Placer Ukulele Festival

This was a well-run ukulele festival with 12 classes during the day, 3 concurrent at a time. With lunch provided, I did not expect that. I took the strumming and chord classes. The chord classes were a review of substitution and up-the-neck voicing alternative techniques I developed on my own, but the strumming classes provided some new ideas. The theme was playing, standing out in a jam context, and pragmatically taking playing to the next level. It compares favorably to the learning track “siloing” of other festivals I have attended. Up the neck chord triad variations were presented, barre chords not so much. The strumming variations are more difficult to explain. E.g., the rhythm of the phrase “Pepperoni Pizza” denotes a measure of 4 16th note strums followed by 2 8th notes (suitable for 2/4 time? I know just enough music theory to be dangerous). That’s the most complex; there were many other phrases. The final session assigned festival goers to pick-up bands given an easy 3-chord song. The bands then had to arrange and play the music for the other bands, using varying chord voicings and strums. I would also summarize the effort as an attempt to relieve the “Wall Of Treble” of ukulele jams where everyone plays in unison. I have noted that beginners can get hung up on specific strumming patterns. I guess my decades earlier experience with guitar skipped that. The advice was to start with a single down strum if necessary and build on that with what one feels. One way to capture a song’s rhythm is to listen to the drummer, especially the snare drum.

The expected open mic did not happen, to my disappointment. Apparently, not enough people signed up, and no audience. Boo-hoo. The festival is a fundraiser for Ukes For Schools.