mikelz777
Well-known member
I am an introvert. I've been playing the ukulele for almost eight years and in that time I've only ever attended a uke gathering once where I was happy to participate but remain an anonymous face in the crowd. I usually sing/play behind closed doors at home and if my wife walked in I'd usually stop playing.
I've actually been trying to coax my wife into learning the ukulele for years. She's never shown the least bit of interest. (Nor have my daughters unfortunately.) Then recently a local DJ announced on his radio show that he was starting up a ukulele club. All of a sudden my wife is interested in trying out the ukulele and wants to attend. She asked me to attend with her but I was hesitant because the "club" was designed for absolute beginners (first meeting was learning the C, F, and G chords) and I didn't know if I should take up a spot since the spaces were limited. I told her I'd go if only for the hope that she would like playing the uke and would want to continue to learn how to play it. I ended up going to support her and it turned out to be a lot of fun.
After the meeting and all the picture taking we hung back to talk with the DJ. My wife had insisted that I bring one of my song books along to show him. He took a look at my book and said that we should play a song together. At that point, how could I refuse? What was weird about it is that normally, I would get really nervous and my heart would start racing. Oddly, I wasn't all that nervous. It's probably because I knew all the songs in my book so well and that I had been playing the uke longer than the DJ had. He chose "The City of New Orleans" to play together. The room we met in at the radio station had a stage in it so we went up on the stage and sang/played together. I guess it also helped my nervousness that the majority of the group had already left so we were only performing for an audience of three. Even so, t was fun!
My take away from the experience is that it may very well have "broken the seal" so to speak. I shouldn't be afraid to sing and play with or for a group of fellow ukulele enthusiasts. Granted, it helped a lot that I was was one of the most experienced players in the crowd and I'm not sure if I'd feel the same way with a room full of like-experienced or better players but I'm left with the itch that I'd like to play/sing with others again. I just need to make the effort of opening up that closed bedroom door and stepping out!
I've actually been trying to coax my wife into learning the ukulele for years. She's never shown the least bit of interest. (Nor have my daughters unfortunately.) Then recently a local DJ announced on his radio show that he was starting up a ukulele club. All of a sudden my wife is interested in trying out the ukulele and wants to attend. She asked me to attend with her but I was hesitant because the "club" was designed for absolute beginners (first meeting was learning the C, F, and G chords) and I didn't know if I should take up a spot since the spaces were limited. I told her I'd go if only for the hope that she would like playing the uke and would want to continue to learn how to play it. I ended up going to support her and it turned out to be a lot of fun.
After the meeting and all the picture taking we hung back to talk with the DJ. My wife had insisted that I bring one of my song books along to show him. He took a look at my book and said that we should play a song together. At that point, how could I refuse? What was weird about it is that normally, I would get really nervous and my heart would start racing. Oddly, I wasn't all that nervous. It's probably because I knew all the songs in my book so well and that I had been playing the uke longer than the DJ had. He chose "The City of New Orleans" to play together. The room we met in at the radio station had a stage in it so we went up on the stage and sang/played together. I guess it also helped my nervousness that the majority of the group had already left so we were only performing for an audience of three. Even so, t was fun!
My take away from the experience is that it may very well have "broken the seal" so to speak. I shouldn't be afraid to sing and play with or for a group of fellow ukulele enthusiasts. Granted, it helped a lot that I was was one of the most experienced players in the crowd and I'm not sure if I'd feel the same way with a room full of like-experienced or better players but I'm left with the itch that I'd like to play/sing with others again. I just need to make the effort of opening up that closed bedroom door and stepping out!
Last edited: