Tuning the Ukulele: Seven Ways to Do it

When it comes to playing the ukulele, nothing will make you sound worse than being out of tune. For beginners, getting in tune can be a tricky task. There are many options for tuning. Some methods are easier than others, some methods are more accurate and some methods are cheaper. Find out which suits you best.

Tuning Notes Online

There are a number of websites on the net that will give you notes to tune to. You listen to the note and then try to match is as closely as possible on your uke. You will need to put in some practice until you can consistently find the right notes. But improving your ear is beneficial in many ways and is well worth the effort.

Downloadable Tuners

There are a number of tuners available free online. My personal favorite is the AP Tuner. You install these onto your computer, play into the mic and the tuner will tell you if you are sharp, flat or on pitch. The disadvantage of this is that you have to be near your computer.

Ukulele Tuners

Buying a tuner will mean you can get your ukulele in tune anywhere. The best type to buy if you play gigs or are a member of a ukulele club is a clip on tuner. Rather than picking up the sound, they work by picking up the vibrations of the ukulele. This means they can be used in noisy environments.

Using Pitch Pipes

Pitch pipes are the pre-digital era version of online tuning notes. They work like a mouth organ and have four holes: each one producing the right pitch for one of the ukulele strings. You play one note then tune your ukulele to match it.

Using a Piano

If you have a piano on hand, you can find the notes you need to tune your ukulele on there. The C on the uke is the middle C on the piano. E is two white keys up from that, G another two, then one more to A.

Using a Guitar

If you are playing with other instruments, it’s vital that you are tuned to the same pitch. The tuning notes for the ukulele can be found on the guitar here:

G = 1st string, 3rd fret

C = 2nd string, 1st fret

E = 1st string open

A = 1st string, 5th fret

Using the Ukulele Itself

If you have none of these things to hand. It’s possible to tune the ukulele to itself. You need to take one string as your base. Since the C string tends to hold its tuning best, we’ll use that. Playing the C string at the fourth fret will give you the note for the E string. The E string at the third fret will give you the G string. Play the second fret on the G string to get the note for the A string.

Having a ukulele tuner will mean you can be sure you are in tune. However, it’s a good idea to practice tuning by ear. This is an essential skill to pick up. You can always test yourself against the tuner to see how close you are and how much you are improving.

Ukulele Beginners: Ten Ways to Get Off to the Perfect Start

The ukulele is a relatively easy instrument for beginners to learn. After a few minutes, you’ll probably be strumming a few chords. Because of its size, it is the perfect instrument for kids to learn on. To kick start your learning here are ten ways to get you off to a running start.

1. Record yourself playing. Playing and listening at the same time is like trying to rub your stomach and pat your head. It’s much easier to evaluate your playing if you listen back to it and knowing what mistakes you’re making is halfway to fixing them.

2. Listen very carefully to music you like. Try to work out how to play what you’re hearing. There’s nothing wrong with ‘borrowing’ ideas from other musicians.

3. When you are practicing – play very slowly. It’s much easier to speed up once your fingers know what they are doing than it is to try and fix problems playing at top speed.

4. Learn how to read tab for the ukulele. Tab shows you exactly how a song is played – what string and fret to play and when to play it. There are many sites on the internet that have ukulele tab for all sorts of songs. If you search for ‘how to read ukulele tab’ on Google, you’ll find some helpful articles.

5. Buy a reasonable quality ukulele. The very cheapest ukuleles are fine for testing the water and deciding if you enjoy the ukulele, but once you start to get serious about playing, it’s well worth you getting a higher quality ukulele. $50 – $100 will buy you a ukulele that is so much better than the very cheapest makes.

6. Put good strings on your ukulele. As soon as I get my hands on a new ukulele, I immediately replace the strings. Almost always the strings that come with the ukulele sound awful and are unpleasant to play. My choice of strings is Worth. Another good brand is Aquila.

7. Hold your ukulele loosely. It is all to easy to choke the tone and volume out of your ukulele by holding it too tight. Pay close attention to how the top players like Jake Shimabukuro hold the ukulele.

8. Pay attention to other ukulele players. Watch how they hold the uke, how they strum, how their fingers move. See if you can pick up any ideas to improve your own playing.

9. Learn how to tune up properly. There’s nothing that offends the ears more than an out of tune ukulele. You can buy ukulele tuners or you can download them free on the internet – I use the AP Tuner.

10. Have fun. The ukulele has a reputation as a fun instrument – keep it that way.