All UKULELE CLUBS and TEACHERS can bypass the middleman and get your ukulele books direct from me at a quantity discount of 20% off. [ click here for order form ]
RELATED LESSONS-UKULELE PAGES • Lessons Home Page •ALL ukulele lessons •
Common Tunings •
Learning the Fingerboard •
Chords & Chord Progressions •
Strums •
Scales •
Reading •
Theory •
Technique •
Fingerstyle •
Jazz •
Blues •
NEW & Updated lessons •
Getting Started •
Lessons with Video •
Beginner Lessons •
Intermediate Lessons •
Advanced Lessons •
* * * FREE BOOKS * * * •
Search Lessons 
•
Fifties (1950s) Chord Progressions
What Is A Basic Chord Progression?
Another common way of extending the I - IV - V sequence is by adding the chord of the sixth scale degree, giving the sequence I - vi - IV - V or I - vi - ii - V, sometimes called the 50s progression.
In fact this sequence had been in use from the earliest days of classical music (used often by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart), but after generating popular hits such as Rogers and Hart's "Blue Moon" (1934), Jerome Kern and Dorothy Fields' 1936 "The Way You Look Tonight" and Hoagy Carmichael's "Heart and Soul" (1938), it became associated with the black American vocal groups of the 1940s, The Ink Spots and The Mills Brothers ("Till Then"), and thus later became the entire basis of the 1950s doo-wop genre, a typical example being The Monotones' "The Book of Love".
- WidipediA: 50's Progressions
Songs
- Blue Moon (1934)
- Heart and Soul (1938)
- The Book of Love
- The Way You Look Tonight (1936)
- Till Then (1940s)
Hard Copy Book: $7.95
PDF Download: $4.95
“A strum is the execution of a rhythmic pattern — in a specific style”
A Guide to Ukulele Strums
One of the first skills a ukulele player learns is the art and craft of strumming, playing rhythm. This refers to an accompaniment technique suitable for the singer, singer - songwriter or someone who plays a support role for another instrument.
Strumming requires a specific set of skills. They are: 1) Memorization of chords 2) The ability to switch chords smoothly and 3) The ability to choose and execute a suitable rhythmic strum. It is this 3rd skill that is our focus in “A Guide to Ukulele Strums & Rhythmic Patterns”.
Though strumming looks natural to the casual observer, it is anything but natural to the beginning ukulele player. Even experienced players have difficulty in identifying and executing certain strums. Though this is one of those topics that is typically taken for granted, there is much to learn about rhythmic feels, accents, dynamics, strum direction, feel, percussive accents, idiomatic styles and tempo variation.
First and foremost, the subject of strumming is inseparably linked to rhythm. Though an ability to read rhythm is helpful, it’s not necessary to profit from this material.
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.
FIFTIES_CHORD_PROGRESSIONS.PHP | Updated: Sunday, 14th August, 2011 @ 08:36pm