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339 posts
A Chinese ukulele test
Tamás GállThis year I again travelled to China for work, this time to Xi'an (on Hungarian maps you will often see the city written as Hszian, but the correct transcription from Chinese characters is Xi'an). This beautiful ancient city is counted among the great capitals of antiquity alongside Rome, Athens and…
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Thank you for Instagramming
Tamás GállAt the end of February I received an email from one of the organizers of Ki Mit Tube, who wrote, “I came across your videos on YouTube and I really like what you do,” and invited me to take part in this year's competition. After a few emails and phone calls we discussed the details, and in the secon…
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With a pick or without?
Tamás GállOne of the eternal—almost religious—questions among ukulele players is whether you are “allowed” to use a pick. In the video below I explore the subject a little, but if you do not want to watch it, I will give away the answer: yes, you are. Who could forbid it ? Of course, it is another matter what…
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Somewhere Over the Rainbow
Tamás GállWhen someone asks what instrument I am carrying and I tell them that it is a ukulele, they immediately smile and say, “Ah, Somewhere Over the Rainbow, right?” The history of the song goes back to 1939, when the world first heard this lovely piece as a song in the classic film The Wizard of Oz under…
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Report on Course II in February 2025
Tamás GállAs I keep writing reports on the courses, I am gradually running out of adjectives because the Saturday course on the 22nd was once again so good. At least I had a fantastic time, and I hope the participants did as well. The “schedule” was similar to previous courses: after introductions we worked o…
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Report on Course I in February 2025
Tamás GállWe woke to brutally cold weather on 15 February 2025 . I was a little worried about my instruments and the other equipment I was taking to the course, but fortunately the freezing weather did them no harm. When I arrived at the venue, I quickly carried everything into the heated room and waited for…
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Ukulele courses in February 2025
Tamás GállDear (Future) Ukulele Players! I have fallen quite far behind in recent months. Although I try to practise as much as possible and work on new songs, I owe you both blog posts and videos. I will do my best to return with new material soon . After discussions with the venue, we have now managed to fi…
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Report on Course II in autumn 2024
Tamás GállWe held an almost fully booked Course II on Sunday, 15 September. Thank you once again for your continuing interest in the courses. Unfortunately the bad news is that the next ukulele course will most likely no longer be at this venue, but I will write more about that later. Back to the course: afte…
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Report on Course I in autumn 2024
Tamás GállDear Ukulele Players! Before I write about the course, please allow me a short detour: I know I owe you some new song arrangements. (According to the statistics, this is the most popular blog category.) During the summer I went on a business trip to China that required a great deal of preparation, a…
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Ukulele courses in September 2024
Tamás GállDear (Future) Ukulele Players! Contrary to my original plans, unfortunately I was unable to organize a course in May, but the autumn course dates are already set: Ukulele Course I – 8 September 2024 (Sunday), 9:00–16:00 APPLY Ukulele Course II – 15 September 2024 (Sunday), 9:00–16:00 APPLY If you ar…
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Ukulele Orchestra of Great Britain
Tamás GállA few days ago Erika, a very kind ukulele student of mine, wrote to say that she was in Scotland and planned to attend a concert by the Ukulele Orchestra of Great Britain. After being quietly envious for a moment , I asked her to make sure she documented the event. A few days after the concert, Erik…
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The tenor ukulele, baritone ukulele and guitar
Tamás GállThe relationship between the ukulele and the guitar is a frequently recurring question, and the baritone ukulele naturally has a special role as a kind of “bridge” between them. I decided to make a video featuring all three instruments and, while only brushing the outermost layer of music theory , t…
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