The right hand thumb is a very powerful tool when playing ukulele and can be used for strumming, arpeggiation, and melody. You can get a beautiful, warm tone using the flesh of the thumb or add more volume and brightness by using the fingernail.
Many great ukulele players including Eddie Kamae, Ohta San, Benny Chong, and Jake Shimabukuro have used the thumb as a preferred choice for bringing out a variety of different sounds and techniques.
Using the thumb is a good place to start when beginning to play both chords and melodies. In this video lesson I demonstrate some different techniques using the thumb to play single note melodies and strumming.
Really nice. I’m playing this video over and over and catching so much information. Thanks!
Wouldn’t using the classical guitar finger style (p, i, m, a) technique on the 4 strings give better control & speed while playing single notes & chord melodies? I’m just wondering.
Aloha Earl, I use that finger style technique often and agree that it is very efficient. I think it is good to explore all the possibilities with right hand technique. A more traditional style of ukulele playing focuses on using the thumb most of the time. It transitions easily into strumming and gives a warm, full sound. Check out the technique used by renown ukulele players including Eddie Kamae, Peter Moon, Ohta San, Benny Chong, and Jake Shimabukuro and you will see that extensive use of the thumb is a fundamental part of their playing styles. The classical guitar technique also works well so in the end it is up to you to decide what suites your style of playing best. Transitioning from thumb technique to fingers is a great option explore. I recommend watching Benny Chong or Jake play for some good examples of this.
I am enjoying your tuition videos! Appreciated very much, so thank you. Am trying to get in the practise, but I like getting stuck into the free tunes you have provided for us. Am aged 72, so feel I am running out of time to learn all of the tunes, so the hard yards don’t get the attention they deserve. At least I get to do them with you in the videos. Thank you again, you are a brilliant teacher.
I love to hear you say your age, as I am the same age, just now taking up the classical ukulele. Of course coming from 60 years of playing classical paper trained violin makes Jeff’s teaching feel just right. Interestingly, the left hand is exactly how one holds the violin and uses the fingers, and the right hand position is exactly how one holds a violin bow. I have loved all the free videos and as soon as my Ohana comes, I will start the course proper.
Thank you for this very useful lesson (as all of yours)