I'm excited to announce I was invited to teach two workshops at the 2nd Annual Brooklyn Ukulele Festival on June 14th and 15th, organized by the wonderful ukulele and piano-playing singer-songwriter Gwendolyn Fitz.
The workshops will be given on June 15th, and I'll be leading these two:
2:15pm-3:15pm: Life After Island StrumDescription: This workshop is meant for Beginners and Advanced Beginners who are comfortable with the D-du-udu pattern of the classic ukulele "island strum" (sometimes called calypso strum). Do you pause when faced with a chord chart with no suggested strumming pattern? Are you tired of defaulting to island strum whenever you’re playing in 4/4 time? In this workshop, we’ll discuss how to approach a “bare bones” lead sheet, or deviate from suggested strums, with a special focus on strumming-hand techniques. We will learn some strumming variations, and talk about how to apply them to sample songs, whether you wish to pay homage to another artist/performance of the song or create your own sound.
3:25pm-4:25pm: Basics of Arranging for Ukulele
Description: Have you ever looked at a song sheet with chords on it and not been sure how to approach your play-through? Do you want to give cover songs more personal flavor? We will discuss a process for approaching making your own arrangements of songs. Explore how, customized to your own needs and abilities, fingerpicking, strumming, chucking, riffs, and muting can give aural interest and make a song sound more or less like the performance you’re “covering.” Learn tips and tricks for how to find chords to songs you want to play, including how to build your own chord sheet if you can’t find an existing one you like.
Get your tickets while they last!