chris667

Another thing - the curriculum for music teaching in uk schools centres around ukuleles and guitars. I get the three string idea but I think that these aren't ideal.

I thought these looked interesting but £149 at Gear4music. 😯 That's a big investment for something that for most kids will be a piece of sculpture.

Full disclosure:I make some of my living from teaching people how to play the ukulele. Not kids as a rule, and not generally beginners. It depends on the kid, of course, but I think there are various types of ukulele depending on what she likes, and how much time you are willing to spend with her. She can start off with any of the cheapo wooden ones and these are fine if you pick a good one but about 10% of them are completely unplayable. As a guitarist, you will be able to spot an unplayable one as it will be like an unplayable guitar. If you can't find one secondhand, I like these Junior Rockstar ones at Smyths Toys: https://www.smythstoys.com/uk/en-gb/toys/arts-crafts-and-music/musical-instruments-and-karaoke/musical-instruments/rockstar-ukulele-junior-pink-50cm/p/168154 Because they're moulded plastic they're totally reliable and all have perfect intonation and action, as well as being very tough. They need a lot of tuning (the tuners are awful but they do work) and if you ever leave them in a car on a hot day you'll find they melt - when you take them out of the car the action will most likely be about an inch at the 12th fret! If you are near Derby I have a nice purple one that you can have for the £2.50 I paid for it in a charity shop.

Belper! I'm like you - was living on a narrowboat and put in at Willington theoretically for a winter. That was fifteen years ago.

I have one that a friend is trying to sell to me. It's an R Moreno 531. It's gorgeous. It's been sat in my studio since the last time I saw him. I will end up buying it! There's lots of little builders of classical guitars.

I t can be done relatively easily with a round biscuit tin with an incandescent lightbulb in the centre. I have a friend who has made several banjo and camp uke bodies this way.

Hello Derbyshire homie!

Ireal pro is a great tool, but: 1. The chords are all user-contributed and very often not great quality. 2. The midi backing tracks are awful, and I can hear their influence on a lot of jazz I seem to be hearing these days. It is often played much too fast and square. £18 is pretty good value if you don't mind taking a tablet with you everywhere though. I prefer the New Orleans Jambook. There are chords for each song and they're better quality. If you've never seen this kind of lead sheet the chords at the top are for instruments tuned in C, and the melody is for instruments in Bb. A great starting point! A great resource and all free. https://cjam.lassecollin.se/

Hello. I'm Chris. I live in a little town on the edge of the peak district. I've been a longtime musician, mostly interested in popular music from 1920-1950ish (all learned from 78rpm recordings! ). My main instument is the ukulele but I also play a bit of lap steel and banjo. I'm in various bands and do a bit of ukulele tuition. I am looking to pick up bass to broaden my horizons a bit - I have spent many years in the same tiny little niche and much as I love it want to mix things up. I am interested in other kinds of music. Currently I'm playing a loaned Jackson bass which doesn't suit me at all, so I will end up on the marhetplace soon.