Concert uke for Jazz

Hi, I am in search for (another) uke and I wonder if you could give me some suggestions?

I have been playing instrumental music mostly, like chord/melody stuff. But I have started with singing lessons lately and like to sing swing songs from Frank Sinatra and Tony Bennett e.g. I like to accompany myself on ukulele and looked around for some better sounding ukuleles for jazz than I have now. The sound I fell in love with are from guys like Lyle Ritz or Glen Rose, and they use mahogany tenors and baritones: Nice focused mids with a little warmth and a nice bite.

The only thing is, tenors and baritones aren't really my thing, allthough I've really tried! While I can really enjoy them while played by others, I just can't get used to them personally. I just love soprano's! And am okay with concerts.

So, my question is: are there any concerts (or soprano's) with that comparable type of sound? I was thinking of maybe ukes with bigger bodies, like a pineapple? Or maybe a certain wood combination that gives a comparable experience, like a cedar top?

PS, I am looking for something in the 300-400 dollar/euro range.

I hope I don't sound like a killjoy here, as I'm always in favor of buying another uke, but why not start by playing the kind of music you want to play, on what you already have? Then as you're learning, you'll know more about the sound you want, and what, if anything, your current instruments lack. Your uke doesn't have to sound exactly like Lyle Ritz's (it couldn't, unless you were Lyle) to sound good. A soprano may sound great for some songs. A concert can sound much like a tenor (or soprano). I'd honestly like to hear the results of your experiments, whether that includes a new uke or not.

The larger bodied ukes just have a more volume and richness, whereas the smaller you go you add more brightness and punch. There are some ukes that have deeper bodies such as Gretsch that may have more volume. It will also make a big difference what kinds of strings you use, for example you could try some thicker strings for a more mellow response and stay away form the fluorocarbons.

Also keep in mind that before guitars became popular the tenor banjo was the main comping instrument. They are tuned CGDA and an Aquila set 31U is available to accomplish this tuning on a concert uke. I just had my new concert set up like this and will try to learn how to use that for comping the jazzy songs, it's certainly much more mellow than a regular concert. For a soprano it's also available as 30U to tune GDAE like a fiddle/mandolin.

Thank you both for your honest replies and for not giving me the obvious suggestions for other great ukes to buy

I bought a Recording King resonator uke not too long ago, and restrung it with Worth Browns today... it has some great jazzy sounds depending on how I play it, and I am in love! Only wish I had a Low G set, but well... a new set of strings is cheaper than a brand new uke I will try the heavy gauges as well.

Many thanks!

Oh cool, a resonator! I bet that sounds great for jazz.

A string update. I couldn’t get my hands on the Worth strings I would like to try, so I bought a set of Aquila Sugars with a low G instead. I remembered that I tried them on a tenor once an liked them for their sweet and mellow sound. I thought I at least try those and see how the low G would work out (I always play re-entrant).

Wow, it worked out better than I expected. On my resonator they are indeed very mellow and give exactly that powerful, woody jazz sound I am looking for! That is to say, I only like them for jazz chords and melodies, especially when strummed with my thumb. I don’t really like them for normal index finger, open chord strumming, it gets a bit undefined. But hey, that’s not where I bought them for anyway
I usually get a bit annoyed by the feel of wounded C’s, so I’ll have to see how this wounded G string will work out over time.

But I guess these are a keeper, no Worth strings this time.

If you want a deeper sound in a soprano scale, check out the Romero Creations soprano. It's designed for a low G and has a tenor-like body with a soprano neck. Nice fat tone out of the solid mahogany body.

https://www.romerocreations.com/romero-soprano

Wow, didn't know that such thing existed! Beautiful

There's always http://jazzboxukes.co.uk for an archtop. I have a baritone and bass made by Toby.

Patrick Madsen said:

There's always http://jazzboxukes.co.uk for an archtop. I have a baritone and bass made by Toby.

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Oh wow, they are so cool!

They are fun to play but are somewhat quiet. I usually use an amp playing them. Toby carves the top and back from 3/4" solid wood/ Not pressed.

Glad you found a set of strings you like Rutgers. My mahogany ukes are all vintage and use nylon strings for that old bluesy sound. The Favilla really likes nylon.

Patrick Madsen said:

Glad you found a set of strings you like Rutgers. My mahogany ukes are all vintage and use nylon strings for that old bluesy sound. The Favilla really likes nylon.

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I have been thinking about nylons, I like them on banjoleles and for their ‘vintage’ sound.
But for now I was looking for strings with a little more sweetness and sustain. And the Sugars deliver