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Advanced Ukulele
Advanced Ukulele lessons available through Curt Sheller Publications
What level ukulele player are you? Beginner •
Intermediate •
Advanced
If you are not sure of your current level then visit the Determining Your Level page. It will help you determine where you are in your development.
You might be an intermediate player as far as chords go but a beginner for scales and improvisation. A great strummer but just starting to explore fingerstyle. So one level doesn't fit all players and/or all subjects.
This is where a experienced teacher can really help out. It's sometimes hard to evaluate where you are in your own development. A outside set of ears and eyes can help determine a good course of development, depending on your goals.
Teaching your self can be frustrating at times. One problem with going the self taught route is the glut of information available online. There is no one controlling the flow of information, no one to guide you from the basic foundation skills and knowledge needed to more advance concepts for any particular topic. Patience is paramount with yourself is crucial — there’s nothing in the world that someone hasn’t managed to learn, starting from right from where you are. And, it's probably written down somewhere, either in a books or online.
Advanced Players
An advanced player should know the fingerboard across the strings and along the strings. Be able to instantaneously identify any note on the fingerboard. This needs to be second nature.
An advanced player should be able to read music and figure out where the notes are on the fingerboard. They might not be able to sightread on demand - but read to figure out and learn new material.
An advanced player can figure out any chord that is required. They have a understanding of open position chords, movable form chords and 4-part, aka "Jazz" chords.
An advanced player can hear I, IV, and V chords, has mastered chord inversions, knows there is life above the fifth fret. Plays lead and backup easily with others and keeps steady rhythm.
An advanced player knows the difference between a scale and a mode.
An advanced play can figure out any chord that is required. They have a understanding of open position chords, movable form chords and 4-part, aka "Jazz" chords.
Core Chords - The Big Six - Building a Solid Chord Foundation
Lesson Code: UL42
Published: 2005-01-02
Updated: 2011-09-21
Lesson Info
Core Chords is a series of lessons for building your 4-part chords. These chords commonly called jazz chords, are really just 4-part chords used in a wide range of musical styles.
The Big Six chords include: Seventh 7, Major Seventh maj7, Minor Seventh m7, Half Diminished Seventh or Minor Seven Flat Five diminished 7 (m7b5), Diminished Seventh o7 and Augmented Seventh +7. These six chords form a core set of chords.
Lessons Link
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- Go to full lesson: Core Chords - The Big Six - Building a Solid Chord Foundation
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Lesson Info
Cool Chords - These are the chords that don't typically show up in chord dictionaries or song books. They might show up in software programs that produce chords based on some underlying computer algorithm.
These are the chords players ask, "What is THAT chord"?
Bennt Chong is a master of these chords.
Lessons Link
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- Go to full lesson: Cool Ukulele Chords
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Lesson Info
A cool chord is most likely a Free Form chord. These free form chords typically include open strings, wide stretches, displaced chord tones and or chord voicings. Plus they just sound cool.
Here is a cool sounding G7 chord.
Lessons Link
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- Go to full lesson: Cool Ukulele Chords - G7
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Building a Solid Jazz Chord Foundation for Ukulele
Lesson Code: UL103
Published: 2005-01-02
Updated: 2005-01-02
Lesson Info
Beyond learning basic openposition ukulele chords. Most ukulele players struggle with advanced chords. These more sophisticated voicings, commonly called jazz chords, find a wide use in all forms of music and styles. These 4-part chords are the bread and butter of jazz ukulele.
Lessons Link
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- Go to full lesson: Building a Solid Jazz Chord Foundation for Ukulele
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An advanced player should know the following scales: Ionian (Major), Dorian, Phrygian, Lydian, Mixolydian (Dominant), Aeolian (Natural Minor), Locrian, Super Locrian, Harmonic Minor, Jazz Melodic Minor, Diminished, Inverted Diminished, Whole Tone, Blues, Pentatonic, Egyptian Pentatonic (7sus4), Mixolydian +4, Mixolydian -2, Mixolydian -6, and Mixolydian -2,-6.
Lesson Info
The six essential scale are: Blues, Major Pentatonic, Mixolydian, Dorian, Aeolian, and Ionian.
There are two scales that can be the memorized and all other essential scales referenced from these two. These two scales are the Major and Natural Minor scales. The Major and Natural Minor scales are traditional scales and common scales in all forms of contemporary music. This lesson explores the Major and Natural Minor scales and their derivations.
From these two scales the Blues, Major Pentatonic, Mixolydiand and Dorian scale can be created.
Lessons Link
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- Go to full lesson: Six Essential Scales for Ukulele
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Technique is as simple as developing the finger strength and independence – the motor skills – for playing the ukulele. "As simple as... - but the most difficult and time consuming aspect of learning the ukulele if you want to become proficient.
Lesson Info
Basic one, two, three and four note single string drills for ukulele for developing finger strength and independence.
It's critical a player develop the finger strength and independence to explore their full musical potential. By developing a great fingerboard hand, you will be able to explore more challenging musical situations.
To develop this great technique there is a series of graduated drills or finger gymnastics/exercises that allows you to play at higher and higher levels, as well as increase your comfort zone of usable technique.
Lessons Link
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- Go to full lesson: Basic Single Note Drills for Ukulele
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Advanced Single Note Fingering Drills for Ukulele
Lesson Code: UL15b
Published: 2006-07-04
Updated: 2006-07-04
Lesson Info
Developing finger strength and independence with a series of graduated single string exercises.
In this lesson expands basic single string drills using multiple strings.
Lessons Link
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- Go to full lesson: Advanced Single Note Fingering Drills for Ukulele
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An advanced player should know the fingerboard across the strings and along a strings. Be able to instantaneously identify any note on the fingerboard.
Really knowing the notes of the instrument cuts down the amount of material you have to memorize. You can use your knowledge of the neck to derive other information from.
HARD COPY
ULUNN-C
Hard Copy Book Not Available
Learning the Ukulele Fingerboard - C Tuning
At 4 1/4" v 5 1/2" size, this mini book on learning the ukulele fingerboard will finally get the names of the pesky notes under control.
Beyond knowing the names of the open strings most ukulele players find it hard to learn the whole fingerboard.
If your goal is to finally learn the names of the notes on the ukulele fingerboard. Then "Learning the Ukulele Fingerboard" is your answer. "Learning the Ukulele Fingerboard - C Tuning" has a step by step approach to finally mastering the ukulele fingerboard.
More info, samples, table of contents, audio, video and more...
ISBN-13: 978-1-60321-021-8 Published: September 2009 Pages 20
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eBook
ULUNN-C
Printable eBook/PDF: FREE
NOW - With quick download after payment.
HARD COPY
ULUNN-G
Hard Copy Book Not Available
Learning the Ukulele Fingerboard - G Tuning
At 4 1/4" v 5 1/2" size, this mini book on learning the ukulele fingerboard will finally get the names of the pesky notes under control.
Beyond knowing the names of the open strings most ukulele players find it hard to learn the whole fingerboard.
If your goal is to finally learn the names of the notes on the ukulele fingerboard. Then "Learning the Ukulele Fingerboard" is your answer. "Learning the Ukulele Fingerboard - G Tuning" has a step by step approach to finally mastering the ukulele fingerboard.
More info, samples, table of contents, audio, video and more...
ISBN-13: 978-1-60321-022-5 Published: September 2009 Pages 20
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eBook
ULUNN-G
Printable eBook/PDF: FREE
NOW - With quick download after payment.
HARD COPY
ULUNN-D
Hard Copy Book Not Available
Learning the Ukulele Fingerboard - D Tuning
At 4 1/4" v 5 1/2" size, this mini book on learning the ukulele fingerboard will finally get the names of the pesky notes under control.
Beyond knowing the names of the open strings most ukulele players find it hard to learn the whole fingerboard.
If your goal is to finally learn the names of the notes on the ukulele fingerboard. Then "Learning the Ukulele Fingerboard" is your answer. "Learning the Ukulele Fingerboard - D Tuning" has a step by step approach to finally mastering the ukulele fingerboard.
More info, samples, table of contents, audio, video and more...
ISBN-13: 978-1-60321-023-2 Published: September 2009 Pages 20
top
eBook
ULUNN-D
Printable eBook/PDF: FREE
NOW - With quick download after payment.
An advanced player should be able to read music and figure out where the notes are on the fingerboard. They might not be able to sightread on demand - but read to figure out and learn new material.
Reading music is not as hard as one might think. It may be new and unfamiliar but is not hard when you have a proper plan of attack.
HARD COPY
UKEREAD1
Hard Copy Book: $9.95
Ukulele- Reading Music Series - Primer
Learn to read single note melodies in the first/open position. It is a lot easier than you might think with this step-by-step easy to use approach.
Tunings: C with low or high G - (GCEA or gCEA).
More info, samples, table of contents, audio, video and more...
ISBN-13: 978-0-9714044-1-0 Published: July 2006 Pages 80
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eBook
UKEREAD1
Printable eBook/PDF: $4.95
NOW - With quick download after payment.
An advanced player should really know when music comes form and be able to understand the how and why of why music works like it does.
HARD COPY
RMA1
Hard Copy Book: $14.95
Harmonic Analysis for Scale Selection and Chord Substitution
Harmonic Analysis is the understanding of the functional sequence of chords. It is the process used to analyze the harmonic structure of a progression, song or composition. This analysis is then used to make scale selections for improvisation and chord substitution.
More info, samples, table of contents, audio, video and more...
ISBN-13: 978-0-9714044-2-7 Published: January 2003 Pages 90
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eBook
RMA1
Printable eBook/PDF: $4.95
NOW - With quick download after payment.
Hard Copy Book: $9.95
PDF Download: $4.95
A Guide to Ukulele Chords - 2nd Edition
A Guide to Ukulele Chords is designed as a guide to ukulele (pronounced “oo-koo-lele”) chords. Covering the basic ukulele chords that ALL ukulele players SHOULD know. A Guide to Ukulele Chords covers movable chord forms, rock chords, how to transpose chords, learning the ukulele fingerboard and includes an introduction to 4-part, a.k.a “jazz” chords and more...
From a few “core, basic chord shapes and a understanding of how chords are constructed. Your chord vocabulary can be dramatically increased without memorizing countless chord shapes. There are too many chord shapes to memorize.
Thanks for visiting and checking out my site!
Content is always being added and updated. So check-in often. Thanks, Curt
P.S. You may think from the look of it that Curt Sheller Publications is a slick, profitable business, but it's actually not (maybe a car payment a month, cheap car). I spend a lot and time money creating the content, lessons and books for this site (a labor of love), so if you dig my content and want to see more of it. I could use your help by spreading the word and maybe buying a book or two if you haven't already, to help defray the cost of running the site. Thanks in advance for your help. This is a labor of love and I'd do it even if I didn't make a lot of money, hey I don't!
You can also make a donation to the lesson-site fund. Button in the sidebar of the site.
If I'm not teaching, I'm working on this site and new lessons, books and goodies.
ADVANCED.PHP | Updated: Sunday, 19th February, 2012 @ 09:04pm