The Path of Stroke Recovery Through Ukulele

by Jenny Peters | Feb 5, 2018 | Beginners, Musical instruments

Stroke Recovery Through the Ukulele

The ukulele can play a vital role in stroke recovery. Read what one reader had to say about stroke recovery through the ukulele:

“Thanks, girls! This is wonderful.

I had a stroke that weakened my left side. So I have been trying to learn guitar but without much success. I have two guitars and a guitarlele, which is getting more airtime lately. Your approach to the ukulele and your enthusiasm has improved my life and my activity somewhat.

You have also sparked some enthusiasm in my fiancée. We will marry next year and move to a place near where she lives (about 2000 miles from where I am now) so at that time we will join a ukulele orchestra and we are hoping that all this left-hand exercise will help to rehabilitate my left arm.

Thanks, heaps!”

What Is a Stroke?

Illustration of a blood clot blocking blood flow to the brain, causing an area of the brain to be deprived of blood. A stroke is a sort of ‘brain attack’ that occurs when blood flow to part of the brain is cut off. When this happens, the brain cells are deprived of oxygen and consequently begin to die.

A stroke can happen to anyone at any time. This makes it the fifth leading cause of death in the US.

Stroke Recovery

After the unfortunate event of a stroke comes a painful journey of recovery and rehabilitation. This process will involve making changes in physical, social and emotional aspects of the victim. It is normal for survivors to feel anxious, discouraged, depressed or even angry.

Enter Music.

Re-activates the Brain

Music, in general, extensively activates the human brain. For stroke survivors, this excitement causes increased blood flow to the brain, helping it recover by restoring blood vessels and synaptic connections damaged by the stroke. Experiencing music requires a large portion of the brain, scientists, therefore, believe that music is able to bypass the damaged area of the brain and form new neural pathways.

Improvement of Speech and Motor Functions

Perhaps the immediate evidence of a re-activated brain is the improvement of speech and motor functions.

A strange thing happened in Sweden in 1763. A young man with brain-damage was unable to speak but astounded townspeople when he was able to sing hymns in church. When music therapy is used, it has been observed that the speech of some patients with expressive aphasia — the significantly decreased ability to use language, often because of a stroke — had noticeably improved, both in the clarity of words and also the increased ability to get the words out.

Music also goes a long way to help regain motor functions of stroke survivors. This is due to changes in the sensorimotor cortex. Musical activities require patients to coordinate their movement in terms of temporal and spatial organization, which stimulates greater change in the brain than rehabilitation alone.

Boosts Mood and Motivation

Uplifting music is a source of pleasure. When we focus on a favorite song, we combat de-motivating brain signals associated with fatigue and boredom. When you feel good and motivated, you are more inclined to continue rehabilitation.

A study done in 2008 in Finland found that if stroke patients listened to music for a couple of hours a day, their verbal memory and focused attention recovered better and they had a more positive mood than patients who did not listen to anything.

Music Relieves Stress

As said earlier, stroke survivors tend to be worried about a lot of things. They are thinking about work, their relationships and are anxious to get better sooner. This anxiety ultimately leads to stress. Music helps to reduce stress by increasing sense of enjoyment and relaxation. In addition, calming music has been found to steady emotions of stroke survivors.

Why the Ukulele?

So we see music, in general, is a great way to help stroke survivors rehabilitate. There are hundreds of instruments to choose from, so why is ukulele a special one for this particular job?

It is Easy to Learn

One of the biggest sell points of the ukulele is that it is easy to learn. It is completely unintimidating. Anyone, old or young, can take it up and before long is able to play some tunes with it. It is important that in the rehabilitation phase, you don’t take up activities that will frustrate you more. Having an instrument that you can quickly learn and master in your music therapy is important. The ukulele, while being a serious musical instrument is extremely easy for beginners to learn. This makes it the perfect instrument for stroke survivors to try out.

It Is Portable

The ukulele is a relatively small instrument. Furthermore, it is light and can be carried around easily. Stroke survivors will be comfortable lifting it and walking about with it. This provides adequate motor functions stimulation without being too much of an exertion. They can also carry it to places where other instruments like the piano would present a challenge.

It Sounds Majestic

Those four strings of this little instrument produce a gentle, calming and majestic sound that cannot be matched. This helps to relax and calm the nerves.

How to Start

So how exactly do you kick-off a stroke recovery program through the ukulele? Start out slow, and don’t be too hard to yourself if you can’t play something on your first try. Our book, 21 Songs in 6 Days, offers a beginner-friendly introduction to playing the ukulele. It starts with one chord songs and the simplest possible strumming patterns. New chords are introduced one at a time to make learning very gradual and easy.

Consequently, 21 Songs in 6 Days can be a comfortable guide in the rehabilitation process. Jenny even has colleagues who have had tremendous success teaching developmentally disabled students using the 21 Songs pedagogy.

Conclusion

Recovering from a stroke is a painful and tasking experience. It requires physical, mental and emotional exertions on the victims part in order to be successful. Any assistance towards this goal is invaluable. Music, as we have seen, is a perfect help for stroke survivors’ rehabilitation. The ukulele, in particular, is an ideal instrument to help with stroke recovery.

If you are recovering from a stroke or know someone who is, encourage them to take up playing the ukulele and singing along as they play.

Happy strumming!

Are you struggling with strumming?

With our book and course, you’ll become a fluent 3-chord strummer.

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Teach a Rest Position

Create a standard position players use whenever they are listening:

Place the ukulele flat against the body.
Rest the strumming hand gently on the strings.
Keep both hands still.
Look toward the leader.

Call it “rest position” and demonstrate it at the group’s first meeting. Use the same phrase consistently: “Ukuleles in rest position, please.”

This physically mutes the strings and gives everyone a clear visual signal that playing has stopped.

Use One Attention Signal

Choose a signal that can be seen or heard across the room. Possibilities include:

Raising one hand
Playing a short, distinctive chord
Saying, “Rest position”

Explain the signal before rehearsal begins: “When you see my hand raised, finish the chord you are playing, mute your strings, and look up.”

Avoid competing with the group by repeatedly talking over the instruments. Give the signal, pause, and wait until everyone is ready.

Set a Clear “No Noodling” Expectation

Many players noodle because they are excited, nervous, practicing a difficult chord, or unaware that it is distracting. Address the behavior without embarrassing anyone.

Try saying:

“Between songs, please mute your strings so everyone can hear the instructions. We’ll always give you a moment to check chords before we begin.”

Then build short, intentional practice windows into the session:

“Take 20 seconds to find the opening chord.”
“Quietly check the change from C to G7.”
“Let’s try that strum together once.”

Players are more likely to stop playing at random when they know when practice is welcome.

Amplify the Leader, Not the Entire Room

In larger groups, a small microphone, portable speaker, or amplified ukulele can save the leader’s voice and make directions easier to follow. Amplification should provide clarity—not to overpower the players.

Test the equipment before the session, position the speaker where everyone can hear it, and keep spoken instructions short. A microphone cannot replace an attention routine, but it makes a good routine much more effective.

Create Predictable Transitions

Noodling often fills uncertainty. Tell players exactly what is happening next:

1. “Finish the final chord.”
2. “Rest position.”
3. “Turn to page 14.”
4. “Find a C chord.”
5. “Watch for my count-in.”

Use a visible or audible count-in before every song. Once players learn that nothing begins until the leader counts them in, spontaneous starts become less common.

6. Operate iPads for music.

Many ukulele groups read off iPads, and everyone buys the same app. forScore is one of the common ones, but don’t get anything until the group leader tells you which one they use. From there, the leader or the singer/songwriter shares the music by AirDrop, so everyone is reading off the same page. Corrections land with the whole group at once, and nobody is working from an outdated copy.

A Simple Group Agreement

At the beginning of a session, say:

“To help everyone hear and learn, we use rest position whenever someone is speaking. When I raise my hand, please mute your strings and look up. You’ll have time to check chords before each song, and we’ll always start together on the count-in.”

The goal is not silence for its own sake. It is to create a group in which instructions are brief, rehearsals move smoothly, and everyone gets more time to make music together.

Here’s a list of etiquette expectations from ukulele group members to make the group learning more effective and fruitful for everyone.

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The Path of Stroke Recovery Through Ukulele