Frequently Asked Questions
Use the “Contact Us” form at the bottom of this page for unanswered questions.
These FAQs are for beginners. They face the strongest headwinds. You can trust our answers. We’ve considered many factors and taught 3,000+ beginners. Our goals are decreasing information paralysis and increasing your success at launching a new ukulele hobby!
We don’t financially gain from suggested products, brands, or organizations and aren’t responsible for your experiences with them. Omissions don’t imply disfavor; we’re just keeping answers short. Longer answers are offered in classes.
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Newcomers often get this backwards. They think: learn ukulele first, then attend strum club. But we recommend attending strum club first, then learning ukulele. TIP: This will make sense once you attend.
ALL levels are welcome, including just listening/singing!
Alternatively, you can learn “C chord” with one finger on one string. Now you’re qualified. Play “C chord” whenever it shows up at strum club; skip the rest; go home with a smile on your face; and add another new chord next time.
Ukulele culture prioritizes community, gradual learning, and enjoyment. Perfect musicianship isn’t even on the list. If you make mistakes, people won’t notice. And playing with others will inspire you far more than practicing alone.
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Nope! Most MAUI members don’t read music.
Even better, MAUI has it’s own super user-friendly song notation. See our Books page for more info.
To play instrumental music using Elizabeth’s books, the ability to read music is helpful, but not necessary. Like most instrumental arrangers, she uses a simplified notation called “tablature”.
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See our MAUI Books page for more info.
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Attend a Strum Club gathering.
If you’re in Dane County and joined our website, MAUI’s private Facebook group is available to you.
Take a class or attend a local uke performance. Audience members are often strummers. See our Events page.
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For chord shapes:
For chords to songs:
For play-along videos
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MAUI’s Mad Uke Scoop newsletter is published every 1 to 3 months.
Our mailing list is so large that we must use a special email program to send our newsletter. This can sometimes cause problems. For example, our newsletter may arrive in your “Spam Folder” instead of your “Inbox”. It may also land in other locations like Gmail’s “Social” or “Promotional” tabs. Locating and checking these other locations can help. We’re taking steps to minimize this problem, but it still occasionally happens.
TIP: You can also use YouTube to learn how to add our emails to your “safe sender list” or “white list”. This will ensure future newsletters arrive in your inbox.
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Ask a music store to make your strings closer to the uke, especially at the head end. This is called “setup” or “action”. TIP: All FAQ uke stores do this.
Try thinner, light-gage strings like Worth brand model #CL46. You can buy them here:
It’s normal for beginner’s finger tips to hurt several weeks to months.
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Be aware children learn ukulele much faster than adults. So, most adult classes feel “boring” to kids. Instructors typically have an 8 yrs minimum age.
Monroe Street Arts Center and Madison School & Community Recreation (MSCR) both offer uke classes for grades 3 thru 6.
Madison Music Foundry and local music stores offer private lessons.
Most guitar teachers also take ukulele students.
We occasionally hear of after-school / summer uke camps. If you do, please email Andrew. He’ll include them in his Mad Uke Scoop newsletter and add them to the Events page.
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Please contact the coordinator of a specific Strum Club. Most gatherings are attended by adults.
Unfortunately, we’re unaware of any kids’ uke clubs. If you’d like to start one, email Andrew. The need is definitely there and he’d be happy to help with promotion.
See also our FAQ about lessons / classes for kids.
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MAUI only offers group classes. We believe learning with others is more helpful, enjoyable, and consistent with our mission of building musical community.
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If you strum slowly downward, you will sequentially hear the notes G, C, E, and A.
For low-G tuning, G is the lowest sounding note and each subsequent note sounds higher. Instrumentalists prefer these logically sequenced notes and large overall range of notes. Low-G, also called “linear”, tuning requires special low-G strings and might require modifications to your uke. The most popular low-G strings are Aquila brand model #s 5U (soprano), 8U (concert), and 15U (tenor). We like the online string store below.
High-G, also called “re-entrant”, tuning is much more popular. The G string is tuned an octave higher than low-G. It’s still a G note, just higher. Strummers prefer the compressed range of notes of the instrument, which helps your ears identify it as a ukulele.
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The most common uke sizes are soprano (small), concert (medium), and tenor (large). They’re tuned identically.
Our favorite beginner brands are Kala and Ohana.
Concert size is best for most people, specifically Kala’s KA-C or Ohana’s CK-10.
For tiny hands/fingers, consider a Kala’s KA-S or Ohana’s SK-10 soprano.
For large hands or thick fingers, consider a Kala’s KA-T or Ohana’s TK-10 tenor.
These ukes cost approx $100-$130. We don’t recommend instruments under $100.
See also FAQ for beginner uke stores (as important as brand and size).
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Beginner ukuleles are prone to manufacturing defects, which can make instruments much harder to play. So buy from stores that eliminate lemons.
Our 3 favorite, lemon-free, brick-n-mortar stores in Dane County are 1) Spruce Tree 2) Ward-Brodt, and 3) Heid
Our 3 favorite online stores are 1) Elderly Instruments 2) Mim’s Ukes, and 3) The Ukulele Site
See also FAQ for beginner uke brand and size.
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We’re referring to a small device placed inside your uke case during the home heating season, if relative humidity drops below 40%. TIP: Don’t put the device inside your instrument; just inside the case.
We only recommend a humidifier for concert and soprano ukes if they’re made with solid (not laminated) wood. TIP: The FAQ beginner ukes are all laminated wood.
We recommend a humidifier for all tenor ukes, regardless of wood.
If your uke needs a humidifier, buy one that holds a lot of water. We like the one below. TIP: It’s important to follow the instructions for this product.
See also FAQ about uke brands and cases.
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For most beginner ukes, a squishy-foam case, also called a “gig bag”, is adequate.
For ukes requiring humidification and for more expensive ukes, a rigid- (not squishy) foam case is better. These typically have an elongated pear shape.
Hard-shell cases look like mini guitar cases and retain humidity levels best, but they can be heavy and expensive.
TIP: Don’t put humidifiers in the enclosed accessory compartment.
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The most popular style tuner clips onto the uke’s head and directly senses wood vibration without a microphone. So, they’re good in noisy environments like groups. We like the new rechargeable tuners below.
TIP: Be careful not to press the back calibration buttons; keep those set to 440 Hz.
When playing alone in quiet environments, free tuner apps work well using your smart phone’s built-in microphone.
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Yes, especially one that holds up the ukulele’s head, freeing your chording hand.
TIP: Straps designed to hook into the sound hole don’t hold up the head.
Here’s how to make your own strap:
Contact Us
If you don’t see the answer to your question above, feel free to contact us. We’re happy to help!