How often do you play ukulele?

[don_b]

And for how long?

Generally curious about people's playing habits. I personally get about 1-2 hours every night while my kids are in bed and my wife is at work, and I typically use that time to play every night of the week. It is very rare that I do not spend that time playing. I have been going on this schedule since January. Before then, I'd play maybe a few times a week at most.

Do you play the same uke all the time? How many others, and why do you change it up?

I play the same high G tenor all the time. Sometimes at the end of the night when I've put the tenor away and I still have a bit of an itch to play, I'll mess around on a soprano for a bit. But 99% of the time I'm playing that same tenor. I feel like if I play a different one I'm wasting my time a little bit, like in not taking practice as seriously when I'm not on my primary uke. I know I'm wrong about that, but it's just the way it is.

I use a strap and I play standing up. I just prefer standing I guess.

 

[kerneltime]

I play the ukulele at least 3 times a day, anywhere from 5 min to a longer session. Typically there is a new skill I am trying to learn, if not, I just do what ever comes to my mind.
I tend to play tenors and baritones later in the day and sopranos earlier in the day. I change the ukulele I am playing all the time. Usually I rotate which ukuleles are kept accessible outside of their cases. If a ukulele does not land up coming out in a long time, I tend to sell it. My fluke is always kept accessible and I tend to travel with it, as it stands up on its own.
Right now these are the current focus areas:
1. complete uketroplois jazz course on soprano. This is a lesson in new chord shapes and music concepts.
2. Complete Uncle Kimo’s Girl from Impanema tutorial on the ukulele site. This is super hard for the right hand to get it to sound really nice.
3. Complete cello suite 1 on a soprano with high G arranged by Samantha Muir. Super hard on the left hand.
4. Complete Canon in D (completed 3/4ths) arranged for low G by DHo. Hard on the left hand.
It will usually take me around 6 months or more to complete the list above. The
variation in size and nature of difficultly keeps it interesting for me.

I used the pandemic lock down to learn Cello suite 1 for low G arranged by DHo. It took me around 6-8 months to just complete the song. Since then I have kept trying to improve my playing to make it sound good, and to be able to play it without mistakes..

 

[kerneltime]

The ease of picking up a small instrument that sounds good even if a beginner is playing it (vs recorder or violin) and the awesome community around it is the main reason ukulele as a hobby stuck for me. It is very hard for me to pick up a hobby outside of what I need to do daily. I am really happy that I have been able to keep this one going.

 

[don_b]

1. complete uketroplois jazz course on soprano. This is a lesson in new chord shapes and music concepts.

I am in book 4 of Ukulele Way. I love Uketropolis, and I love being able to structure my practice time. I plan to take jazz next. I am also currently working hard on practicing an arrangement of Aladdin's A Whole New World arranged by Steven Laity. Solo Ukulele/Chord Melody style is my most favorite type of Ukulele to play right now.

 

[mikelz777]

I probably average about 3 days per week +/- usually ranging anywhere from 1/2 to a couple hours at a time. I want to learn (modified) clawhammer so I hope to try and play a little more frequently. I've been only playing one uke lately, my concert thinline Bonanza Homestead. I'm usually playing in my easy chair and it is more comfortable to play a thinline than my regular ukes. Just the other day I pulled out some of my other ukes and realized how much I miss playing them (6 others) so I may have to get out of that easy chair and start rotating them more often.

 

[Rllink]

Three times a week on average I would say. I have our ukulele group on Wednesday evenings. We get the set list early in the week and I go through them a couple times. I also play guitar and I play something every day. Sometimes both in the course of the day. I generally play around four in the afternoon. I like to mix up a drink, sit back and relax with a stringed instrument. Outside of weather permits. Maybe a half hour, maybe an hour and a half, it just depends. I've been doing that for years. I have no structure to my playing. If I have something coming up I might favor one instrument over the other.

 

[clear]

And for how long?


Do you play the same uke all the time? How many others, and why do you change it up?

I play pretty much everyday; anywhere from 3-30 minutes per day. When I first started and was learning, I'd play about an hour per day. Now that I have learned what I need to know, I only play to entertain my son.

I play on the same uke; it is the only uke I have out on the wall hanger. Once a while (like every few months), I'd check up on my other ukes, and I'd play them a bit.

 

[KohanMike]

I started playing uke with a seniors group in July of 2013 shortly after I retired. About 25-35 of us met Monday afternoons and Thursday mornings. I played my ukes a day before each session, so including a day or two of general practice, I played 5-6 days, at least an hour each. Then a year later our leader asked if anyone would like to take up the bass to fill in the sound. I did, and discovered the bass uke is just right for me, but it meant my ukes took a back seat, so to keep me engaged, I started playing with an acoustic group on Sundays in a park.

With covid, the seniors uke group starting meeting online, but the Sunday group stopped, until about a month ago after most of us received our inoculations. Also, a few members of the uke group started meeting in the back yard of one member with all having been inoculated. So I play bass uke 3-4 days and uke 2-3 days.

---

This is Michael Kohan in Los Angeles, Beverly Grove near the Beverly Center
8 tenor cutaway ukes, 4 acoustic bass ukes, 10 solid body bass ukes, 14 mini electric bass guitars (Total: 36)

Donate to The Ukulele Kids Club, they provide ukuleles to children in hospital music therapy programs. www.theukc.org
Member The CC Strummers: www.youtube.com/user/CCStrummers/video, www.facebook.com/TheCCStrummers

 

[VegasGeorge]

I rarely go a day without playing at least a little. Most days, I play from 10 to 15 minutes, two or three times. Sometimes a lot longer. I play tunes I like, and sing or whistle along. More and more I find that I'm picking melodies while playing. I enjoy the singing part as much as the playing part. I find it cathartic and healing. I notice that I'm in a demonstrably better mood after playing than when I started.

 

[Bluesy]

I play daily for an hour (sometimes longer if I lose track) with 30 minutes devoted to skills by working through the Mastering Ukulele series, David Ward's books, and Ukulele Aerobics and the last 30 minutes for playing and singing whatever seems like fun at the moment.

I float between concert and tenor size ukes. I only have three instruments, so each instrument gets played throughout the week as the mood strikes me.

I've enjoyed seeing the responses here.

Bluesy.

 

[Croaky Keith]

These days, not very often; I used to submit tunes/songs to the 'Seasons' threads - when I was doing that, probably an hour or two a day, but not every day.

(I mainly play chromatic, tremolo, & diatonic harmonicas; plus whistles, flutes, piccolos, & fifes nowadays.)

 

[Cluze]

I play pretty much every night, before bed. I typically spend between 20 minutes to an hour playing, depending on the night. I am usually working on learning 2-3 different fingerstyle songs at any given time. Usually at least one that I am getting pretty good at, one that is in progress, and one that I am just starting to figure out. I usually then end the night with strumming a few favorite tunes to wind down.

I change up which uke I am playing on any given night, depending on my mood at the time. I have quite a few nice instruments, and I try to spread my time around between them, but I sometimes get into ruts where I will play the same instrument for several nights in a row. Almost always a concert, and almost always a high-G. (Last night was my Kamaka HF-2, the night before was the Moonbird. The night before that was a rare soprano night, playing my Kala Elite.)

 

[about2]

When I first started, I was somewhat of a maniac. I woke up at 5:30 so I could play for two hours Mon-Sat. This gave me time to play prior to going to work. After a year, I backed off to about 1 1/2 per day. I was working through Daniel Ward's book on Arpeggios. Loved it. My focus now is Mike Lynch's Chord Melody books and some of Daniel Ho's stuff. I mostly play baritone and tenor. However, from now till July we are staying with family members as we are selling our house and don't take possession of our other home until July 1. Argh! Haven't found a way to work in the uke without waking everyone. Withdrawal pains are tough!

 

[dgame]

I play almost every morning and every night. I leave my ukulele out on a stand so I can play it on a whim. Even if it just strumming a few chords I often play throughout the day. How long I play varies. I only have one ukulele, a Martin soprano.

 

[Cadia]

Not often enough. Darn work keeps getting in the way!

 

[ripock]

I try to play every day, but I have challenges. I am working two jobs and my ukulele seems to pierce the walls, so I cannot play when my wife needs to sleep. Regardless, I do try to play every day. Sometimes that may mean playing arpeggios or practicing modes or using the side markers to play blues in G with a ceramic slide. Other days I play in a manner that most other players would recognize as playing: making chord progressions, finger picking melodies, etc.

 

[actadh]

Work gets in the way of sustained playing, but I do play nearly every day. I keep a uke at work, in the vehicles, in my camper, by the porch entry, next to the bedside etc.

Ease of access is the key for me, and it validates having more than one ukulele

 

[wqking]

I play everyday, for usually 2 hours, minimum 1 hour, in 3~4 sessions, spread from the morning to the afternoon to the night.
I'm practicing chromatic scale, full scale, chords, and several classical and traditional tunes.
Sometime I feel my practice is a little blindly and the routine is not effective. I'm making it better gradually.

 

[Nickie]

I used to play every day, up to an hour, usually half an hour. The condition of my hands has changed, so I play every other day now, maybe 15-30 minutes. Our band has long rehearsals on Saturdays, and sometimes during the week, so practicing on my own suffers. The day after a gig, I don't pick up my uke or sing.
I'm starting a part time job on Monday, I'll have to play on a schedule now. Plus, I am learning to speak Spanish, something I should have done decades ago.
I've been thinking that a new uke would entice me to play more, but I'd need to sell one first....the thrill of playing the newest one lasted almost five years!
We did an hour long Cinco de Mayo set outdoors in 88 degree heat, high humidity yesterday. The uke is still in its case....it comes out tomorrow.

 

[Graylights]

I have been playing ukulele everyday since first started 2.5 years ago. It is now my main pastime and I would play whenever I have the time at home. I am keen for improvement, albeit slow and little, as that makes me feel good.