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Songs and arrangements

Imagine — let's play together!

Tamás Gáll

Happy New Year — may it be full of health and ukulele playing! Imagine us all strumming together . That line is not actually in John Lennon's evergreen song, but I would love as many of you as possible to feel inspired to take part in the next community ukulele video. If you do not know what I mean,…

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Ukulele reviews

Lanikai MAS-C

Tamás Gáll

I am not exaggerating when I say that, at least in my opinion, one of the most beautiful mahogany ukuleles I have ever had here passed through my hands a few months ago: the Lanikai MAS-C, a concert-size ukulele made of solid mahogany. A more flattering official photo could probably have been taken…

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Ukulele reviews

Lanikai ACST-B

Tamás Gáll

Baritone ukuleles do not come my way very often, so it is always exciting when I get to try a genuinely large ukulele. This is not an entry-level instrument either, as it has a solid acacia top. That is where the model name comes from: ACacia Solid Top — Baritone. It is practically a miracle that I…

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Choosing your first ukulele

With a strap or without?

Tamás Gáll

One of the eternal questions among ukulele players is whether you may, can, should, ought to — and so on — attach a strap to a ukulele. There may be no single correct answer, and that is perfectly fine: everyone can decide how they prefer to hold their instrument. The earliest ukuleles had no strap…

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Songs and arrangements

Silent Night — reloaded

Tamás Gáll

Silent Night was one of the first fingerstyle arrangements I ever learned. Ten years ago around this time I practised it diligently until, on 11 December 2011, I published a blog postabout it. I remember how hard I struggled to work out how the chords and melody should fit together, choose the finge…

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Songs and arrangements

Blue Moon of Kentucky

Tamás Gáll

I hope there are some bluegrass fans among you, because I would like to show you the chord accompaniment to one of the genre's evergreen classics. Bill Monroe wrote the song in 1946 — at least that is what he said; I do not understand why Wikipedia gives 1945 — and recorded it that year with his ban…

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Ukulele reviews

Flight — DUC-525 CEQ

Tamás Gáll

...or: tuning with a built-in tuner. A few months ago I already showed you the acoustic sibling of this ukulele, the regular DUC-525, and even then I praised its wood combination, tone and volume. This time you can watch a longer video about the electro-acoustic version, which differs from the acous…

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Songs and arrangements

Dream a Little Dream — intro

Tamás Gáll

Dream a Little Dream is one of my eternal favourites, so it is no surprise that it was one of the first songs I arranged , now eight years ago. Back then, of course, I played it a little differently, using less fingerstyle technique. Since then I have developed that side of my playing and added an i…

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Ukulele reviews

Ohana O'Nino

Tamás Gáll

A few months ago I had already had the pleasure of trying an Ohana — a beautiful pineapple-shaped ukulele . I had always known that Ohana does not do things by halves: they make genuinely premium-quality ukuleles. This time I got my hands on a truly unusual little instrument, the Ohana O'Nino, a min…

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Ukulele reviews

Lanikai FM-CET

Tamás Gáll

The Lanikai FM-CET is made of flamed maple and is a truly eye-catching ukulele. I already introduced its smaller acoustic concert-size sibling, also made of flamed maple, back in December 2019. This, then, is the bigger brother, with a cutaway body and onboard electronics. You get the excellent qual…

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