Experienced ukers: What do you know now that you wish you'd known when you started?

[experimentjon]

Well, I wouldn't call myself an experienced uker, but I wish I had known that there were good strings that weren't white and weren't called Aquilas. I seriously put those on everything b/c I was a noob and I liked how loud they were, and how much better they could make less expensive ukes sound. Who cares that it would break your fingers if you wanted to do massive bends, or that the strings were super stiff for strumming...bugga was loud. But anyway, I wish I had known about Worth strings and what a difference changing strings can do to the sound of your uke. A simple $10 upgrade from GHS to Worth can improve your uke sound by like $100.

Also, movable chord shapes. Learn them. They're awesome.

 

[GX9901]

That you don't need to be experienced to get nice ukes such as the Hawaiian K's or even custom built ukes I think the higher end ukes are actually more user-friendly toward beginners becaue they are easier to play and their great sound encourage you to play even more.

 

[Link]

I wish I would have known that they were like crack and should be avoided to preserve sanity.

 

[SailorQwest]

That you can play any style off music you like and sound Good!
You aren't limited to "Ukulele" music. I'm not sure what that is but that's something I had heard/thought.

 

[ukuleG]

I wish I would have known that they were like crack and should be avoided to preserve sanity.

i couldn't agree more, i really cant get enough and cant stop playing theres never a day goes by i don't play my uke or if i for some reason i haven't been able to get to my uke i get withdrawal symptoms. its basically taking over my life.

 

[specialmike]

Stay away from people with really nice ukes If you don't, you'll end up dropping some big bucks on an ukulele of equal quality. haha

 

[grappler]

try to learn more songs.
i need to stop repeating songs.

 

[Ahnko Honu]

I wish I could have foreseen my Dad's Kamaka pineapple getting ripped off, and preventing it from happening.

 

[rclifford13]

I wish I'd always tried to figure out songs by ear instead of googling the chords. The skill comes in immensely useful when working with other musicians.
I wish I'd been able to control my UAS and only buy instruments I really needed.
Most of all, I wish I'd known about UU from the very start!

 

[RonS]

I wish I'd always tried to figure out songs by ear instead of googling the chords.

+2

Its never to late to start

 

[micromue]

ALWAYS carry a uke on your travels. They like it abroad!

 

[scooch]

5 or 10 minutes practice a day is more valuable than doing two hours straight once a fortnight!

 

[Reno Dave]

I was just thinking about this very subject yesterday. I am self taught and have only been playing since last December but have made considerable advancements. With that being said, I wish I would have known earlier about finger warm up excercises and simple scales as shown in "Uke Minutes". I do this daily now before I start my practice sessions. It really helps.

 

[uke552]

I wish I would have known that UAS is a common disease among folks on this board. It would have saved me $$ in doctors bills and medical research ($$ that I could have used to buy more ukes........yes, more ukes.......need one more.....)