During these trying times when many people are angry and frustrated, we try to cope by learning creative ukulele in the time of COVID.

Humans Like Order

We like our routines and we like to think we are in control. In reality, we don’t know what the future holds, but we like to think that we do.

This Covid 19 pandemic has brought many changes to our lives and we do not like it. We do not like having to wear masks, shelter in place, get sick, or lose our jobs. The restrictions on our freedoms and the fear that is all around us makes us sad. We do not like the loss we see and feel.

That’s why you see so many people who are angry. Who are unkind. Who are acting out. It’s a way to express our deep frustration and lack of power.

But what if there is a better way? What if we learn and model resilience to help us in troubling times? What better way to do that, than to learn creative ukulele in the time of Covid?

That’s why Rebecca and I have developed our Ukulele Sisters materials. To help you to learn creativity, fun and resilience.

And when you’re involved in something creative, you are better able to pivot and try something new. Because music is creative, it prepares us to consider alternatives when things are tough. Below I give you the stories of five musicians I know who have been able to pivot in this time.

Case #1 – Rebecca

Rebecca Bogart, one half of the Ukulele Sisters, also teaches piano. When California shut down, she was out of income. She pivoted and built a studio for teaching lessons via Zoom. As a self-employed person, she needed the money. Necessity became the mother of invention. She now has a beautiful set-up for lessons and more people are coming her way.

Case #2 – Lil Rev

Lil Rev was looking at a banner year for traveling and teaching ukulele. On March 12, his planned year of income vanished. What has he done? He has taught and concertized on many online platforms. He is writing new ukulele books and he is building an online music school. Visit lilrev.com to learn more.

Case #5 – Jenny Peters

I have been teaching socially distanced ukulele on my patio all summer. It’s been great to connect with students in person but outside where it feels safer.

Focus on Something Happy

The musicians I talked to are aware of the difficulties around us. We know there are so many who have suffered during this time of the pandemic. We are thankful for the music that sustains us.

Many of the folks who have used our products are thankful for the focus, the fun and the creative outlet. They are thrilled to focus on something happy, rather than the doom and gloom we sell all around.

As our world changes, we need to use creative and new ways to deliver our ideas. So that we can build resilience in our children, ourselves, and our future. Humans need healthy distractions, community and creativity. Music nurtures these skills. And ukulele is one of the most fun ways to do this!

If you’d like to learn to improvise with Lonely Blues, our original blues song, then let’s dive in.

How do I make up my own music?

Several years ago I wrote the song, Lonely Blues, for my students. I wanted them to have a simple song where they could learn the pattern of the 12-bar blues. They got an initial experience in improvisation over a simplified blues scale. Since I was composing for fourth and fifth graders, the music needed to be simple and accessible. It also needed to sound different from the many folk songs that they sang at other times of the year. I wanted them to have the feel of a blues band and to have the experience of creating their own music. I also wanted them to experience African-American contributions to our popular music culture.

So, how did it go?

It was quite successful. I created a great backing track and played the bass line on the upright acoustic bass. I showed them how to play three notes up high on the A and E strings that worked over the entire chord progression. They were able to improvise all at once and kept asking all year to return to this song.

Rebecca and I then needed a 5th song for our book, Easy Ukulele Songs: Five with Five Chords. “Lonely Blues” (with a few more chords added) fit the bill. So, now the piece is ready to play as written. But what if you want to take it further and learn to improvise? What if you want to really create your own music?

Let’s learn to improvise with Lonely Blues

So, what do you do? 

1. Play with a backing track. Slow Blues Backing Track
2. Play with Strum Machine Strum Machine
3. Record yourself on your phone or tablet strumming the chords and singing the song. Include a few extra choruses with no singing.
4. Improvise in the spaces where there is no singing or over the entire blues chorus. If you record yourself, it works really well, because it keeps you going when you make mistakes. Making mistakes in real-time helps you to find “licks” you can use later in your improvisations.
5. Get a book of Blues licks. One of my favorites is by Lil Rev Intros, Endings and Turnarounds for Ukulele.

What do you do to get the rhythmic feel?

1. Swing the strumming pattern. Play the 8th notes unevenly. The first note is longer than the second.
2. Make beats 2 and 4 the strongest beats of each measure, not 1 and 3.
3. Add Boogie notes when you strum.

This feeling for the rhythm comes with practice and with listening to blues artists. That’s why it’s such a good idea to practice with a backing track. If you record yourself, you will hear when you have the right feel. You will make quick progress because you’ll be able to fix your mistakes.

How do you improvise over a backing track?

1. Learn the “easy” blues scale up high on the A and E Strings. This scale works well if you’re playing with others because you are higher in pitch than they are. You can hear what you’re doing.  
2. Create licks (2 to 3 note patterns) that you play over and over while the backing track is going. Use the notes of the “Blues Scale” to do this.

How do you create your own blues solo that sounds complete by itself?

1. Learn both blues scales that are presented above.
2. Create licks from these scales that use two or three notes over and over again.
3. Check out books of Blues Licks for ukulele. I’ve learned from Lil Rev. 

 Add a blues bass line. Even up high it sounds good!

Add some cool strumming-hand effects

1. 1. Fingerpicking an arpeggio
   2. Slapping the fretboard during a rest
   3. Chunking with the right hand
   4. Triplet strums
   5. Rolls

Make your song complete by adding an introduction and an ending.

Understand the form of the 12-Bar Blues

Any traditional blues song will be 12 measures long. There are specific chords that appear at certain places throughout the song. When you get more advanced, you can substitute more complicated chords. But, learn the simplest progression first. It goes like this.

Write things out to get the timing.

Since I am a music reader, I find it helps if I write things out. I can’t always “feel” how my ideas fit with the rhythms behind me. There is a tradition of listening and transcribing great solos. By learning exactly what an artist plays, you get used to adding these ideas, in a different order. You mix up these ideas from other places with your own ideas. Pretty soon, you’re comfortable creating your own improvised solos.

Check out my written-out improvisation on “Lonely Blues.”

You can also make your own and improvise with Lonely Blues.

Check out this lesson on Blues Tools

In this lesson, I teach all the written examples on this page. You can then apply them to your own solos.

How do you get good at it?

1. Shake it up.  
2. Mix it up. 
3. Practice and Practice. 
4. Rinse and repeat. 
5. Remember to have fun!

And, then you have the beginnings of a blues solo.

I hope you enjoyed learning to improvise with Lonely Blues! 

“Lonely Blues” is in our book, Easy Ukulele Songs: Five with Five Chords.

You might want to check out the recording of our Facebook Live lesson on “Lonely Blues”!

I’m staying home due to the coronavirus outbreak. And I’m working on new ideas for sharing ukulele online with our ukulele community. 

Today is the first day of my spring break, but everything is uncertain because of the outbreak of coronavirus. Here in Illinois we are “sheltering in place.”  That means my husband, son, and I all work from home. None of us can go out except for a walk or a trip to the grocery store.  

While we have a LOT to be thankful for, we miss our daily routines. I miss the students I teach at my school job. I miss both their energy and making music with them face to face. 

On a happy note, many of my public school students are making videos of themselves playing their instruments joyfully. They’ve been posting videos on social media or sending them to me. It warms my heart!

I am sure many of us are in the same boat. We’re home; we’re waiting and we’re anxious.

For Spring Break, I was planning a trip to California to see family and to work with my sister Rebecca on our business. I was looking forward to celebrating together what we have accomplished this year.

So, what am I doing now?

1. Taking long walks or bicycling every day.
2. Building my spiritual practice with daily meditations and readings.
3. Playing my ukulele.
4. Reconnecting with family members now that we are together under one roof.
5. Developing new and exciting ways of teaching ukulele online.
6. Watching lots of instructional videos to learn more about how to build great courses and community.

I am excited to share all of these ideas with our ukulele community. I hope all of you are well and that you are enjoying your friends and loved ones in this stressful period. The ukulele is such a happy instrument; I hope it can bring you joy in a troubled time. 

How about you? How are you spending time while staying home due to the coronavirus outbreak?