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Recent Posts
- Greensleeves or What Child Is This for ukulele January 2, 2025
- Silent Night for high G ukulele December 23, 2024
- Read Rotate Repeat December 18, 2024
- Instrumental Halloween tunes for ukulele October 29, 2024
- Ukulele Fall 2024 Course October 11, 2024
- Ukulele Exercises Series (books) September 26, 2024
- Nutmeg Ukulele Festival 2024 August 27, 2024
- 3 Chord Thursday Rest of the Year Pass August 27, 2024
- 3 Chord Thursday Hunter’s Full Moon August 21, 2024
- 3 Chord Thursday Holiday Songs August 21, 2024
- 3 Chord Thursday Sad but beautiful songs August 21, 2024
- 3 Chord Thursday Disney August 12, 2024
- 3 Chord Thursday television August 12, 2024
- Borrow ukulele from a library August 7, 2024
- 3 Chord Thursday NAMES July 29, 2024
- Fun with Uke 2024 July 23, 2024
- 3 Chord Thursday Dance! June 25, 2024
- 3 Chord Thursday Hooked on Classics June 25, 2024
- 3 Chord Thursday Relaxation June 25, 2024
- 3 Chord Thursday Colorado Songs of John Denver June 25, 2024
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January 2025 M T W T F S S 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 Recent Posts: Concert Blog
REVIEW: Discovering Fingerstyle Ukulele Songbook by Colin Tribe
Colin Tribe’s new book offers new possibilities for ukulele players who aspire to fingerpick their way through thirty of the most popular songs of all time. These chord melody arrangements show a variety of ways the high G ukulele can be used for instrumental solo or duet (such as chord accompaniment and melodic fingerpicking) . […]
REVIEW: Piano Animals (duet) by Heleen Verleur
This 31-page book of four hand piano music is sheer FUN with a capital F. The composer Heleen Verleur knows just what pianists love playing: music that is easy to read, sounds hard to play, but is so much fun that you don’t want to stop until it ends.
REVIEW: Ukulele Picking Tunes Classical Gems by Paul Mansell
This 40-page book is the latest contribution to the ukulele repertoire by the UK-based ukulele and guitar composer Paul Mansell. Guitarists who play the ukulele are few and far between, for many adult learners pick up the ukulele without knowing the guitar. Yet it takes a guitarist who understands the possibilities of the re-entrant tuned […]
REVIEW: Modern Pieces for Ukulele by Paul Mansell
Review of first three pieces from the new book Modern Pieces for Ukulele by Paul Mansell
Group piano class in Zoom
Introducing my group piano class online: Group Piano Class in Zoom. The first series of seven weekly one-hour class started in June 2021. The second (continuation of the first) started in October 2021 at alternating weeks, until end of December (seven sessions). The third series of 16 consecutive weeks started at the beginning of 2022. […]
Category Archives: personal development
The Handy Man Can
When my friends posted a video of their business called “The Handy Man” on Facebook, I was suddenly reminded of a parody I wrote years ago on the song “The Candy Man” because I was so fascinated by what one … Continue reading
Leavin’ on a Jetstream
It’s easy to get sidetracked when you’re in a bathroom store buying your first bath tub together. You just want a no frills tub for two for a small bathroom. Each tub you try not only gets bigger but comes … Continue reading
The freedom and friction of fiction writing
“Pick up a postcard on your table and write your address on it. Take what you’ve learned in this conference and write to your future self. Which words of encouragement would you impart?” Among the postcards of city scenes and … Continue reading
This time last year in California
We think in cycles, every full moon, every birthday, every St Patrick’s Day, every Valentine’s Day. This time last year, I was clearing the home of an 84-year old woman named Maureen. A sudden fall on 4th of July 2016 … Continue reading
Culturally themed concert: from New Zealand to Hawaii
Music can transport you to another world, another place, another time, another feeling. Such was my motivation yesterday in South Boston and today in Brockton, Massachusetts when I gave a culturally themed concert to take my audience first to New … Continue reading
Ukulele Workshops & Jam Sessions in Historic Lower Mills
To introduce the joy of ukulele to this area of Dorchester, Milton, and Quincy around Boston, Massachusetts, I’m giving workshops followed by thematic jam sessions. A workshop is a group learning experience, where I teach specific skills needed to play … Continue reading
Annie’s Song in C for ukulele
When I was growing up on the island of Okinawa, I listened to John Denver whose songs of love, nature, and beauty described my childhood. I took a personal interest in “Annie’s Song” identifying myself with the name. When I … Continue reading
Marmie (Birmingham, May 1998 – London, April 11, 2017)
“My cat died last night,” I texted my friend who owns four dogs and two cats in Denver. “I didn’t know you had a cat,” she responded. “I don’t. I gave him away years ago.” I can’t remember when exactly I … Continue reading
My Thai after five days with Chef June – Thai Food Made Easy
When I first connected with my high school classmate June Verburg on Facebook, I couldn’t believe how good she looked. She must have photoshopped herself, I concluded. So I planned a trip to see her and find out for myself.