I bought my first ukulele last year in Singapore for $30. The only reason I got it back then was because of
Youtube. I stumbled upon a duo singing a cheery song about their favourite-online-social-networking website. I loved the song. Cutesy song I thought (Rocky even moreso) and the ukulele? Sounds uplifting maybe, it's portable too. Couldn't be hard to play an instrument with only 4 strings and it's kind of like a bass guitar, I thought (again).
So one weekend I strolled into a music shop after classes just to look for one. There I saw them not one but a few hurrah, but it was disappointing. They all look like toys, constructed from lousy materials, and had poor finishings. With some thought, I returned the next day and the ukulele, I bought. Boy, was I a happy camper. Took me a couple of days to get the hang of it being so tiny and all. After learning the few songs I know, the one above, a few by
Sophie Madeleine (Balls of Rocky and Balls), and Jason Mraz, it was tossed aside because there weren't any songs I can play with my level of skill and the ATPLs were just around the corner.
Friends back home knew I started picking up the ukulele. Just before I left for Perth, my darling friends, Mun, Jeff, Yinng and Ernst got me a ukulele with a message written behind, and I'd always add "
that I should always have it with me never leave it behind, and everywhere I play it I would keep you in mind".
Today, I've got two little ukuleles (Soprano ukuleles
they're called). With all the time I have, sometimes I pick up the ukulele. After so long I've gotten a teeny weeny bit better with it, starting to find songs I can do some finger picking with. One in particular, Jake Shimabukuro's "
While my guitar gently weeps", made me realise I need a different type of ukulele (one with a longer neck - more frets). The rightmost ukulele in the picture is a Soprano, then followed by a Concert, two Tenor ukuleles and the last a Baritone. So I've done a little bit of reading on ukuleles. Got to know what I'm getting for the money I'm spending after all (sighs).
The
soprano is the ukulele that is most easily recognized because it is the tiniest and the tone is typically the one associated with ukuleles. The one I have has only
12 frets (frets - literally).
Next the
concert ukulele is also referred to as the alto ukulele. It is slightly larger than the soprano model, but it has a 15" scale compared to 13" on the soprano. This makes it a bigger choice for people with larger hands. It has a fuller tone.
The type of ukulele that can come with different numbers of strings is the
tenor ukulele. It also has an even fuller tone than the concert ukulele. It comes in 4 or 6-string types. You can even get an 8-string type of ukulele as a tenor. It is larger than the concert ukulele.
Jake Shimabukuro uses a tenor for his crazy picking solos.
Israel Kamakawiwo'ole (RIP) as well if I remember correctly.
This is the largest of the ukuleles and resembles a mini-guitar. It can even be tuned like a guitar. It has the deepest tone and is usually the most expensive model.
I guess I'm willing to spend $150 on it, tops. Hopefully I get a good deal. I'll need to read up more on the types and brands. I will become a better ukulele player. This would be my new year resolution (heh) it's never too late to think of some after the eve.
