What To Look For When You Buy A Ukulele
955 views · Published 11 June 2017 · 3:32 · Indexed 21 September 2026
Channel: Life The Basic Manual · 2017 · Education
Nick Cody, musical maestro, and member of the highly-regarded band, The Small Change Diaries, gives us the lowdown on what to look for if you’re thinking of buying a ukulele. It’s easy to be swayed by a ukulele that looks great online or be seduced by reviews you read. But Nick makes the very salient point that there is absolutely no substitute for holding an instrument yourself, and finding out if it feels right for you. He suggests that if you can, you go to some good music stores, and try a few different ukuleles. Be aware that there are very wide variances between different instruments when it comes to ukes, and play or strum a few to see which tone appeals to you. Nick also makes the excellent and often overlooked observation that how you hear the instrument when you are playing is quite different to how an audience might hear it. If you can take someone with you to offer feedback on how differing the ukuleles sound, that can be a helpful outside perspective. If you go into a store try to avoid one with background music that will muddy your perceptions, or ask them to turn it off. Some key questions to ask yourself about any uke you are thinking of buying are, one, how does it sound? Try playing it with open strings and see how the tone strikes you. Two, how does it sound to your listener? Three, how easy or hard is it for you to play it - what is the action like? If you buy a ukulele which is strung too high, and its hard for you to play, that can be pretty discouraging. Too low, and you may lose clarity of sound. Finally, how are the notes when you’re holding the strings down? Clear or muddy? Part of what will determine your ultimate choice is what you like, what style you play, and often an intuitive sense of having met the right companion on the journey. Nick reminds us that there is no ‘best’ ukulele, but there is quite a probably the best ukulele for you. He suggests you go and explore until you find it. For more information on original ukulele songs, The Small Change Diaries, or general advice on ukuleles, please see below. http://nickcody.com http://www.originalukulelesongs.com http://www.smallchangediaries.com http://www.gotaukulele.com is also an invaluable resource for information on what to look for with practical advice and resources. SUBSCRIBE FOR MORE VIDEOS https://www.youtube.com/c/lifethebasicmanual?sub_confirmation=1 FIND LIFE THE BASIC MANUAL HERE http://lifethebasicmanual.com http://www.facebook.com/lifethebasicmanual http://instagram.com/lifethebasicmanual http://twitter.com/BasicManual
