Help me understand the Baritone

[Disclaimer, I am just a "plunker", not a music scholar. Please correct me if I am blatantly wrong]

The term 'transposing" is a frightening to many, including me. I am too slow to transpose in real time, but I don't blame myself for that.

As this applies to baritone vs. standard ukulele:

Using the same finger positions, the baritone (DGBE) will sound a 5th lower in pitch than a standard (GCEA) ukulele. The baritone transposes standard ukulele notes to a 5th lower.

Another transposing example:

A Viola (CGDA) is tuned a 5th lower than a violin (GDAE) but the same fingering positions are used. The the longer scale (string) length of the viola "transposes" violin finger positions to sound a 5th lower.

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I, too, was frustrated with two instruments that play (finger) the same but "sound out" in a different key. My brain just doesn't work that way. It's just me.

My workaround:

After much experimenting, I finally determined that a concert scale ukulele can be strung the same as as a baritone, albeit with a re-entry D string. This allows me to use the same fingering on both instruments and get the same pitch (key) notes. There is no transposing.

The strings I put on the concert are:

E .029
B .038
G .029w
Dr/e .036

My noggin' is now at peace, as I can pick up the baritone or the concert and just play without thinking.

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In reality, I use CGBE (dropped D to Cr/e .034) tuning on both, but that is a different topic altogether.

-Wiggy
 
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I don’t know how I missed this thread when it first was posted, here’s my 2 cents: I had absolutely no interest in the baritone for years, first because I didn’t know they even existed and then secondly because I told myself I would never want to learn new chords or whatever the heck was going on with baritones.

But over a year ago I watched a video on HMS of Corey playing a Pono baritone. At the end of the sound sample he sighed with closed eyes and a blissful smile on his face listening to the sustain. I loved the sound, had store credit, and wanted very much to feel that bliss.

I thought to myself if I have learned, and am still learning chords, what’s to stop me from learning more? I mean, am I so old my learning has to stop? Besides, I could return the bari if it didn’t suit.

Well, I play that baritone everyday. It’s not just the sound, it’s that I found my key. I can sing in G. Yeah, I can do that on GCEA but the baritone helped me learn about the concept of keys. And the mind exercise of switching back and forth between different tunings is fun. The baritone can add to the sound of the group as others have stated. And when I am lazy and don’t want to think about transposing, I just play the ole GCEA chords and see what happens.
 
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Hmm, I'm late to the game here, but I'll add this as I didn't see it explicitly stated (probably was, but I skimmed through 40+ posts pretty quick!)
And I get that the OP probably isn't reading anymore, but ...

Yes, you need to use different chord shapes to play in the same key, but I don't think "You would have to learn totally different chord shapes." You'd already know all the chord shapes, they just correspond to different keys. I don't think there'd be brand new shapes to learn.

From my experience, only playing soprano and baritone, the big difference is finger picking not always sounding right, but that is mostly to do with one being re-entrant and the other linear tuning.

I don't play in groups, but if I did, I'd probably just bring my soprano.

PS to Patrick Madsen - maybe we all played in D tuning in the 1970s, but I think that's rarely the case in BC anymore. Any ukulele shop I've been in has had their ukes tuned to C. Those British Columbians who actually play in groups, feel free to correct me!
 
For me, playing a standard strung Baritone is an exercise in sight transposition. The Bari is just a Ukulele in a different key. I grew up playing the French Horn. Historically, the Horn came in several keys, G Horn, C Horn, D Horn, etc. No valves, just different lengths of tubing. So, playing a modern French Horn, which is always in F, I had to learn to sight transpose old orchestra parts, such as written by baroque composers, in order to play the proper notes using my F Horn. Playing an F Horn, reading a D Horn part, I'd have to adjust for the key signature, and transpose down a 3rd, etc. The Baritone Ukulele is a G instrument, a fourth below, or fifth above the C tuning of the other Ukuleles. So, when playing the Baritone, when I see an E chord, I sight transpose it in my head to a B chord, and use the B fingering or chord shape that I'm familiar with on the other Ukuleles. I like this method, because I only have to keep in mind one set of Chord names/Chord shapes, that is, an F is always an F shape, a C is always a C shape, etc. Besides, the sight transposition is fun. Also note, that since the Baritone and the Island tunings are a 5th apart, if you know your Circle of Fifths, well then, there you go!
 
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Does anybody just put a capo on and play their baritone like a soprano/concert/tenor ukulele?
 
I don't really know. Five frets up? Maybe three frets? Help, help!
 
Capo on the fifth fret changes G tuning to C. But the fretboard becomes pretty short if you want to play anything other than first position chords.
 
Capo on the fifth fret changes G tuning to C. But the fretboard becomes pretty short if you want to play anything other than first position chords.
Doesn't that just defeat the purpose? I mean, to me the baritone has a low and mellow sound. People play it to get that sound. You capo it at the fifth fret, you just got rid of your low and mellow. I can't see the benefit to doing that. If I played a baritone, I would want to take advantage of those sweet first position chords, not eliminate them. That's just my opinion, I've played a baritone probably five times and I've never owned one, but if I did, I would just learn how to play it.
 
If you’re going to put a capo on 5th fret all the time just because you don’t want to deal with DGBE, then put on GCEA strings or the skip the baritone altogether.
 
Group settings is what makes it matter. For instance I was part of a jam session and on average we had 2 Ukuleles, 2 to 3 acoustic guitars, and a bass. We all had to be in the same key. So if someone showed up with their Baritone and only know Ukulele shapes that key would not match.

You could put a capo at the fifth fret. Then you play what you already know, with the tone and sustain of the baritone.
 
You could put a capo at the fifth fret. Then you play what you already know with the tone and sustain of the baritone.
I did this for a couple of pieces when I first got the baritone and the group was doing a song with more new-to-me chords than I could learn on the fly. It's not something I'd want to do regularly: given the option, I'd rather pull out the tenor than capo to the 5th fret, but the capo is more flexible and much easier to carry than a second ukulele.
 
A baritone uke tuned DGBE is the same as strings 1-4 on a guitar. They both use the same shapes to make the same chords. A ukulele tuned GCEA is the same as a guitar capo'd at the fifth fret. They both use the same chord shapes, but each shape on the uke sounds five frets higher than it does on a guitar (and vice versa).

Think of it this way: 0003 on guitar is a G chord. 0003 on uke is a C chord, because the uke is tuned five frets higher than the guitar. Same shape, but a different chord.

Likewise, 2010 on guitar is a C chord, but on uke it's an F chord. 3211 on guitar is an F chord, but on uke it's a B flat. 2100 on guitar is an E chord, but on uke it's an A. 2220 on guitar is an A chord, but on uke it's a D. 0232 on guitar is a D chord, but on uke it's a G. See the pattern here?

You can easily play the same songs with the same chord shapes on a baritone tuned DGBE as on a concert/soprano/tenor tuned GCEA, they're just going to be in a lower key because the baritone uke is tuned five frets lower. This becomes confusing when playing baritone uke with a group or in a jam, especially if everyone else if following song sheets with chord diagrams for C tuning. I agree with others who say that chords are chords regardless of tuning, but it behooves a baritone ukulele player to know the chords and shapes used on his or her instrument, so they don't have to try and follow other uke players by watching or reading GCEA chord diagrams. That usually doesn't work too well.

As to why would anyone want to play a baritone ukulele? Some people like them. Some people even prefer them. (Those folks are a little weird, haha!) Different strokes for different folks!

I grew up playing guitar, and only started playing ukulele eight years ago. For a long time I had no interest in playing a baritone ukulele, because I can always play my guitar if I want something tuned DGBE instead of GCEA.

But then I started singing & playing a couple of really pretty songs on my tenor ukulele, and worked up nice finger-style arrangements for both. However, both songs were in keys that were too high for me to comfortably sing. I tried transposing them, but my finger-style arrangements didn't work as nicely or sound as good in different keys than where I learned them.

The easy solution was a baritone ukulele! I bought a Kala Mahogany Baritone uke, and presto! I can play the same songs, exactly the way I learned them, only now I can sing them much better, because they're auto-magically a fourth lower on the baritone. I don't even worry about the different names for the same shapes and all that. I just play 'em the way I learned them.

Now, I'm not in love with the baritone uke, and I do not prefer it over my other ukes, but it's a good tool to have because it just works better for me on some songs.

Whew, didn't intend to write a treatise. That's just my slant on the poor, much-maligned baritone uke! :cool:
 
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so they don't have to try and follow other uke players by watching or reading GCEA chord diagrams. That usually doesn't work too well.
Heh. I massively confused a poor newbie sitting next to me at a jam because she kept copying my baritone fingering on her concert and not sounding right.

it's a good tool to have because it just works better for me on some songs.
That's an unassailable argument!

I'm not in love with the baritone uke
But that's just wrongity wrong wrong wrong ;) ;) ;) Here. Have some kool-aid.


 
As a beginner trying to learn stringed instruments. A baritone uke made perfect sense to me. I bought a guitar first. But I drive a truck on weekdays. Actually I sit in the truck waiting for something to do about half or more of the time. And I wanted an instrument to carry around with me to pass the time and learn. A baritone uke is about the largest stringed instrument I can play while sitting in the drivers seat, and I figure my practice would translate to the guitar easy enough.
I had thought about one of those tiny kids Stratocasters, but figured a ukulele would be more fun. But I just didn't want to play a tiny one with a whole lot of twang. The baritone seemed like a far more versatile instrument than the smaller ukes...to me.

And I believe the baritone ukulele has the potential to be my main instrument more so than a smaller uke. I just like the mellower sound.
 
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As a beginner trying to learn stringed instruments. A baritone uke made perfect sense to me. I bought a guitar first. But I drive a truck on weekdays. Actually I sit in the truck waiting for something to do about half or more of the time. And I wanted an instrument to carry around with me to pass the time and learn. A baritone uke is about the largest stringed instrument I can play while sitting in the drivers seat, and I figure my practice would translate to the guitar easy enough.
I had thought about one of those tiny kids Stratocasters, but figured a ukulele would be more fun. But I just didn't want to play a tiny one with a whole lot of twang. The baritone seemed like a far more versatile instrument than the smaller ukes...to me.

And I believe the baritone ukulele has the potential to be my main instrument more so than a smaller uke. I just like the mellower sound.

Those are all very good reasons to own a baritone ukulele. They can be the redheaded step child of the ukulele family but I love them, I own 4 baritones presently.

Neil Young and Joni Mitchell started out on baritone ukuleles. That makes it a legimate instrument in my books. I saw some early footage of Joni performing live on TV with one, she sounded great with it.
 
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