Interview with Charlotte Pelgen

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In my previous post, The Hungaria Ukulele Blog Is 10 Years Old , I wrote a few words about how I use Instagram and Twitter less often, but that my Instagram account has nevertheless led to several ukulele friendships. That is where I discovered Charlotte Pelgen — or more precisely, her videos, in which she performs fantastic songs in a sensational style, primarily music from the 1920s. The ukulele itself was extremely popular during that period, and its tone and character fit the chord progressions and melodies of the era perfectly. And then there is Charlotte's performance style: in her recordings she looks as if she has stepped straight out of the 1920s and in front of the camera, effortlessly strumming complex rhythms while changing rapidly between chords, all while singing beautifully.If you would like to follow her on Instagram,click hereto see her profile.

In every one of Charlotte's videos, without exception, she performs modestly and naturally, without unnecessary showmanship, with flawless technique and a beautiful, clear singing voice. If there is one playing style I would wholeheartedly recommend ukulele players — and instrumentalists in general — to study, I would say Charlotte is an excellent example. Her strumming and singing are completely integrated, and throughout every performance you can feel her sensitivity and humility toward the music. There are many people who strum well and sing beautifully but lack that extra quality that truly reaches an audience, and sometimes try to compensate for it with clowning around or mannerisms that do not belong in the music. Fortunately Charlotte needs none of that. The music and energy flowing from her make her a world-class performer. One sign of how accomplished a musician she is is that what she does does not look difficult at all. But the moment you try to imitate it, you realize how many years of practice and experience are required to make it look that effortless.

I have watched — and still watch — a huge number of her videos, trying to pick up her rhythmic tricks and improve my own playing by studying her chord changes and accents. At some point it occurred to me that I would very much like to contact her. What she does is simply so good, and I thought it would be wonderful if she agreed to an interview with the Hungaria Ukulele Blog so that I could share her art and thoughts with you. The written interview came together in December 2020. I hope you enjoy it. My later comments appear in parentheses marked "Ed."

Please introduce yourself to us in a few sentences.

I make my living as a musician in Freiburg in southern Germany, close to the French and Swiss borders, although I will soon be moving to Munich. I picked up the ukulele a little over ten years ago and have hardly put it down since. I love music from the early 20th century, and for me there is an endless amount to discover in the music — and ukulele playing styles — of that period.

When and how did you first encounter the ukulele? What made you want to learn the instrument?

If I remember correctly, it was in 2008. My father came home from China, where he had performed a concert, and brought back a ukulele he had been given there. I was happily eating lunch after school when he started playing funny German songs from the 1920s... At the time, I was not particularly interested in that music. A little later, in 2009, my father showed me the Beatles' I Wanna Be Your Man on the ukulele. It fascinated me so much that I suddenly fell in love with the instrument.

Do you remember the first chord you learned? And among your first chords, which one made you think, "Now this is difficult"?

When I started learning, I considered whether to begin in D tuning or C tuning (aDF#B or gCEA — Ed.), and in the end I started with D tuning. So my first chords were D major, G major and A7, which correspond to C major, F major and G7 in gCEA tuning. The first chord that really enchanted me was Cmaj7. In the beginning many chords were challenging. There was one song with a change every half measure between F7 and Gm, and at first that was really difficult because I constantly mixed the two up, the ukulele neck kept slipping out of my hand, and of course I wanted to be able to play it immediately. I was already a fairly impatient person then — and I still am.

If I understand correctly, you especially enjoy music from the 1920s through the 1940s. How did you discover that period, and what do you find interesting about its music?

I discovered the music of that era through my father when I was a teenager. I think that if someone encounters a strong musical influence at that age, it can leave a lasting mark. American swing and jazz from the 1920s are simply infectious and captivating. The melodies are catchy yet often complex, the lyrics can sometimes be a little silly but charming, while at the other extreme they can be devastatingly sad. The music of the era is simply wonderful. It has humor, and — returning to the lyrics — they often contain references to how people lived and how they saw the world at the time.

My interest in this period began with the music, but the fashion of the era also caught my attention, and these days I am interested in almost everything connected with the 1920s through the 1940s. I think it was an age in which opposites collided: change and innovation met outdated social norms, tolerance and vibrant freedom met conservatism and extreme ideologies. It was a period in which beauty and horror both appeared in everyday life — and it also produced some of the finest music. The ukulele fitted the music of the era perfectly; it is especially well suited to swing, for example.

What is your favorite song to sing while accompanying yourself on ukulele? If you have several, feel free to name more than one.

It changes from week to week . When the weather is cold and dark, I prefer slower jazz songs that are melancholic or perhaps declarations of love. I could not really list favorites because there are so many songs I love that choosing just one — or even only a few — would be impossible. I can tell you that after this interview I will be practicing one of my many favorites, written in 1933: Everything I Have Is Yours.

Is there a song you consider technically difficult?

Roy Smeck's Tiger Rag (look him up, he is sensational — Ed.) and Sweet Georgia Brown are definitely difficult. I notice it when I have not played them for a few weeks: I have to work a little to get my fingers moving at the right speed again.

How do you practice? What do you practice? Do you practice every day? How long do you practice? Please tell us everything about your practice methods.

I do not practice in the traditional sense, meaning I do not do separate warm-ups or finger exercises. I simply start playing songs and keep going until my voice and hands get tired. When I want to learn something new, I feel that I want to be able to play it immediately (what a surprise ), so in those situations I may practice for several hours until I can do it.

I play German songs in a ukulele duo with Elisabeth Pfeiffer. Through Elisabeth and our project together, I learned how valuable really thorough practice can be. We go through songs measure by measure in great detail so that the final performance communicates the emotions as strongly as possible. I like that kind of work and it suits the songs we play as a duo, but it does not really fit swing and jazz. Music from the 1920s through the 1940s needs a minimum amount of imperfection, a touch of chaos and unpredictability, and the ukulele player has to contain some of that too .

How many songs are in your repertoire? How quickly does it grow, and how do you keep the songs you have already learned fresh?

If I can look at lyrics and chords, I could probably name several hundred songs; from memory I can play around fifty. I also collect old sheet music, and recently I even used a gramophone to transcribe old songs. As for keeping them fresh: I forget the songs I perform less often at concerts, but that is not really a problem. Later I pick them up again, remember them, and get to enjoy the pleasure of rediscovering them.

My personal favorite from your repertoire is I've Got the Feeling (see the video above — Ed.). I have listened to it at least a hundred times and have started learning it myself. It has fast, great-sounding chord changes together with a charming melody. Could you tell us a little about this song? And do you have any advice for people who would like to learn it?

Oh, that is a fantastic song! It was written by Fats Waller — who is one of my favorite musicians from that period — Harry Link and Billy Rose, and published in 1929, which is a slightly special year for me. A number of other excellent songs were released that year, and my grandfather was born in 1929 as well. As you mentioned, the chord changes are fast, so I definitely recommend practicing them slowly. Pay attention to which fingers you use for each change and where they need to move. But really, do not rush the chord changes.

You also play in a band called the Bad Mouse Orchestra. Please tell us about it: when and how did you form the group, who else plays in it, and what sort of music do you perform? Who came up with the name, and does it have any special meaning?

I am very happy to have the "mice" in my life. One of them is Stefan Pößiger, who also plays ukulele — he is a Roy Smeck expert and learned techniques from one of Roy's former students. Another is Peter Jung, who plays guitar and sings. Jake Smithies is also a member on double bass, and I am the fourth member of the band. Jake joined us around 2017–2018, but the group itself was formed at a music festival in 2015. We met there one day and realized that we loved and played the same music: swing and jazz from the 1920s through the 1940s. That day we decided to start a band and called it Bad Mouse Orchestra. The inspiration came from Stefan's T-shirt, which had a scruffy, tattooed, pierced mouse on it. That is how the name was born. We did want to replace it with a "proper" band name, but even after five years we never found anything better. We think that although we are neither bad nor mice — and perhaps not even a proper orchestra (oh yes you are — Ed.) — the name somehow suits us. Fortunately, over the last few years we have been able to perform our favorite old songs in several European cities, and I hope we will be able to tour again as soon as circumstances allow. I miss the mice!

A few weeks ago you gave a Facebook Live concert lasting more than an hour. You had a large audience — naturally I was among them — and it went extremely well, with some fantastic songs. The comments beside the video also show that your listeners enjoyed the concert. Please tell us a little about it. How did you feel while performing? If I am right, this was your first Facebook concert. Are you planning more?

I was so nervous! Who would have thought that playing in front of a screen could be more nerve-racking than performing for several hundred people in a concert hall? During a Facebook concert I cannot hear or see people's reactions, but I know they are watching . It took me until about halfway through to get used to it, but after that I really enjoyed myself, and I am sure there will be more.

Once the pandemic is over, where will we be able to see and hear you and the Bad Mouse Orchestra?

Unfortunately I do not know yet. At the moment there is a question mark next to every entry in my calendar. The easiest thing is to follow me on Facebook or add me as a friend; then the information will definitely reach you.

We have talked a lot about music from the 1920s through the 1940s. I am really curious what other music, songs and performers you enjoy from the 1950s to the present day. Could you name a few?

People think I listen exclusively to music from the period we keep mentioning, but that is not true at all. I like many kinds of music: various folk traditions, Latin, hip-hop, klezmer, rock and roll and so on. According to Spotify, I listened to 386 different genres this year, which surprised me because I could not even name more than thirty. In any case, here are a few artists I have listened to a lot recently: Elvis Presley (especially his early songs), Little Richard, Pokey LaFarge, Rob Heron, Naragonia Quartet, Eloise, Ben Mazué, Gregory Porter, Nat King Cole, Omer Adam, Imogen Heap, Sebastian Krämer, and of course many, many others.

The Hungaria ukulele community is still not very large, but I hope it will keep growing. We are working to make the ukulele widely known in Hungary, spreading the message — the love of the ukulele and the idea that playing it is simply enjoyable. What would you say to people who are still only thinking about whether they should start learning the ukulele?

All I can say is: DO IT! You will never regret it. The instrument itself is wonderful, the ukulele community is a lovely community to belong to, and learning your first few songs is an incredibly uplifting feeling. I think the ukulele is unique in its ability to bring music-making within everyone's reach, and that brings people closer together. I send lots of love, good luck and all my best wishes to the Hungaria ukulele community .

Thank you for the interview!

Thank you too .