Playing Ukulele Chords Up the Neck - Part 3

 Here we are! Ready to take everything I talked about in the blogs this week and apply it to other chord shapes? Let's rock and roll this. 

So remember last time we learned how to take the F major chord and move it up the neck of the uke. We did so by using other chord shapes in this order: F major (first position), E major (starting on the third fret), C major (starting on the fifth fret), and B flat major (starting on the eighth fret). 

It turns out that we can use this particular order to move the other chords in this list up the neck of the ukulele. 

Just so you know - what I'm posting here is just the tip of the music theory iceberg that is moveable chord shapes, and I'll delve into some other shapes in the coming weeks. But for now, we can start with these shapes and use them up and down the neck of the uke. 

So let's look at moving the C major chord up the neck of the uke. As it turns out, if we play our regular C major chord in first position (like this), it's pretty easy to move it on up...

Play that C major chord in first position, and then we look at the chart above and notice that the next chord shape after the C major chord is the B flat major chord. And it starts on the third fret, just like the first position C major chord. So if you play that B flat major chord shape on the third fret, you're still playing...a C major chord. Fun, right? 

From there, we go back to the F major chord shape. Now, this one is going to be a little different, and it's going to be another barre chord. We use that barre technique to pretend that our finger is the top of the fretboard, and then we just make the chord shape from there. In this case, we're going to skip one fret (the sixth fret) from where our pinky finger lands, and then barre the seventh fret with our index fingers. From there, you can make the F major chord shape by pressing down on the eigthth fret of the second string and the ninth fret of the fourth string. So you're still making the F major chord shape, but we've got that barre thrown in there to act as the top of the ukulele fretboard. 

Of course, that leaves just one more chord shape - the E major. (Fun times.) To play that C major chord using the E major chord shape, we're going to skip one fret and start with the tenth fret, so pressing down on the tenth fret of the first string and the twelfth fret of the second, third, and fourth strings. (Could be a little easier that far up the neck, could be a little harder. Depends on you and your uke and what kind of a day you're having.)

Do you see a pattern forming here?

Let's do it with the E major chord shape. If we start by playing E major in the first position (second fret first string, fourth fret of second, third, and fourth strings), we can shift it up the fretboard by barring that fourth fret with our index finger and pressing down on the seventh fret of the first string. Voila! Easy peasy E major chord!

If you want to keep going from there, you can play an E major chord using the B flat major chord shape by barring the seventh fret of the first and second strings (just like we did for the C major chord I mentioned above) and pressing down on the eighth fret of the third string and the ninth fret of the fourth string.

Of course, if haven't run out of fret board yet on your ukulele, you can now play an E major chord using the F major chord shape! Just like I mentioned before, we're gonna skip the next fret after the ninth and barre the eleventh fret across all four strings. Then make the F major chord shape by pressing down on the twelfth fret of the second string and the thirteenth fret of the fourth string. (Easy to do on a tenor uke, not so easy on a soprano.)

Finally, to go full circle, here's how to do the B flat major chord up the neck of the ukulele using these shapes:

Starting with your B flat major chord in first position. Remember we always skip a fret after the highest fret of the B flat major chord, so that means we skip the fourth fret. Since the next shape after the B flat major shape is the F major, we're gonna barre that fifth fret with our index and press down on the sixth fret of the second string, third fret of the fourth string to make that F major chord shape. (But remember, this is still the B flat major, just played in a different chord shape.)

Then, just like we would if we were playing the F major in the first position, you're gonna plunk that pinky finger down on the first string at the eighth fret - that's our starting point for everybody's favorite E major chord shape! So pressing down on the eighth fret of the first string and the tenth frets of the second, third and fourth string, that's our B flat major chord played at the eighth fret. 

Finally, to play the B flat major chord using the C major chord shape, we're gonna barre that tenth fret and press down on the thirteenth fret of the first string. 

Hooya! There you have it! All kinds of ways to play these basic chord shapes all the way up the neck of the ukulele!

So, here are some tips for practicing:

1. Repetition, repetition, repetition. The best way to learn these is just to repeat them, saying the names of the chords to yourself each time. 

2. Repeat the patterns for each chord. So that means: starting with each chord in first position, and then play your way up the neck, changing chord shapes as you go. You can remember the letters F-E-C-B (make up some funky words for each letter if it helps, like Four Eggs Can't Beat or something) so you remember the order of the chord shapes up the neck. 

3.  Practice your barre chords and barre chord shapes in first position and get really comfortable with them before you move them up the neck. 

4. And, as with learning and practicing any new chord, find your fingers in the right position on the strings to make the chord shape, press down, and then try plucking each string individually to make sure you get a nice, clear, ringing tone. If you get any plunks or dead strings, make any adjustments to the placement of your fingers and give it a go again. Once you get that nice clear sound from each string, try strumming a few times! 

Another way to learn where these chords land on the fretboard is to pick one variation of them - the easiest one for me to start with was the B flat major version of the C major chord. Then any time I played a song that had the C major chord in it, I played the B flat major shape variation. It was a good way for me to start learning how to move around the fretboard while still staying "close to home", so to speak. You can try it with any chord - especially the E major chord. (Which still deserves a whole blog and video of its own, so that's coming in the near future.)

Now go have fun!