Next Level Ukulele

Easy play-along guide to understanding music, building confidence and learning to jam like a pro, with over 100 audio play-along practice tracks

If you play ukulele to a basic level but want to reach the next level by being able to hear, follow and understand the music and songs you play then this book is for you. With Next Level Ukulele you can:

• Dramatically boost your confidence when performing
• Develop your music theory knowledge, rhythm and listening skills
• Improve your ability to play and remember songs
• Transform your all-round skills as a musician

Does the world really need another uke book? We think it does - you see, many experienced beginner/intermediate ukulele players grow frustrated by their inability to understand and follow the music they play. Instead of blindly following the chords on the page, they want to be able to 'hear and feel' the music they play in the same way an experienced musician does!

This is where Next Level Ukulele comes in - simply follow the step-by-step method in this book (with over 100 play-along tracks included) and see your musical skills improve dramatically. By focusing on really listening and learning to recognise the sounds in the music you play, you can go beyond basic ukulele playing and begin to think, hear and feel like a real musician.

Next Level Ukulele comes with over 100 play-along backing tracks demonstrating most of the examples in the book. These are used to teach you to hear and recognise what you hear in the songs you play - chords, chord progressions, keys and key changes, common rhythmic patterns and more.

Next Level Ukulele shows you how to:

• Learn to play 'by ear'. This is how many musicians can work out and play songs they've never even played before! Develop the skills you need to be able to do this
• Understand and recognise the common elements we see in the popular ukulele repertoire - major and minor chords and keys, different rhythms and time signatures, 'seventh' chords, common chord sequences, key changes, 'borrowed' chords and much more
• Recognise common song forms and structures like the 12 bar blues, 'IV' chord chorus songs, and songs based on simple repeating chord patterns
• Learn to 'feel the rhythm' - nail common rhythmic feels and strumming patterns such as swing rhythms, shuffles, 'train' rhythms, waltz time and more

This book is perfect for you if:

• You want to improve your ukulele playing skills, feel more confident when playing with other musicians, and simply enjoy your playing more
• You'd like to become one of those players who can hear songs and work them out simply by using their ears!
• You want to improve your ability to listen to and follow the music you play
• You want to learn some of the skills you need to jam with others (and feel comfortable and confident doing so!)
• You'd like to play music and songs on the spot 'by ear' instead of always following a chord sheet
• You want a deeper understanding of the music you play
• You'd like to be able to recognise the common chords, chord progressions, song forms and key changes used in the popular ukulele repertoire