwebs and go practice.