Tenor regret

Futurethink said:

I'm having difficulty with barre chords myself. My instructor has recommended I practice the chord shape at the fifth fret instead of at the first fret--until I can play the chord cleanly. Then he says I should move to the fourth fret and practice some more. He predicts that starting with the fifth (or sixth) fret will make things easier.

You can also put concert strings on your tenor to make it easier to fret.

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I LOVE this idea! I'm going to have to try it. I have a hard time with like a B7, and it's worse on my banjo uke (weird).

I don't think that Bb tuning (f, Bb, D, G) has been mentioned yet but it reduces string tension ( which may help with barre chords) and in my opinion it sounds wonderful on many tenors.

I can so relate. I'm a woman with smaller hands. I bought a Koaloha Tenor (1-1/2 nut) but can now play it more comfortably and Barre chords. That being said, I prefer the smaller nut of 1-3/8. Recently I received Pono with a radiussed fretboard (1-3/8 nut) and find that even easier - instant love.

I also find strings make a big difference with some strings easier to Barre than others.

Now when I give into my UAS I ask about the nut width and if the fretboard is radiussed.

Hang in there and Good luck.
K

Although this is not the topic of this thread, if one does change the tuning, my guess is chords are played differently. Does anyone know a thread that could help with learning the transposing of chords in different keys?
Thanks community
K

Thank you all so much for your responses. This is my first post on the forum and I'm very grateful for the advice. I have responded to the message about the trade.

I have the Romero strings that came with the ukulele, with a wound low g string. It gets harder for me to get a barre chord to ring cleanly farther up the neck, and is easier at the first and second frets. I feel like the frets on this particular instrument seem to be farther apart than they are on some other tenors I have played in local shops. I'm really torn about the whole thing, but I will continue trying to build hand strength in the meantime. I'm a pianist so I do have good strength and dexterity in both my hands (or so I thought).

Lillah said:

Thank you all so much for your responses. This is my first post on the forum and I'm very grateful for the advice. I have responded to the message about the trade.

I have the Romero strings that came with the ukulele, with a wound low g string. It gets harder for me to get a barre chord to ring cleanly farther up the neck, and is easier at the first and second frets. I feel like the frets on this particular instrument seem to be farther apart than they are on some other tenors I have played in local shops. I'm really torn about the whole thing, but I will continue trying to build hand strength in the meantime. I'm a pianist so I do have good strength and dexterity in both my hands (or so I thought).

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If barr chords are harder farther up the neck then lowering the action at the saddle sounds like a solution. Most people have a harder time barring on the first or second fret because of the high tension created by the short string length from nut to index finger.

keenonuke said:

Although this is not the topic of this thread, if one does change the tuning, my guess is chords are played differently. Does anyone know a thread that could help with learning the transposing of chords in different keys?
Thanks community
K

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If you tune down to B or B flat, you still play the same chord shapes, but they just happen to be different chords, but who cares, unless you're playing with others.

keenonuke said:

Although this is not the topic of this thread, if one does change the tuning, my guess is chords are played differently. Does anyone know a thread that could help with learning the transposing of chords in different keys?
Thanks community
K

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It might be as mentioned a good option to tune a whole step down to Bb6. Those flat keys are also favoured by jazz musicians. I myself stick to standard tuning though.
If capo does not bother you, then it on 2nd fret will give you that too, with a smaller scale.

Here you have a good page for using Bb tuning:
https://ukebuddy.com/ukulele-chords
Select the last one from the drop down menu.

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Transposing is an interesting topic and myself I attach scale degrees to main 6 diatonic chords. Lets look at the circle of fifths and the keys of C/Am:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Circle_of_fifths
At 11 12 and 13 a clock we have chords F C and G and under them we have in small letters the parallel minors, but also as the chords Dm, Am and Em.
In degrees they are IV I and V and then iim, vim, and iiim.

So there is that sector of a disc to notice. And then if going to Bb just find another one 2 "hours" earlier to find the main chords. One gets to know all keys by heart and then the circle is not needed. But as a starter it is big thing I say

I have a RC guilele in Terz tuning—G C F Bb D G—not to make it easier to play but because it sounds the best at that pitch. But, yeah, it is a little easier on the left hand than the A D G C E A tuning. The Terz tuning has plenty of company, beyond the Terz guitar. Flamenco guitar players often use a capo on the 3rd fret to achieve that tuning and the Renaissance lute and vihuela were pitched the same (save for the 3rd string). It's even common for requinto players to use that tuning instead of A D G C E A. I often use this tuning when playing with friends in standard ukulele tuning and I merely have to transpose up a whole step, e.g., finger a C chord like a D chord (two frets up the neck for barré chords).

Don't know if you've solved your dilemma yet. But, are you by chance holding your TT at such an angle as to be able to see the face of your fretboard? Holding a uke (with the neck configuration of the TT) perpendicular to the floor such that you can not see the face of your fretboard may help. Just a thought.

prb035 said:

Great information here, I think I’ll stick to the Concert scale at the moment, the Tenor size might be too much of a stretch! I only have small hands

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I have small hands with stubby fingers but I play tenor - it's just a matter of time and practice

Depends how much you like the sound of a tenor. I never cared for the sound (of me playing it) so never really was willing to give it a chance. I found soprano a bit cramped at first, but I really only like the sound of a soprano (again, when I'm playing it) and it's zero issue for me now even though I'm more of a tenor sized guy. Even my sopranino isn't that big of an adjustment now, so either stick with what works for you, or if you're motivated to want to be a tenor player, give it more of an adjustment period.

I have a TT and a ST Concert and love them both. I play the Concert in AM and when I need to loosen up my hands. It is strung low g because I need to stretch for some blues tunes, and the tenor is strung re-entrant. I tried Worth strings on the tenor and hated them and ordered the RC re-entrant set which sound great. I wouldn't mess with the action, HMS know what they're doing and the RC quality control is first rate. I'd start with the suggestions to tune down a 1/2 step and then get a concert to help work up to longer stretches on the tenor. Good luck in your journey