Fabulous Background Facts on the Ukulele

The Ukulele is a fabulous instrument to learn and play with its simplicity and social connections. It gives schools a simple alternative to the recorder for young students to learn and adults a mobile small instrument to pick, strum and sing along to, either by ones self or a group of friends. The ukulele has some fabulous background facts which are interesting to know before you strum your first song.

The Ukulele was bought to Hawaii by the Portuguese immigrants in the nineteenth century and in Hawaiian means "Jumping Flea".It gained popularity in other parts of America during the twentieth century before spreading to the rest of the world.

The ukulele resembles a small guitar with a fretted fingerboard and four strings that are picked or strummed. There are four common sizes. The soprano or standard size is the smallest and was developed first. The The concert ukulele was developed in the 1920's and it is slightly larger and louder with a more deeper tone than the soprano. The tenor ukulele with its increased size, greater volume and deeper bass tone was developed shortly after. In the 1940's the largest size called the baritone was developed. Some less common ukuleles are the sopranino and bass.

The shape of the ukulele is typically like that of a small acoustic guitar, but other non-standard shapes which are seen include the oval shape (pineapple ukulele ), boat-paddle shape or square shape occasionally.

Ukuleles are generally made of wood and the price of them to buy are determined by the quality of the wood used. Cheaper Ukuleles are generally made of ply or laminate woods with soundboards made of inexpensive but acoustically superior wood such as spruce. Some more expensive ukuleles are made of exotic hardwoods such as mahogany, Most expensive ukuleles are made from Koa, a Hawaiian wood which gives ukuleles an attractive colour and fine tone. They can cost thousands.

Before you create any sound on the ukulele you need to make sure all the strings are in tune. Ukuleles go out of tune especially the cheaper brands and so it is a good idea to tune them at the beginning of each play.

The standard tuning for soprano, concert and tenor ukuleles is C tuning which means the four strings will be associated with the pitch of G C E A. The 4th string is G, 3rd string is C, the 2nd string is E, the 1st string is A. That is when you strike the open string it sounds those notes. The G is tuned to the G above middle C on the piano, an octave higher than you might think. The baritone ukulele is tuned to D G B E with the sound going from low to high.

To tune a ukulele, the tuning heads at the head of the ukulele are loosened to lower the pitch and tightened to raise the pitch. It is a good idea to loosen the string below pitch to begin with and gradually tighten the heads until you reach the desired pitch.

There are several ways to tune a ukulele. They are:
1. Electric Tuner: This instrument will tell you when you have reached the desires pitch.
2. External Source like a piano keyboard or guitar. Just play the required note on the other instrument and turn the tuning heads on the ukulele until they reach the sound on that instrument.
3. Relative Tuning: This is often used when there is no external source or tuner to use. Basically you assume that the 3rd string is correctly tuned to C. Then you press down the fourth fret ( small distance between metal rods on the fretboard ) on the third string and tune the second string until they sound the same. Then you press down the fifth fret (A ) on the second string and tune the open first string to it. Finally, press down the third fret on the third fret (G ) and tune the forth string to it. When all strings are in tune then they will sound out the phrase - My Dog Has Fleas.

The ukulele history and the variable ukulele sizes, shapes and materials used to create them are all fabulous background facts on the ukulele which are useful to know. Ukulele tuning is essential to know if you wish to learn and play the ukulele.