Songs and arrangements
83 posts
Hol jártál, báránykám? — melody tutorial
Tamás GállI would like to teach you the melody of this lovely Hungarian children's song. In “Hol jártál, báránykám?” the focus is not on chord accompaniment, so naturally that is not what I concentrate on in the video below. The song uses a pentatonic scale, meaning five different pitches (the C an octave hig…
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The Beatles — Here Comes the Sun
Tamás GállI would like to teach you the intro to a wonderful Beatles song. Here Comes the Sun was released on the Abbey Road album in 1969, so it belongs to the Beatles' later period. And, for anyone who may not know, this one is unusually not a Lennon–McCartney composition: it was written by George Harrison,…
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Ben E. King — Stand By Me
Tamás GállI would like to teach you the introduction to a beautiful song. I think everyone knows this wonderful old composition from 1961, associated with Ben E. King. There are said to be around 400 officially released cover versions, including recordings by John Lennon and Tracy Chapman. In case the song do…
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ABBA — I Have a Dream
Tamás GállWe are going to learn a well-known ABBA hit released in 1979 that has remained popular ever since. Its chord progression is extremely simple: both the verse and chorus revolve around just a few basic chords. If, as a beginner, you already know C major, F major, G major and G7 and would like to turn…
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Knockin' On Heaven's Door — our community performance
Tamás GállTwo weeks ago I posted a call asking you to play 16 lines — 64 bars — of Bob Dylan's well-known song and, if you felt like it, sing along as well. I wanted to put together another big community play-along video. I was eagerly waiting for your recordings, but a few days before the deadline I started…
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Knockin' on Heaven's Door — Let's Play Together!
Tamás GállI am delighted that we have already been able to make music together in two shared productions, even if only virtually. Last December we played the song beginning "Ó, Gyönyörű Szép" , and for this year's World Ukulele Day we prepared a Brahms arrangement. Many of you asked when the next project woul…
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Ó, Gyönyörű Szép — MERRY CHRISTMAS!
Tamás GállAs you could read in the previous post, I invited you, dear ukulele players, to take part in a shared Christmas ukulele performance. I asked anyone with the time and enthusiasm to play — and sing — the song beginning Ó, gyönyörű szép, then send me the recording so that I could make a video in which…
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Ó, Gyönyörű Szép — Let's Play Together!
Tamás GállI would like to invite you to make some Christmas ukulele music together. Unfortunately it can only happen in the virtual space, but I hope this shared "project" will still bring us a lot of joy. The final result would be a video in which everyone can be seen and heard: a ukulele choir playing, acco…
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Hull a Pelyhes Fehér Hó
Tamás GállI often say and write that a particular song is worth learning because many people know it, which makes it useful "ammunition" in company — if someone says, "Come on, play something!", you can confidently perform it. Hull a Pelyhes is like that too, although it has the disadvantage of being seasonal…
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Scott Joplin — The Entertainer
Tamás GállThis year I have had less time for song-learning posts, but I am trying to make up for that now. In fact, I have made one of the most serious and longest videos in the history of the Hungaria Ukulele Blog, based on a ukulele arrangement of the piano piece in the title. If the title does not immediat…
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Cifra Palota
Tamás GállFrom time to time, a kind acquaintance of mine, Orsi, posts pictures on Facebook of stones she has painted. The pictures on the stones are inspired by Hungarian folk songs or children's songs, and the game is to guess which song each picture represents. I really enjoy this game — not because I know…
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When the Saints Go Marching In
Tamás GállI would like to teach you another popular song that practically everyone knows. The origins of When the Saints Go Marching In are lost in the distant mists of time and will probably remain an eternal mystery, which is why official sources also describe it simply as "traditional". The earliest known…
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