A musician playing a soprano ukulele
The ukulele is a four-stringed instrument that originated in Hawaii. It was based off of small stringed instruments, the Portuguese cavaquinho in particular, during the late 1880s when many people sought trade with Hawaii. As one would imagine, due to its much smaller size and fewer strings, playing a ukulele is a bit different than playing a guitar or other similar stringed instrument. For that reason here is a guide on pick or play the strings of a ukulele.
Instructions
1. Place your thumb on the top of the pick; your thumbnail should be about a centimeter from the very point. Cradle the pick’s underside with the knuckle closest to the fingernail of your forefinger.
2. Hold the ukulele by the neck in your left hand.
3. Bring the pick into contact with the string you intend to sound over the sounding hole of the ukulele.
4. Stroke the string with the tip of the pick in a downward motion. Make sure to use the flat of the pick rather than the edge. Move the pick straight downward rather than curving it to ensure the sound produced by the ukulele is constant.
5. Lift your arm back up to pick the string again on the upstroke in the same fashion as the down stroke or to pick a string above the initial one you chose to sound.
6. Practice picking up and down until you are proficient in both to such a degree you can pick a string at will without looking at the ukulele.
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