Uke over Guitar

[Jerryc41]

Once again, I'm glad I chose the uke over the guitar. Aside from having to deal with four string, rather than six, the prices are much better. I bought a piece of neck mahogany from Stew-Mac for about $40, and that yielded two necks. I keep seeing pop-up ads for a piece of mahogany for a guitar. It costs $151.

 

[Bill Sheehan]

I started on the ukulele back in 1966, at age 13. It was my first introduction to the concept of the fretted stringed instrument (having been a trumpet player for six years prior). As I entered high school, I decided that the guitar would be "cooler", especially with groups like the Beatles, Paul Revere and the Raiders, The Kinks, etc. hitting the scene. But after immersing myself in the guitar for the next few decades, I suddenly felt drawn back to the ukulele. It's now my preferred instrument. I love its simplicity, and the challenge of "making things work" with just those four strings. There's just something about it!

 

[Canada Jim]

I love 'em both. I bought my first guitar in 1960 and have been addicted ever since. Some time after the turn of the century I was introduced to the ukulele as a real instrument (I had always thought of them as a toy or a beginner's instrument). I now spend almost as much time on the uke as on the guitar. I almost always include a uke tune or more in a show.

 

[Cadia]

I started on the ukulele back in 1966, at age 13. It was my first introduction to the concept of the fretted stringed instrument (having been a trumpet player for six years prior). As I entered high school, I decided that the guitar would be "cooler", especially with groups like the Beatles, Paul Revere and the Raiders, The Kinks, etc. hitting the scene. But after immersing myself in the guitar for the next few decades, I suddenly felt drawn back to the ukulele. It's now my preferred instrument. I love its simplicity, and the challenge of "making things work" with just those four strings. There's just something about it!

Same here, only I played clarinet as a kid. Picked up guitar in 5th grade, around '65. Played on and off for many years, but not so much the last 10 years. I had wanted to try uke for at least as many years, and I'm glad I did. I much prefer the simplicity of it, yet it can be as complex as you want. Ukes have a fun factor that I didn't find with guitar. And to Jerry's point about cost, I can buy more ukes with less money.

 

[deadpool]

I won't bore you all with my "no talent-just a hack" story of my musical journey. Suffice it to say I'm old and my guitar chops (what little I had) are suffering from flexibility issues in my fretting hand so, although I love the guitar, the shorter scale on the uke and mandolin have resulted in more playing time for them. I've only been at the uke "seriously" for about a year so I have a ways to go, but it is a really fun instrument.

 

[Rllink]

I like both. I played guitar years and years ago, moved on, then took up the uke. Since I took up the uke I got inspired to play guitar again. It isn't an either/or proposition for me. They both compliment each other. Agreed though, guitars do cost more than ukes. But I'm not into buying them in bulk, so I'm not so price conscious. A couple guitars and a couple ukes is sufficient for me.

 

[rainbow21]

When I was in my teens (a long long long time ago) I was given a Yamaha steel string guitar. There was no internet or access to any other information other than friends to teach a little and community college strum and sing classes. No one ever talked about set up. Rather they told me I would develop callouses so the strings would not hurt as much. I did develop the callouses, which pretty much numbed most fingertip sensitivity on the fretting hand. My fingers still hurt thinking about it.

Such joy when I first picked up a concert ukulele and tried it for a half hour and my fingers did not hurt!

 

[rustydusty]

To me, it's also an age thing. After about 5 decades of playing around with guitars, I started getting cramps in my chording hand after about an hour. The bass player in our band suggested trying a baritone uke, and right now I'm not having cramps ...

 

[Peter Frary]

I love 'em all and often switch between 'ukulele, guitar and bass during recording sessions and classroom teaching.

 

[Blank Williams]

For the past two years I’ve almost exclusively played ukulele after about 15 years being a devout guitar player. For me it’s the size and ease of just picking it up wherever I feel like it. I will admit that the guitar is more versatile and probably more practical for performing, but the little uke just gets me every time. Also I started getting a bit bored of the guitar and am still fascinated by the possibilities of the ukulele.

 

[Kenn2018]

I have a Washburn folk guitar I bought for $250 about 35 years ago. The last time I picked it up and played it was to quickly build up my callouses on the steel strings for fretting my Fender tenor ukulele.

I didn't know about setups and the strings on the Fender Nohea were quite high and it took a Vicegrip to barre the first fret. After I had a setup done it played much better.

 

[hendulele]

Eight years ago today, my first Uke (a Kala 8-string bought from the Mandolin Cafe forum) arrived at my office. I had no idea what I was doing (I snapped the low G trying to tune the Uke re-entrant), but I eventually learned to stumble around a bit and have never looked back. Hadn’t played an instrument since grade school. Happy to be creating(?) rather than merely consuming music!

 

[GOram]

I played classical guitar until about 25 years ago when I developed severe tendonitis in my left hand and arm Multiple attempts to restart all failed. At the beginning of the lockdown/quarantine/remote living last year, I saw an ad for an online kid's ukulele class from the local library. A Lightbulb moment later, I researched and ordered my very first uke from HMS (spruce top Kala tenor) and am having ball with no hand/arm issues. I'm up to sometimes 3 hours a day (spread out in 20-30 minute sessions).

 

[VegasGeorge]

To me, the Ukulele and the Guitar are two different instruments. I really don't see them in comparison. I know that the Ukulele looks like a baby guitar, and that the public perceives it that way. But I think that's wrong. I can listen to a big guitar or a small guitar and they all sound like a guitar to me. A Ukulele always sounds like a Ukulele, whether its a soprano or a baritone.

 

[clear]

Once again, I'm glad I chose the uke over the guitar. ...

I'm glad I don't have to choose between the 2. Each has advantages over the other. I love my ukes because they just scream happy, spontaneous, play-me-now-and-enjoy-life-more, and they are cute little things. Ukes are the grab-and-go happy makers.

 

[clear]

To me, the Ukulele and the Guitar are two different instruments. I really don't see them in comparison. I know that the Ukulele looks like a baby guitar, and that the public perceives it that way. But I think that's wrong. I can listen to a big guitar or a small guitar and they all sound like a guitar to me. A Ukulele always sounds like a Ukulele, whether its a soprano or a baritone.

They are very similar instruments in that skills are easily transferable between them; and hence, many folks make comparisons between the 2. In many ways, a uke is like a "baby guitar"; think of a simplified nylon-string guitar.

 

[Rllink]

To me, the Ukulele and the Guitar are two different instruments. I really don't see them in comparison. I know that the Ukulele looks like a baby guitar, and that the public perceives it that way. But I think that's wrong. I can listen to a big guitar or a small guitar and they all sound like a guitar to me. A Ukulele always sounds like a Ukulele, whether its a soprano or a baritone.

I agree. I treat them as two different instruments. Yes, there are enough similarities to make one think that they are interchangable, but I have not found that to be true beyond the most basic skills. It is like speaking two different languages. If you are trying to translate one in context of the other you are lost.

 

[wqking]

After got my first Ukulele (my first string instrument), I got to know Classical Guitar, and I really love CG, I love it's sound, it's artistry. But I was very hesitate to start learning CG, and have decided not to learn it, because it's too difficult to be a decent CG player. Ukulele is simpler, while it's still very difficult to be good enough on Ukulele. By good I mean, at least have some musicality and artistry in the performance, not just "make sound".
With Ukulele, there is higher chance for me to be good enough than CG, so I stick to Ukulele.
BTW, I think we should not compare Ukulele to fork Guitar, they are quite different, we'd compare it with Classical Guitar, the fretboard width, the string material, are quite similar. It's like a CG missing two strings...

 

[Three Tenors]

I have 5 Steel-String Guitars, 3 Tenor Ukes, an Electric Bass, a Tenor Banjo, and a Mandola - I greatly enjoy playing them all!

 

[wqking]

I have 5 Steel-String Guitars, 3 Tenor Ukes, an Electric Bass, a Tenor Banjo, and a Mandola - I greatly enjoy playing them all!

Will you change your user name to "Four Tenors" if you buy another Tenor?