How To Read Ukulele Music

To read ukulele tabs note that the tab chart has 4 horizontal lines that correspond to the 4 strings on your instrument.

How to read ukulele music. The top number tells you how many beats are in each measure and the bottom number indicates the rhythmic value of each beat 4 quarter note 8 eighth note 2 half note etc. 6 8 six eighth notes to a measure journey s lights is in 6 8 sometimes 4 4 is shown with a c for common time and sometimes 2 4 is shown as for cut time. Here you can see the following chords. How to read ukulele tabs one of the most common and easiest ways of learning to play songs on the ukulele is by reading tablature. 3 4 waltz time three quarter notes to a measure.

A beginner s guide by matthew driscoll. You ll most often encounter ukulele music written in 4 4 time four quarter notes per measure also known as common time sometimes expressed with a c symbol. It s a collection of lines numbers and symbols that looks confusing at first but is actually very simple to understand. When there s a vertical line cutting through the symbol that appears as a c that expresses cut time which means two notes every bar a meter taken for the quicker tempos. Meaning once you get the hang of it you will be reading it like you would read a book.

Instruments with a lower range use the bass clef while piano musicians will see the bass clef below the treble clef in their sheet music. For the most part you ll come across ukulele music written in four quarter notes per measure 4 4 time. When you hold your ukelele up to your body the g string will be the closest to your head and the a string will be closest to your waist but on your tab chart a is at the top and g is at the bottom. Xa 0 2 3 0 3 2 xe 1 3 0 0 2 1 xc 0 2 0 0 2 2 xg 2 0 0 2 2 0. This is also known as common time and sometimes denoted by a c symbol.

Learning how to read ukulele sheet music you will realize that uke players usually use the treble clef to read music. F g c am d7 and g7. An explanation on how to read notes on the treble clef for the ukulele from the book square one ukulele.