Which Baritone? Please everyone give your comments. Good or Bad.

If you want to replicate Smokey Joe in your video, hold out for a Pono steel string baritone. I was fortunate enough to stumble upon one on this forum. Mine sounds just like an acoustic guitar, and I go to it way more than I thought I would.

Good luck, cowboy!

You mad me smile with the cowboy comment. :D
I wish I could of been a cowboy. Spent my informative and my formative years living in a tent every weekend and whenever I could. Then when I was old enough I added riding motorcycles year round into the mix.
But sometimes life take a hold of you and what you think is important changes.

I would've made a pretty poor cowboy. I developed a severe allergy to horses. :D
 
With a ukulele, there are no bass notes. You have to imply them with what you have, or miss them altogether.

If you play a guitar arrangement on a ukulele, you're playing a ukulele like a guitar. It often won't translate. The song in the OP is a classic case in point. It won't go anywhere without the alternating bass.


Actually -- I found an adaptation, while learning the guitar and ukulele at the same time, that lets me play similar arrangements on the baritone at uke circles and the guitar at sessions for old-time, bluegrass, folk and irish trad.

You can play the alternating bass pattern on the three thickest strings (DGB or GCE). Play the picking pattern or strum on the thinnest strings (GBE or CEA). Playing the strum on all four strings is good too.

Sonic separation between bass and treble is less on four strings than six strings so it helps to play the bass pattern strongly. You can regain sonic texture with hammering and clucking.

Alternating bass on six string guitar is mostly played thickest string to less thick string, but on the four string uke the nicest patterns for a chord might start on any string.

I found it helpful to learn which strings carry the bottom note and top note for common chords (ie C and G in the C-chord's C-E-G) while searching for bass patterns that sound good and are easy to freestyle.

Cheers.

.
 
In order to sound anything like Townes Van Zandt, you will need steel strings. As others have mentioned, the Pono UL4 is just slightly bigger than a baritone, and with some adaption of Travis picking, it will go towards the sound of Townes:


https://vimeo.com/320693564


https://vimeo.com/219611343


https://vimeo.com/158207491

As has been said before, the concept of a steel string guitar with only four strings is often referred to as a tenor guitar with Chicago tuning. They are usually bigger than the Pono UL, but there is a model from Kala that has a 21" scale length and is therefore similarly spec'ed as a baritone ukulele. I have both models, Pono UL and Kala, because I really like the sound of steel strings without having to worry about two extra strings. Out of the two, I much prefer the Pono (and not just because I helped develop this model).
 
Hi Rakelele,

I read through the thread in which you and Dave got the first pono UL4 prototypes. I am quite interested. I cannot find any where that has them in stock currently. I don't mind waiting if that is what I decide on.

What is the model of your steel string Kala?
 
Hi Rakelele,

I read through the thread in which you and Dave got the first pono UL4 prototypes. I am quite interested. I cannot find any where that has them in stock currently. I don't mind waiting if that is what I decide on.

What is the model of your steel string Kala?

Kala's tenor guitar model name is KA-GTR.

If you are interested in the Pono UL, you might want to talk to Andrew from HMS about when and what they will have in stock. They may have stock that had not been listed as they are right next door to the Pono warehouse.
 
This wud be another option, if they are still available.. Ibanez AVT 1 (Artwood Vintage) Parlor tenor
 
In YT type in search : Ménilmontant , LeleSwing (for some reason I cannot include links, as it considers it to be spam ???) It is a Ibanez tenor parlor 4 string .
 
Well, IMHO, if the OP wants to sound like the video he'll need six strings. It's the rocking bass notes from the thumb pick that carry the song through, the jangly treble arpeggios just "sound nice" in the background ;)

With a ukulele, there are no bass notes. You have to imply them with what you have, or miss them altogether.

If you play a guitar arrangement on a ukulele, you're playing a ukulele like a guitar. It often won't translate. The song in the OP is a classic case in point. It won't go anywhere without the alternating bass notes.

I have done some Travis picking on a baritone ukulele and on a tenor guitar tuned like a baritone ukulele. It does sound different insofar as your designated bass strings for Travis picking on a baritone ukulele are the D and G strings (rather than the lower E and A strings on a guitar), but you can replicate the pattern and give what you're playing a similar feel.
 
Similar feel, but a different sound. To get the sound in the video, you'd want a guitar with steel strings. It's not as if they're rare.

I don't see why you'd choose to try and play guitar music on such limited instruments.I also don't see why you'd reduce the range of a tenor guitar.

I'm not knocking anybody else's choice of instrument. I love baritone ukuleles, I have two.
 
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