Pachelbel Birthday Party

Posted on August 28, 2023 by Anne Ku

Johann Pachelbel’s exact date of birth is not recorded. Born in Nürnberg (Nuremberg), he was baptized on 1st September 1653, which means his 370th birthday is either happening soon or has already happened. We celebrated his greatest gift to the music world on Friday 1st September 2023. As an organist, Pachelbel was best known for his music for organ, although his famous Canon in D and its companion Gigue were originally written for string instruments (three violins and a ground bass, e.g. cello).

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3 Chord Thursday Songs of Faith

Posted on August 11, 2023 by Anne Ku

On Thursday 21st December 2023, the last time we meet this year, we will celebrate the festive season with songs of faith and worship such as hymns, carols, meditations, chants, and songs of any faith. What’s the most rousing hymn of all time? What’s the most famous hymn? The oldest? Check this list of 50 most loved hymns. There are also famous classical pieces whose tunes are borrowed for religious services, such as Sibelius’ Finlandia and Holst’s The Planets. Here is a list of 25 such hymns from Seventh Day Adventist Hymnal. Here’s another list of tunes and hymns you may recognize.

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3 Chord Thursday I Love America

Posted on August 11, 2023 by Anne Ku

On Thursday 7th December 2023 we acknowledge history and pay our respects to the fallen with patriotic songs as well as songs about our love for America. On this day in 1941, the attack on Pearl Harbor changed the course of the second world war.

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3 Chord Thursday Names on Buttons

Posted on August 11, 2023 by Anne Ku

Thursday 16 November 2023 is National Button Day. Let’s put our names on buttons (or name tags) and share songs about names, starting with your name! At the beginning of the pandemic, we hosted two sessions on girl’s and boy’s names. Check out the lists. Do you know a song about your name?

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3 Chord Thursday Friends

Posted on August 11, 2023 by Anne Ku

Thursday 19th October 2023 is New Friends Day! Let’s share songs about friends and friendship. This is the second time we revisit the theme of friends. Join us for an hour of fun in Zoom on 3 Chord Thursday at the usual time of 3 pm EDT with your ukuleles and sunglasses. We always open with a short warm-up lesson punctually at 3 pm EDT when the video recording begins. The public livestream will begin afterwards (when we do our group photo pose with sunglasses and ukuleles).

In our warm-up and lesson, we visit the different ways to start a song to set the tempo, rhythm and harmonic content. We will also show how you can format a song sheet to make it as readable and scrollable as possible.

Special treat! After our session, come to a free one-hour workshop in zoom: Tune for Halloween and learn some tricks with your ukulele to create your own scary and spooky tune. Register separately for the Zoom link for this workshop.

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I Left My Heart in San Francisco for Ukulele Play Along

Posted on August 1, 2023 by Anne Ku

Tony Bennett’s 1962 recording of “I Left My Heart in San Francisco” was a double whammy. It made him famous. It made the song famous. He sang it in the key of C major. But it’s not a three chord song by any means. How do you reduce it to something manageable yet retain the harmonic color? Enroute to producing a one-page song sheet, I made a play along video with lyrics and chord names against my piano video.

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Fingerstyle ukulele pluck & strum session

Posted on July 18, 2023 by Anne Ku

Test drive Anne Ku’s new arrangements for instrumental ukulele in this in-person session in Boston, Massachusetts.

Meet Eve Myles, the artist

Get your own copy of Fun with Uke Book signed by the authors

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Yankee Doodle

Posted on July 12, 2023 by Anne Ku

As a child, I sang “Yankee Doodle” without understanding what a Yankee Doodle was. The Dutch say the word “Yankees” comes from the names of two guys, Jan (pronounced Yan) and Kees (pronounced Case). Further research shows that “Yankee Doodle” was an insult that backfired (see story). Arranging the music here in Boston, Massachusetts, I recognize the familiar locations of Lexington and Concord. Any visitor to Boston should follow the “Freedom Trail” and visit the USS Constitution, among other historic sites. What about the music? Is it easy and fun to play on the ukulele or the piano?

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Star Spangled Banner

Posted on July 11, 2023 by Anne Ku

The national anthem of the Unites States is not easy to sing due to big interval leaps and huge vocal range (more than 1.5 octaves). In the key of C major, the melody spans from middle C to the second G above it. For non-vocalists, it may be easier to play on the piano, ukulele, or other instruments, than to sing it. I introduce different arrangements I made of “The Star Spangled Banner” for instrumental players.

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3 Chord Thursday Musicals

Posted on July 11, 2023 by Anne Ku

On the last Thursday in November, 30th November 2023, let’s appreciate songs from Musicals – musicial productions in 3 Chord Thursday, the thematic song session in Zoom. Check this list of 50 broadway hits of all time and 101 Greatest Showtunes of All Time. Scroll down to see some suggestions. Join us in Zoom or in-person at the Walter Baker Building in Boston, Massachusetts. As usual, set-up starts at 2:30 PM EST. If you can’t join, you can always play along and follow our publicly livestreamed YouTube recording. Subscribe to my YouTube Channel to get instant e-mail notification of the URL, which works even after the video is unlisted.

Our warm-up lesson will be strumming exercises to support the line-up, including alternating bass.

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