Why get a banjo when you can play a uke like one, sort of..

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krabben
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Why get a banjo when you can play a uke like one, sort of..

Post by krabben »

Was just playing some riffs with my tenor uke recently when I came up with this little tune. I've never really played the uke in this way, but I thought it was kind of similar to banjo playing the way the open G-string is being used.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F_xybnCU5xg
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Re: Why get a banjo when you can play a uke like one, sort of..

Post by Thomaston »

Lots of people do frailing/clawhammer style on uke. Check out Aaron Keim for some other good examples.
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Re: Why get a banjo when you can play a uke like one, sort of..

Post by MTGuru »

Why get a banjo
Ah, a question for the ages.
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krabben
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Re: Why get a banjo when you can play a uke like one, sort of..

Post by krabben »

Thomaston wrote:Lots of people do frailing/clawhammer style on uke. Check out Aaron Keim for some other good examples.
Checked him out. Lots of cool stuff indeed. Although it seems that this clawhammer style type of playing uses mostly down strokes with the entire hand. I'm just using individual fingers in an upwards picking motion. The effect I get is similar though. Maybe I should try learning proper clawhammer style, looks like fun.
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Re: Why get a banjo when you can play a uke like one, sort of..

Post by fearfaoin »

krabben wrote:Although it seems that this clawhammer style type of playing uses mostly down strokes with the entire hand. I'm just using individual fingers in an upwards picking motion.
Agreed. What you're doing seems to me more like Scruggs style:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8vVvx1mMCVc
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Re: Why get a banjo when you can play a uke like one, sort of..

Post by Tim2723 »

It's not really Scruggs style either. It strikes me as a Chet Atkins finger-style pattern.

Great playing, and a fun tune! I hope you'll check out the banjolele one day (imagine your uke with a banjo body!). That would be a perfect instrument for that tune.
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Re: Why get a banjo when you can play a uke like one, sort of..

Post by fearfaoin »

Tim2723 wrote:It strikes me as a Chet Atkins finger-style pattern.
Wouldn't that require an alternating bass?
Or am I thinking of Travis picking?
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Re: Why get a banjo when you can play a uke like one, sort of..

Post by Tim2723 »

Maybe. It's kind of in between a number of things. A little Scruggs, a little Atkins, maybe a little of a couple more.
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