Favorite chord progressions outside of primary positions

I've been messing around with writing songs and experimenting with playing chords outside of their primary positions. Curious if anyone has a favorite place on the fretboard to play something like (for example) C F G outside of the first 3 frets, etc. Even a favorite position of any particular chord, really, is interesting if you think it's the prettiest place to play it.

Ukulele tricks has a nice page where you can try out positions
https://ukuleletricks.com/ukulele-chords/

IMHO the Ukulele sounds best at or under the 7th fret. And since I play Concert size most of the time, my fat fingers work best between the lower frets. They become unmercifully squeezed above the 7th fret. So, I usually follow this plan. 1st I find the key for the song that (1) suits my vocal range, and (2) best accommodates playing the melody. Then, I consider the chords. They have to be in the right position, some inversions simply sound wrong to me in a given application. Then many songs have sections where stepwise bass progressions or the sound of open 5ths, or some such other consideration is important. I choose the chord shapes that will produce those effects. Finally, I look at sections of the song that have the same chord being played over several beats. Often I find that using an inversion higher/lower on the fretboard, then switching to another inversion of the same chord sounds good and keeps the harmonic rhythm flowing in the tune. All of this having been said, it is the primary chords that give the Ukulele its best, richest sound. The Uke already suffers from a low range handicap, and playing chords higher up the fretboard only accentuates that situation.

C - 5433, C7 - 3433 or 5463, F - 10 988, G7 - 7778, G - 777 10
C - 9787, C7 - 97 10 7, F - 5558, G7 -7575, G-777X or 7775

I mostly avoid first position; my home base is a bit higher on the fretboard, and I play almost exclusively with movable shapes. To compensate for the pitch shift upward, I often use lowered tunings as well. This also allows me to vary the (dramatic) tension or sound by moving down as well as up, and the nut interferes less often with movable pattern thinking or with chord connections or mutations.

I do have a number of favorite, movable chord shapes, such as for the chord types 6/9, add9, 13 (with or without 9ths), m6/9, and the 7alt family. I derive almost all shapes I need by tweaking four main dominant 7th shapes in easily learned and very consistent ways—this is also the most efficient way to learn chords that I know of. By associating chord shapes more with their type(s) and where the root lies in the shape, rather than with explicit and fixed names, this knowledge ports directly to all other regions of the neck and to all other fleas-based tunings. Rather than give isolated examples here, I'd rather just teach you the movable derivation system, and then you'd have all these shapes and hundreds more at your fingertips, neatly organized in the way that's most useful. If you're interested, PM me and we'll set up a videochat session or two.

As for progressions, I have a lot to say about learning them, too.

ubulele said:

I mostly avoid first position; my home base is a bit higher on the fretboard, and I play almost exclusively with movable shapes. To compensate for the pitch shift upward, I often use lowered tunings as well. This also allows me to vary the (dramatic) tension or sound by moving down as well as up, and the nut interferes less often with movable pattern thinking or with chord connections or mutations.

I do have a number of favorite, movable chord shapes, such as for the chord types 6/9, add9, 13 (with or without 9ths), m6/9, and the 7alt family. I derive almost all shapes I need by tweaking four main dominant 7th shapes in easily learned and very consistent ways—this is also the most efficient way to learn chords that I know of. By associating chord shapes more with their type(s) and where the root lies in the shape, rather than with explicit and fixed names, this knowledge ports directly to all other regions of the neck and to all other fleas-based tunings. Rather than give isolated examples here, I'd rather just teach you the movable derivation system, and then you'd have all these shapes and hundreds more at your fingertips, neatly organized in the way that's most useful. If you're interested, PM me and we'll set up a videochat session or two.

As for progressions, I have a lot to say about learning them, too.

Click to expand...

This sounds a lot like what I've been reading a little about in Brad Bordessa's Ukulele Chord Shapes book. I haven't dug in super far yet, but it seems like essentially the same idea. Have you heard of that book?

congratulations Donboody, you've made it to the next step. In my estimation, once someone starts thinking about roots and chords all over the neck, he or she has attained a quantum leap in musicianship.

I tend to gravitate around the 11th fret because I play a lot in E. Therefore a lot of my chords are there, as well as some favorite modes to play with the chords.

Enjoy the new freedom. You can play the same old progressions but mix up the pitches. You can play a high C, a middle F, and a low G. Or reverse it. Or play all high chords. There's a lot of variation.

I don't have a favorite progression. Right now I am more avid about innovating the chord qualities than finding new progressions. For example I like the standard Harmonic Minor progression: i iv V. So I've been keeping the chords and switching up the extensions. To put it less obstrusively, I play E add9, A minor add9, Bm. Then as a turnaround, I've been playing D major, C minor 6, C#7.

donboody said:

This sounds a lot like what I've been reading a little about in Brad Bordessa's Ukulele Chord Shapes book. I haven't dug in super far yet, but it seems like essentially the same idea. Have you heard of that book?

Click to expand...

Brad's book is great. When I was devising my own system, it was a constant resource of mine. I think you should take up Ubulele on his offer. I am not very sociable or electronically-savvy, but I downloaded skype with the intention of picking his brain. Unfortunately our schedules never aligned. I think it would be beneficial.

This thread is very informational. I agree, Brad's book is really helpful especially to me.

Making chord shapes up the neck sound good is very dependent on excellent intonation, and one thing that ukuleles are NOT renowned for is, excellent intonation.
So how well intonated are your instruments?

Here's something I do. I move some of the chords in the progression away from the first position but not all of them. I will often still play a baritone first position D maj (0,2,3,2 or G major with standard tuning) but then play the G major ( C major for standard tuning) at 5,4,3,3, instead of, and often as well as 0,0,0,3. I may finish a phrase at 0,0,0,3 and then start the next phrase at 5,4,3,3 , especially if the next chord in the sequence is 4,2,2,2. DO you see where this is going? Think ahead to the next chords in the phrase/sequence and pick an chord position/inversion that works/sounds best.
Often I play different positions/inversions of the exact same chord in two different positions in the same song. 0,2,3,2 is also 7,7,7,5, just different inversion G maj in standard tuning or D maj in baritone tuning.

Here's something to note if you don't already know it. The notes of the 0,2,3,2 shape in standard tuning are, G, D,G, B. In the 2nd position they are D, G, B, D. Ignoring reentrant tuning for a moment, the last/highest 3 strings from 1st position are the exact same notes in the exact same order as the first 3 notes from the second position shape. The first position shape has one lower note, the second position shape has one higher note.

In standard tuning, an A minor is commonly played as 2,0,0,0, yet it can also be played as 2,4,5,3. This is simply the standard position G minor shape, slid up the fretboard two frets. You can slide it two more frets up the fretboard and play a B minor. Then you can slide up one more fret and revert to the major triad and play a C major.

I hope I'm being clear enough.
Anyway, work out all your first position and second position major and minor chords in the same key and play around with substituting first and second position shapes in the same song.
One movement that can be particularly useful is to start on a major chord, add a minor and/or a fifth chord and then end the phrase on the major one position above.
It's a common practice in pop songs to play higher position shapes in an intro but then use the lower position shapes as an accompaniment when singing.

I've never experienced any issues up the neck aside from user-problems. Things get too tight for my sausage fingers above the 15th fret. Also, like many people I instinctively use the iron grip of death as I move up the fret board although high chords do not require any more pressure than low chords. There is just something psychologically about moving up the neck increases the tension. However those things aren't the instrument's fault and if I do not do those things it sounds good

Meh, an iron grip on a well intonated instrument will cause intonation problems when none existed with a correct touch. Sure, yet the lightest grip in the World is not going to correct an instrument that goes sharp up the neck because it simply lacks enough saddle compensation.
Now the reason why I take issue with some of the experienced members claiming that its all in the touch, is that it gives the less experienced members a bum steer to believe that its all them and not the instrument.
Lots of cheap ukuleles have poor intonation up the neck. How do you know? Test them with an accurate electronic tuner. If chords don't sound right up the neck then its not always just a player technique fault. It can definitely be the instrument's fault.
If you guys are only playing accurately built instruments these days because you know what to look for when you buy them then good for you.