Category: Music

As this musical growth project comes to a close, I feel that I I can say that I am proud of where I’ve come since I started. I have learned many new things including chords, finger placements, how to transition between chords, strumming and picking patterns, how to hold the ukulele, and much more. I now have 3 new songs I can add to my tool box! As I finish I can now play each song from memory with mostly smooth transitions, correct placements, and clear sounds and I am able to sing along and keep my timing. There are still some places where I can make improvement including the clarity of s=certain chords (Dm, D, and E) and cleaner strumming, but I am happy with where I am. Moving beyond this project, I will try to learn new songs and I will use my knowledge I learned from these 3 songs to help me do that.

Please enjoy my videos of Edelweiss, Somewhere Over the Rainbow, and Rainbow Connection!

See you soon!

Kate 🙂

Edelweiss

Somewhere Over the Rainbow

Rainbow Connection

Since my last blog, I have gotten more comfortable with the song Rainbow Connection. The transitions between chords are becoming easier. The chords of E and D are getting easier, however, they still need work.  I have been able to play the song with the strumming pattern (down, up, up) at but I am struggling with keeping pace while transition between chords when the D or E is involved especially with the E because the placements are so far apart. From here, I will be working on memorization and the sound clarity and finger placements for the chords of E and D.

Rainbow Connection

Edelweiss and Somewhere Over the Rainbow are going well. I have memorized both fully and I have been able to play each song with full sounds for each chord, smooth transitions, and correct finger placements while singing along. I find it easier to play the songs when I sing along as it helps me remember the tune and which chords match the tune and when to transition between chords as the chords are often linked up to the words of the song. As we head into the home stretch before this musical growth project is finished, I will be working on memorization for all songs, maintaining clarity of sound for all chords, maintaining smooth transitions and correct finger placements, and singing along to each song.

Hi! And we’re back! So after the midterm check in, I decided that I no longer wanted to learn t play the song Into the Unknown from Frozen II.  I had just been hearing it too much lately so I decide to go back to the classics. I chose to change my last song to Rainbow Connection by Kermit the Frog because I like the tune and I think it is very underrated. So wish us luck. This new song includes the chords G, Em, C, D, Am, D#, A, F#m, and E.  So far with this song I have just gone over the new chords and played it through slowly with a single strum. Right now I am having difficulty with the D chord and the E chord. I am having trouble with the D chord because the finger placements are so close together and I have having trouble with the E chord for the opposite reason! The finger placements are too far apart! However, we are working on it.

I have now memorized Somewhere Over the Rainbow and I have been able to make the chord transitions smoother  and the sounds clearer. I am still working on the clarity of the Dm chord however.  I am also continuously working on the song Edelweiss as to not lose  it from my memory. It also works as a warm – up song for me know to get back in tune with the finger placements and strumming patterns and get comfortable with my ukulele. Plus it is a really pretty song to play, sing, and listen to.

In the last few days before the midterm, I have not had as much time to practice these two songs has thoroughly due to outside projects. I have been trying my best to run through the songs and become more familiar with the chords and strumming patterns. I have decided to continue to work on Edelweiss using the picking pattern instead of strumming to give myself more of a challenge. The Dm chord is still slowly but surely developing and improving. I was able to fully memorize this song and I am still working on keeping the entirety of the song up to tempo. I am also still working on making the chord transitions as smooth as I possibly can.

Edelweiss Video #1 – Picking

Edelweiss Video #2 – Strumming

As for Somewhere Over the Rainbow, it is coming along. I feel like I understand the chord transitions well and I am able to play the correct chord patterns along with the correct strumming pattern with only some hesitation. I am finding it difficult to change dinger positions quickly and smoothly through the quick transitions while strumming, but it is something that I will continue to practice. I am finding that I am also able to play most of the song from memory with some glances at the tab to help me out.  I am also finding that singing along while I play helps me tremendously. It helps me find my place in the timing and the chords and helps me remember the chord patterns. Having the tune sung out loud helps me figure out which chord to play when I forget the pattern.

Somewhere Over the Rainbow Video

Moving forward, I am looking forward to continuing practice with these two songs and to learning my third song.

photo retrieved from Mary Lorelei on WeHeartIt.com

Photo by Hannah Busing on Unsplash

Since my last blog, I have gotten more comfortable with the song Edelweiss and I Have started to look at the new chords necessary for Somewhere Over the Rainbow. The transitions between chords are becoming easier within Edelweiss and the Dm chord is slowly getting better. However, it still needs work. I have been able to sing along and have most of the song memorized. I have been able to play the song with strumming mostly at tempo but I am struggling with keeping a faster pace while picking. I will be working on tempo and full memorization from here on out.

To start learning Somewhere Over the Rainbow, I learned the new chords needed including Em, Fm, and Cmaj7. I am currently working on creating full sounds with the chords and making smooth transitions between them. I am also working on the strumming pattern which is slightly more difficult than the one used in Edelweiss. I like the build-up of chords and strumming patterns. It makes for a fun and gradual challenge. I feel that this song may be a little harder to memorize due to the new chords being introduced and the quicker, sometimes uneven, transitions. Moving forward, I will be working on solidifying the chords for each song and memorizing the chord patterns.

Here is the version of Somewhere Over the Rainbow that I am trying to learn:

For my personal Musical Growth Assignment, I chose to learn the ukulele. Last spring, I had the opportunity to observe a music class in an elementary school in Prince George. I got to witness groups of students practice different musical skills including playing and listening. I Also got to see a class work on learning the ukulele. They reviewed the strings (G, C, E, A) and reviewed how to read the practice songs in their booklets. I had the opportunity to work with some of the students while they practiced with their instruments and play alongside them. After this, I wanted to learn more ukulele skills so I could do this with more knowledge in the future. I decided to learn these songs and their respective chord patterns, strumming patterns, and picking patterns: Edelwiess from The Sound Of Music, Somewhere Over The Rainbow from The Wizard Of Oz, and Into The Unknown from Frozen II. I chose to learn these songs because they are familiar to young students and they are songs I enjoy listening to.

To start off, I just began by teaching myself how to hold the ukulele and the chords I needed to play the song Edelwiess. This song required the chord of C, G, Am, F, and Dm. I was then able to learn these chords and the basic strumming pattern of up, up, down, as well as a simple picking pattern. I feel that this song is somewhat simple and I think that memorizing it will be achievable. I am finding the chords to be fairly easy to understand and practice but I am currently finding it difficult to achieve a strong sound from the Dm chord as well as watching my finger placements for the chords while watching my accuracy while picking.

Photo by kychan on Unsplash

Here is the song Edelweiss that I am trying to learn: