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Your First Ukulele Lesson

and Then Some
A Complete Beginner’s Crash Course
to Playing Ukulele

by Brett McQueen of UkuleleTricks.com

All contents copyright © 2017 McQueen Machine, LLC. All rights reserved. No part of this document or accompanying files may be
reproduced or transmitted in any form, electronic or otherwise, by any means without the prior written permission of the publisher.

This ebook is presented to you for informational purposes only and is not a substitution for any professional advice. The contents
herein are based on the views and opinions of the author and all associated contributors.

While every effort has been made by the author and all associated contributors to present accurate and up to date information within
this document, it is apparent technologies rapidly change. Therefore, the author and all associated contributors reserve the right to
update the contents and information provided herein as these changes progress. The author and/or all associated contributors take
no responsibility for any errors or omissions if such discrepancies exist within this document.

The author accepts no responsibility for any consequential actions taken, whether monetary, legal, or otherwise, by any and all
readers of the materials provided. It is the readers sole responsibility to seek professional advice before taking any action on their
part.

Reader results will vary based on their skill level and individual perception of the contents herein, and thus no guarantees can be
made accurately. Therefore, no guarantees are made.


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 This book is dedicated to my grandfather
who taught and inspired me to play ukulele.


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Introduction and Welcome 6

About the Ukulele 8

The Four Different Ukulele Sizes 8

Ukulele Anatomy: Parts of the Ukulele 9

How to Tune Your Ukulele 11

Tuning Your Ukulele By Ear 13

Using a Chromatic Tuner to Tune Your Ukulele 13

How to Hold Your Ukulele 15

Your First Ukulele Chords 17

C major 17

G major 18

F major 18

How to Practice New Chord Positions 18

Your First Strumming Pattern 20

The Basis of Strumming 20

Strumming Pattern #1: Down, Down, Down, Down 21

Your First Song 23

10 More Really Important Ukulele Chords to Know 25

Major Chords 25

Minor Chords 27

Dominant 7th Chords 29

More Advanced Strumming Patterns 32

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 Strumming Pattern #2: Down, Down-Up, Down, Down-Up 32

Strumming Pattern #3: Down, Down-Up, Down-Up, Down-Up 33

Play “I’ve Been Working On the Railroad” 35

How to Learn a New Song on the Ukulele 35

I’ve Been Working On the Railroad 37

Where Do I Go From Here? 38

Can You Learn To Play Ukulele Online? 38

Yes! You Can Learn to Play Ukulele Online. 39

Learn to Strum the Ukulele 41

Learn to Fingerpick the Ukulele 42

Challenge Yourself with Ukulele Exercises 42

Join a Local Ukulele Club 43

Further Resources 44

Final Thoughts 45

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Introduction and Welcome
Are you ready to dive into the world of
ukulele? Before we get started, let me quickly
introduce myself. My name is Brett McQueen
(that’s me on the right). I’m from Ukulele
Tricks––a website that helps you become a
better ukulele player.

If you ask me, ukulele is the best instrument

you can learn how to play. For starters, no
matter how young or old you are, you can learn to play the ukulele. My
grandpa taught me when I was just six years old, and in the Ukulele
Tricks online video lesson courses, like Strumming Tricks and
Fingerpicking Tricks, I routinely see people in their 60s, 70s, 80s and
even 90s learning how to play the ukulele. Anybody can learn to play
ukulele!

Secondly, the ukulele is a relatively simple instrument (say compared

to the oboe!), so it’s easy to start playing songs right from the start.
You don’t need a musical background. In fact, in this book, I’m going
to teach you how to play a couple of well-known songs on ukulele.

Thirdly, playing ukulele isn’t the most expensive instrument. For

around $100, you can get a playable, decent-sounding ukulele. Not
only is the ukulele a relatively inexpensive instrument, the ukulele is
also a portable instrument. You can take your ukulele literally
anywhere you go––beach, work, school, bus, park, or whatever place
you can think of!

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Lastly, from what I’ve experienced, the ukulele community is single-
handedly one of the nicest and most welcoming. Most of us don’t take
ourselves too seriously, and because we’ve found a lot of joy in
playing ukulele, we just want others to experience the same.

The ukulele has brought a lot joy to my life, and I think it can to yours,
which is why I wrote this “crash course.” Wherever you’re at, after
going through this lesson book, you’ll have the skills to be able to start
playing some of your favorite songs.

These lessons are designed for the beginning ukulele player to get
you started on your path towards ukulele success. However, even if
you’ve played for a little while, I encourage you to keep reading
because you just might pick up some new tricks.

If you have any questions whatsoever, don’t hesitate to jump over to

Ukulele Tricks. I want to help you become a better ukulele player.

With that being said, let’s get started!

If at anytime while reading this lesson book, you

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find yourself completely stumped, don’t hesitate to
jump over to Ukulele Tricks and send me an email
through the contact page. You can also follow me
and ask your questions on Facebook or Twitter.

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About the Ukulele
Before you get into playing, take a minute to familiarize yourself with
the different sizes of ukuleles and the parts of your ukulele.

The Four Different Ukulele Sizes

The ukulele is a four-stringed plucked instrument introduced to Hawaii
by Portuguese immigrants in the 19th century. The most popular sizes
of ukuleles are soprano, concert, tenor and baritone.

Soprano ukuleles are the smallest size and tend to be the most
common as they can be had for a pretty low price (great for
beginners). They are known for their bright, “jangly” sound.

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A concert ukulele is slightly bigger in size compared to a soprano and
a tenor ukulele is even bigger than a concert. As the size of ukulele
gets bigger, this makes the tone of the ukulele sound warmer and
richer (not as bright).

The biggest ukulele is the baritone ukulele. It sounds even deeper in

pitch and tone than the other sizes because it is tuned like the bottom
four strings of a guitar.

➤ Click here for an in-depth look at ukulele sizes.

Ukulele Anatomy: Parts of the Ukulele

Sound is created whenever you pluck or strum a string. The string

vibrates the saddle, which is the white piece of plastic or bone
supported by the bridge on the top of the ukulele. The energy

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produced vibrates the top of the ukulele which resonates in the body
of the instrument and is projected out of the soundhole.

Bridge and Saddle Profile View

The most important thing you need to know for the purpose of this
lesson book is how to identify the neck, fretboard and frets. Frets are
the pieces of metal that lay perpendicular across the fretboard. You
press your fingers between the frets and pluck a string to produce a
pitch. The higher you go up the fretboard (closer to the soundhole) the
higher the pitch.

➤ Click here to read more about the parts of the ukulele.

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How to Tune Your Ukulele
Soprano, concert, and tenor ukuleles are commonly tuned to standard
reentrant tuning. The following figure shows a right-handed ukulele
tuned to standard reentrant tuning.

As you can see, the bottom string or first string is tuned to an A. The
second string is tuned to an E. The third string is tuned to a C, and
the fourth string or top string of the ukulele is tuned to a G.

Please note that the above figure is a “top down” perspective of the
ukulele, as if you were supporting it in your lap, ready to play. In this
way, the bottom line of the figure represents the top string of the
ukulele; likewise, the top line represents the bottom string of the
ukulele.

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From the top to bottom string, see how a ukulele is tuned on the music
staff and piano keys:

Notice that the top g-string (4th string) is tuned higher than the middle
two strings – the top g-string is tuned to a G-note above middle C on a
piano. This is why it is called reentrant tuning. The lowercase “g” is
used to indicate the G-note above middle C.

Are you a lefty and just learning to play ukulele? If

✓
so, as a lefty myself, I recommend tuning your strings
as shown above, using your left hand to fret chords
and right hand to strum. This will allow you to follow
along with me. Remember equal use of your dominant
and non-dominant hand is required to play the ukulele.

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Tuning Your Ukulele By Ear
Use the Ukulele Tricks’ online tuner to tune your ukulele by ear. When
tuning your ukulele by ear, you play a reference pitch of the note you
want to tune to, and then, turn the tuning pegs to match the pitch of
the reference note as closely as possible.

This takes some practice to get it right. One trick is to listen closely to
the two pitches as they are ringing out simultaneously. If there is a
“wobbly” or “warbly” sound between the pitches, this means they are
out of tune. Your goal is to turn the tuning pegs till you hear the purest
tone possible with no “wobble”.

➤ Click here to listen to an example of tuning your ukulele by ear.

Using a Chromatic Tuner to Tune Your Ukulele

The easiest and most accurate way to
tune your ukulele is to use a
chromatic tuner. As you pluck each
individual string on your ukulele, this
little device detects the pitch and
displays it back to you. It will indicate
if you are sharp or flat (above or
below the pitch), so you can get an
accurate tuning. Every ukulele player should have a chromatic tuner.

➤ See my recommendations of the best chromatic tuners.

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This is the basics of what you need to know for tuning, but if you want
to a read a more in-depth explanation and learn more about alternate
tunings then click here.

FREE TIP: Always, I mean always tune up your ukulele

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before you play it. Strings stretch as you play them and
can go out of tune from changes in humidity. As a ukulele
player, you will be more inspired by a ukulele that’s in
tune and so will your listeners!

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How to Hold Your Ukulele

How you hold your ukulele can vary slightly depending on what size of
ukulele you have.

Typically though, to hold the ukulele, cradle the body of the ukulele in
your right arm, while the part of your forearm, closest to the elbow,
applies a little pressure to the top of the ukulele, so it is held snug
against your body. Then, support the neck of the ukulele in the crevice
of your left hand where your thumb meets your index finger.

To strum, use the nail-side of your index finger to strum down and the
flesh-side of your index finger to strum up. Alternatively, you might use
the flesh-side of your middle or ring fingers for up strums.

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It’s critical to keep your strumming hand and fingers loose and relaxed
to avoid digging into the strings too hard. It just takes a little bit of
contact from your strumming hand across the strings to produce a
nice, even sound. Aim to strum near the 12th to 14th fret of the ukulele
for a warm, balanced sound. Avoid strumming directly over the
soundhole. The closer you get to the bridge and soundhole the
brighter the sound becomes (sometimes this is desirable though).

In all of this, there are many different ways to strum the ukulele
depending on the style you are playing. For now, the best way for you
is the way that is most comfortable and produces a relaxed, even
sound. It takes time to dial your strumming technique, so don’t be
discouraged! Be sure to experiment, and remember, the most
important thing is to keep a loose, relaxed hand and wrist.


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Your First Ukulele Chords
Now, it’s time to make music! To start, learn three of the most basic
and important ukulele chords: C major, G major and F major.

For each chord diagram, the thick horizontal line at the top indicates
the nut on the ukulele. The thinner horizontal lines indicate frets and
the vertical lines indicate strings. The black dot(s) on the strings
indicate which fret you press down with your finger. There are
numbers below to indicate which finger you use to press down on the
string with the number 1 representing the index finger, number 2 the
middle finger, number 3 the ring finger and number 4 the little
finger.

➤ Reference hundreds of chords at the Ukulele Tricks chord library.

C major

To play a C major chord, place your ring finger on the 3rd fret of the
bottom string (1st string). The remaining strings ring completely open.

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G major

To play a G major chord, place your middle finger on the 2nd fret of
the bottom string, ring finger on the 3rd fret of the second string and
index finger on the 2nd fret of the third string. The top string (4th
string) rings completely open.

F major

To play an F major chord, place your index finger on the 1st fret of
the second string and middle finger on the 2nd fret of the top string.
Let the first and third string ring completely open.

How to Practice New Chord Positions

As you practice these chord positions, practice positioning your fingers
for each chord and changing between each chord without strumming.

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When learning a new chord on the ukulele, at first, it’s difficult and
frustrating to get your fingers to go where you want them. Through
time and practice, you build muscle memory where changing chords
eventually becomes second nature, like tying your shoes.

You might also notice that the ends of your fingers start to feel sore.
This is very normal. Eventually, your fingers build calluses on the
ends, which will prevent the tips of your fingers from hurting. After a
week of dedicated practice, you should start to notice this to get better.

Bzzt! Are you having a hard time playing these chords

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without a string buzzing? String buzz can sometimes be
caused by the quality of the ukulele but you can help
minimize it by making sure your fretting fingers are
pressed as closely behind the fret as possible.

Amazingly enough, with just these three chords, you can play
hundreds of songs on the ukulele. Before you learn a song though,
take a look at a key strumming pattern on the ukulele. 


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Your First Strumming
Pattern
Even though the ukulele is a small instrument, when strummed, it has
a bright, crisp rhythmic tone. At first, strumming can seem like a bit of
juggling act; not only are you trying to keep a steady strumming
pattern, you also have to factor in chord changes and singing too!

Not to fret though, before I show you a strumming pattern, I want to

get you in the mindset of strumming that makes it a whole lot easier.

The Basis of Strumming

Strumming is a form of rhythm. Rhythm, in music, is all about steady
timing and consistency. Strumming isn’t about how complicated or fast
you play. If you can’t keep time and aren’t consistent, you’ve
completely defeated the purpose of strumming.

To keep steady timing and a consistent rhythm, as you practice these

first strumming patterns, you must be very intentional about counting
out loud. Counting out loud enables you to build up an internal “clock”
where it becomes easier to keep steady timing and a consistent
strumming rhythm.

With that being said, it’s time to learn your first strumming pattern!

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Strumming Pattern #1: Down, Down, Down, Down
For this first strumming pattern, take the C major chord you learned
earlier and strum all down strums. I recommend using the nail-side of
your index finger to strum down across the strings.

For this pattern, play to a count of four, which means you count out
loud “1, 2, 3, 4” and repeat this counting at a consistent but not too
fast pace. Perform a down strum on each count. A count of four,
referred to as “4/4”, is a common time signature in most modern and
popular music.

Here is the strumming pattern played over a C major chord:

Practice counting out loud and strumming all down strums at a

consistent moderate speed (not too fast, not too slow). If you’re a
natural, it might seem a little bit boring to count out loud and just do
down strums, but remember, the key in all of this to develop and
strengthen your internal sense of time.

As you become more comfortable, try adding a chord change. Here’s

where it gets a little more challenging. Change from a C major chord

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to a G major chord every four counts while keeping the same steady,
consistent tempo.

➤ Click to see this pattern explained and demonstrated in a video.

Practice this until you can switch between the two chords without
hesitating between the changes. The count should remain consistent
and steady through the chord change. For extra practice, take this
same idea and practice switching between a C major chord and F
major chord.

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Your First Song
Believe it or not, with the three chords and strumming pattern you’ve
learned, you’re ready to play a lot of songs on the ukulele! To start, let
me show you a nice and easy tune – an oldie but a goodie – Twinkle,
Twinkle Little Star.

Keep going with the down strums. The changes in this song happen
often, so start off slow and think about anticipating the next chord.

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 What’s the top line in the music? The top line of

? the music staff indicates the notes of the melody

that you sing. The bottom line indicates the chords
and strumming pattern.

Practice Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star till you can sing and play it at a
steady tempo without having to hesitate between the chord changes.
It might take little bit of time to get it right – that’s okay.

If you’re having trouble, don’t hesitate to slow it down. Practice

counting out loud and just going through the chord changes without
singing. As you get more comfortable, start humming under your
breath in combination with your counting. And then, as this becomes
more comfortable, sing it out and sing it strong!

Again, at this point, the goal isn’t to be “fancy” (“fancier” stuff will come
in the next part). Right now, it’s important to focus on being steady and
consistent. Once you’re ready, keep reading and learn some more
important ukulele chords.

Fantastic effort so far!

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10 More Really Important
Ukulele Chords to Know
By now, you should feel fairly comfortable changing between the C, F
and G chords. Your fingers should feel used to switching and changing
chords. It’s time to learn some more really important and common
chords. If you know these like the back of your hand, you’ll be half way
to learning about every song out there.

Major Chords
The following major chords are used in a lot of songs.

A major

To play an A major chord, place your index finger on 1st fret of the
third string and middle finger on the 2nd fret of the top string. The
bottom two strings ring completely open.

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D major

There are a couple ways to play a D major chord. The first way is to
place your little finger on the 2nd fret of the second string, ring
finger on the 2nd fret of the third string and middle finger on the 2nd
fret of the top string. Then, let the bottom string ring completely open.
For people with smaller fingers, this tends to work well.

However, those of us with large fingers, the recommended way to play

this chord is to barre the top three strings on the 2nd fret with your
middle finger or ring finger. This means your finger lays across and
presses down on the the top three strings at the 2nd fret. Bend the
finger back a little to allow the bottom string to ring open. Sometimes I
will even use my index finger to do this. This is hard to do and takes
practice, so experiment with both ways to see which one works best
for you.

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Bb major

To play a Bb major chord, use your index finger to barre the strings
at the first fret. This means you use your index finger to hold and
press down all four strings. Then, place your middle finger on the 2nd
fret of the third string and ring finger on the 3rd fret of the top string.

➤ Click here for more specific tips on playing a Bb major chord.

Minor Chords
The next set of chords you learn are minor chords. Minor chords are
like major chords, except you change one note of the chord to make it
minor. Minor chords tend to have a “sadder” sound to them.

Click to read a more in-depth explanation on the differences

➤ between major and minor chords.

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A minor

To play an Am chord, simply place your middle finger on the 2nd fret
of the top string and let the bottom three strings ring completely open.

D minor

To play a Dm chord, place your index finger on the 1st fret of the
second string, ring finger on the 2nd fret of the third string and
middle finger on the 2nd fret of the top string. Let the bottom string
ring completely open.

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E minor

To play an Em chord, place your index finger on the 2nd fret of the
bottom string, middle finger on the 3rd fret of the second string and
ring finger on the 4th fret of the third string. Let the top string ring
completely open.

Dominant 7th Chords

Major and minor chords only have three notes that make up the sound
of the chord. Seventh chords are essentially major or minor chords
with an added note called a seventh, which refers to the seventh or
last note of a scale. You find seventh chords a lot in blues and jazz
styles, as well as older traditional songs.

There are different types of seventh chords (major 7th, minor 7th,
dominant 7th, diminished 7th), however, we’re just going to learn
some dominant seventh chords, which tend to show up the most.

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C7

To play a C7 chord, simply place your index finger on the 1st fret of
the bottom string. Let the other three strings ring completely open.

G7

To play a G7 chord, place your ring finger on the 2nd fret of the
bottom string, index finger on the 1st fret of the second string and
middle finger on the 2nd fret of the third string. Let the top string ring
completely open.

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D7

To play a D7 chord, lay your index finger across all four strings on the
2nd fret. While these strings are barred, place your middle finger on
the 3rd fret of the bottom string.

E7

To play an E7 chord, place your ring finger on the 2nd fret of the
bottom string, middle finger on the 2nd fret of the third string and
index finger on the 1st fret of the top string. Let the second string ring
completely open.

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More Advanced Strumming
Patterns
I admit that down strums can be a bit boring, however, they are
extremely flexible, and if you can play a good ol’ down strum pattern
with steady timing (that’s key, remember!) you can easily make your
strumming pattern more interesting. Let’s take a look at how you can
do this.

Strumming Pattern #2: Down, Down-Up, Down, Down-Up

For this pattern, continue to strum to a count of four. However, this
time, add an up strum between the second and third beat as well as
between the fourth and first beat. This makes a strumming pattern of
down, down-up, down, down-up.

Count this by saying “and” between these beats. All you’re doing is
splitting these beats (beats 2 and 4) in half or subdividing them. So the
strumming pattern would look like this:

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As you start to feel more comfortable with this strumming pattern,
practice changing chords. In the following example, practice switching
from a C chord to a G chord:

Again, practice this until you can change chords seamlessly. Start out
slow at first and gradually increase your speed. Remember, it’s all
about keeping that solid and consistent rhythm. Don’t forget to
practice this pattern using other chords you’ve learned too!

Strumming Pattern #3: Down, Down-Up, Down-Up,

Down-Up
This strumming pattern goes a step further and adds another up strum
in between the third and fourth beats. This is like the strumming
pattern I used in my cover of Somewhere Over the Rainbow. Check it
out:

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To add a different feel to these strumming patterns, you might accent
certain beats. When you accent a beat, you strum a little bit harder,
and consequently, strum the beats you aren’t accenting a little softer.

For this third strumming pattern, I typically like to strum the second
and fourth beat a little bit harder than the other beats. This gives the
pattern a nice pulse and energy to it. Experiment with these three
strumming patterns and see what you come up with. More often
than not, there isn’t a hard and fast right or wrong way to strum a
song. All that matters is that you keep the timing steady and
consistent.

Once you feel comfortable, add a chord change to practice this third
strumming pattern:

Take your strumming and rhythm on the ukulele to

!
the next level. Join me in the Strumming Tricks online
video lesson course teaching you these patterns and
more as well as how to apply your skills to playing songs
a variety of songs. Learn more here.

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Play “I’ve Been Working
On the Railroad”
I’ve Been Working On the
Railroad is the very first song I
ever learned how to play on
ukulele, so I’m excited for you to
learn it. It’s a classic, must-know
song. My grandpa taught it to
me, and ironically, he worked on
the railroad.

If you’re not familiar with this

song, listen to me perform it here.

How to Learn a New Song on the Ukulele

Don’t be afraid to tackle a new song on the ukulele. You can do it!
Whenever I learn a new song, the following things help me learn the
song faster and more easily:

1. Listen to the song. For me, it’s easier to learn a song when I’ve
heard it played over and over again. The goal is to get the song
stuck in your mind, so you’re practically singing it in your sleep!
Find the song online for digital download, or pull up the song by
your favorite artist on YouTube. As you listen, try counting along to
sense the rhythm (tip: most songs are counted in four or three).

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2. Study the song’s chord chart. You can find the chord charts for
most songs online. A chord chart shows you the lyrics of the song
with the chords written above the lyrics as an approximation of
when you play that chord as you are singing the song. Always look
over the chord chart and see what chords are used in the song.
Without even playing, practice changing to and from these chords.
3. Start with down strums. Remember, that good ol’ down strum
pattern you first learned? When you have a good idea about what
chords your changing to and from, start to add some rhythm with
just down strums. Try humming the melody of the song.

As you become more comfortable, add some up strums in between

the down strums as it feels best to you. With most songs, there is not
necessarily a right or wrong strumming pattern for the song. More
often than not, you have to experiment and go with what feels right to
you. Learning a song is a process, so be patient with yourself and
don’t give up. You can do it!

On the next page, learn how to play I’ve Been Working On the
Railroad. For this song, I like to use strumming pattern #2 that you
learned earlier. Work through this song and see how it goes.

If you run into any problems, remember, I can help. These strumming
techniques are taught in detail with easy-to-follow, step-by-step video
lessons in Strumming Tricks.


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I’ve Been Working On the Railroad
“I’ve Been Working On the Railroad” chord chart


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Where Do I Go From Here?
First, let me congratulate you on working through this book!

If you’ve made it this far, you’ve made great strides in your ukulele
playing and you should feel very proud of yourself. You're well on your
way to making the music that inspires you. Fantastic work!

You've discovered how learning to play ukulele isn't a random

process. It also isn't about having natural talent or about being a
certain age.

Learning to play ukulele is about taking small easy steps,

building your skills and confidence while having fun.

Why stop here?

You're only getting started and there's so much music to be made!

Can You Learn To Play Ukulele Online?

A lot of people wonder if you can truly learn to play ukulele with online
lessons.

It's quite difficult to learn to play ukulele online if you're searching

Google and YouTube for random ukulele lessons. While there's a lot of
great free material (such as this lesson book!), what free lessons don't
always take in account is your current skill level and the prerequisite
steps required to play the music being covered.

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There's nothing more discouraging than diving into the deep end of
learning a song and not being able to follow along.

More than that, it's frustrating not knowing what steps to get to the
point where you could play that song. The end result is frustration and
discouragement.

Playing ukulele is about experiencing the joy of making music

now, even if you're a beginner!

I'm a strong believer in the idea that a student learns fastest and has
the most fun when there is an easy-to-follow, step-by-step roadmap.

Do you want to strum? Do you want to fingerpick melody? Do you

want to play the blues?

You can do all these. As your teacher, let me do the heavy mental
lifting of coming up with the right steps for you to follow to achieve
those goals.

As a student, you should be focused on making music! Not inventing a

curriculum and finding the right material that is in line with your current
skill level and goals.

Yes! You Can Learn to Play Ukulele Online.

I've had the pleasure of teaching over 10,000 students how to play
ukulele online with step-by-step, easy-to-follow video lesson courses.

You have all the steps you need to become a proficient ukulele player
in various styles and techniques.

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Check out what these students have to say about Ukulele Tricks
online courses:

"Since age 6, I've tried to learn to play a musical instrument

without success (first the piano, at age 16 the guitar, at age 30 the
keyboard, at age 55 the banjo uke). At age 62, I bought a uke and
began Brett's course. 1 1/2 years later, I've fulfilled my lifelong
dream - I can play hundreds of songs!”
– Dr. Linda S

"I am a big believer in your lessons. I have friends who have just
learned on there own from a mish mash of YouTube people. They
don't have the fundamentals down and they get frustrated when
they can't do a song. They try to start with stuff that is too hard at
first. Your lessons have saved me from all of that frustration.”
– Jeff J.

"Brett is a wonderful teacher who is very relaxed when he teaches

and plays, which makes me relaxed when I play. He explains his
lessons very well and the progression of his lesson plan makes
total sense."
– Gillett C.

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Learn to Strum the Ukulele
Have you wanted to:

• Play and switch chords smoothly without hesitating or

stopping
• Find the right strumming pattern for any song
• Sing and play at the same time without losing the rhythm
• Learn songs at your skill level to have fun and build
confidence
• Fulfill your lifelong dream of playing an instrument

If you said “yes” to any of those and you’ve liked this book, then, the
next step is to join me in Strumming Tricks.

In Strumming Tricks you have step-by-step, easy-to-follow online

video lessons at your fingertips teaching how to become a rock-steady
strummer on ukulele being able to play the songs you love all while
going at your own pace.

Join Strumming Tricks today.

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Learn to Fingerpick the Ukulele
Maybe you’re beyond the basics and strumming just isn’t your thing.

You dream of expressing yourself on the ukulele by fingerpicking

intricate and beautiful melodies, patterns, and pieces. Rather than
singing and strumming you prefer to pick the melody of the song.

If this is you, then, you’ll love Fingerpicking Tricks–a complete step-by-

step beginner to intermediate online video lesson course teaching you
how to fingerpick the ukulele in multiple styles, including: pattern-
based picking, arpeggio-based picking, melodic-based picking, and
chord melody picking.

Learn how to play over twenty fingerpicking and fingerstyle songs and
pieces–everything from the classics to Beethoven, Bach, Aguado,
Tárrega, and more

Join Fingerpicking Tricks today.

Challenge Yourself with Ukulele Exercises

For those of you who are looking for more advanced material,
exercises and concepts, I recommend my practice-based, physical
book Ukulele Exercises For Dummies – now available in bookstores
worldwide and online.

Grab your copy on Amazon here.

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Join a Local Ukulele Club
I am here to help as you learn how to play the ukulele but one of the
best ways to learn is to find friends that play the ukulele. Now, more
than ever, there are ukulele clubs and groups popping up all around
the world. See if there is a ukulele club in your local community, and if
there isn’t one yet, I encourage you to start your own!

By making music with other people, you end up learning all sorts of
new things and are challenged in your abilities. I find when I play
music with friends I’m constantly learning new things about myself as
a musician and the instrument I’m playing (in this case, the ukulele!).

Keep in mind, you don’t have to be a pro to join a ukulele club or to

have a jam session with your friends. Because we are all different and
come from unique backgrounds, we each have the ability to teach
someone and encourage them in their pursuit of music. 


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Further Resources
1.) Strumming Tricks
https://www.ukuleletricks.com/strumming-tricks/
Perfect for beginners. Become proficient in strumming, rhythm and
chord changes on the ukulele, improving your skills while learning
actual songs.

2.) Fingerpicking Tricks

http://www.ukuleletricks.com/fingerpicking-tricks/
For those that desire to fingerpick the ukulele beautifully and
expressively. This step-by-step online video lesson courses teaches
you everything from technique, arpeggios, chord melody and more.

3.) Ukulele Chord Library

http://www.ukuleletricks.com/ukulele-chords/
Finger positions for over hundreds of chords in several different
variations all across the fretboard.

4.) Online Ukulele Tuner (Desktop Only)

http://www.ukuleletricks.com/ukulele-tuner/
Easy-to-use online ukulele tuner to tune your ukulele by ear in
standard tuning and several other tunings.

5.) Ukulele Song Library

http://www.ukuleletricks.com/ukulele-songs/
My favorite songs with chords and lyrics, often times with videos
showing you how to play the song. 


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Final Thoughts
How are things going for you? Any part of this lesson book got you
stumped? I would love to hear your questions and comments.

There are a couple ways we can connect. First, you can send me an
email or post a comment on the blog at anytime. I read all these and
try my best to answer any question.

If you’re on Twitter, you can follow me at twitter.com/UkuleleTricks. Be

sure to “Like” Ukulele Tricks on Facebook too. Also, don’t forget to
subscribe to the Ukulele Tricks’ YouTube channel too for free video
lessons and songs.

I would love to hear how it’s going for you, and if there is a way I can
help you out, it would be my pleasure to be able to do that.

I hope you’ve found this lesson book to get you started into the world
of playing ukulele. It may feel daunting at first, but I’m telling you, the
time and work you put in now pays off in dividends of joy.

Strum on!

Brett McQueen
http://www.ukuleletricks.com

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