Strum with Alice: a self-paced beginner ukulele course
A self-study course to learn ukulele in your own time and at your own speed.
You’d love to learn to play ukulele and sing some of your favourite songs. But you’re not sure where to start.
This self-study course will take you through from absolute beginner stage, to being able to play a variety of chords and strums and songs. It’s delivered in a series of carefully graded lessons, over four weeks. Including online play-along videos, a printable songbook, a coursebook with other essential information and more.
You’ve been trying to teach yourself. You’ve been looking at online videos. You’ve bought a book and tried to follow the instructions.
But you’re feeling confused. It doesn’t seem to add up.
You’ve been expecting to make faster progress than this. The ukulele is supposed to be easy. You’re feeling discouraged.
You did a night class, but you found it hard to keep up. And after the class ended, you couldn’t keep going.
It’s likely that you’ve been trying to learn songs that are too hard for a beginner.
Most online videos are made for players with some experience, (even when they say they’re suitable for beginners).
Right now, you need a bit more help than free online resources and/or books can give you.
Also, you’ve been trying to go too fast. The material may seem simple. But it takes time to build up muscle memory, and create new neural pathways in your brain.
When you’ve learned the basics, you will find it’s a lot easier to follow videos.
What you need is a step-by-step course that will take you through from absolute beginner stage.
This course is for folks who want to play ukulele, who’d like to learn in their own time.
The course material is based on my experience teaching hundreds of beginner players, like you.
Kind words from happy players:
“I found Alice on YouTube and her videos were easy to follow, so signed up to her DIY Beginners course. One module a week for 4 weeks and you can revisit each module as often as you like. After 4 weeks I could play simple songs and chords.
Alice is such an encouraging and positive teacher. I highly recommend her .” – Barb, Australia
“I really like your video lessons – short sequences and not overloaded.” – Mieke, Germany
Thanks, Alice! Reminders and a diary of daily practice is the only way to get the old fingers in the right place on the right strum! – Lena
“A great way to learn an instrument. It’s very easy to get started, even without a music background. Alice makes music accessible and easy.” – Wendy, New Zealand
“Learning ukulele with Alice is the best thing I’ve done for years – lots of fun and a new skill you can enjoy almost anywhere.” Christina, New Zealand
“I had never played the ukulele, and in the first lesson, I was playing along with Alice. She provided songs that were at my skill level and continued to increase the difficulty as I was able. Alice is an exceptional ukulele instructor. I would highly recommend her.” Kate, USA
“Highly recommend as a stress buster.” – AnnMaree
Ready to start playing? Buy the Strum with Alice self-paced Beginner Ukulele course for a single payment of $US75.
About your teacher, Alice
I love teaching ukulele. I’ve taught hundreds of adults to play.
Including many who had no previous music experience.
I can play many instruments, but ukulele is my happy place.
I first learned to play ukulele at the age of six. My mother, Sue, taught me three chords and three songs.
I remember thinking: “This is so much fun! This is what I’m going to do for the rest of my life!”
But it didn’t quite work out that way. Soon after that, I was sent off to violin lessons with a grumpy teacher, which weren’t joyful or fun.
Since then I’ve played many instruments, in everything from bluegrass groups to rock bands. I did 15 years of classical music training, all the way to university. I’ve made records, written songs and even been in a few videos.
Finally I found my way back to my first love, the ukulele, and it was just as much fun as I’d always remembered.
I’d love to help you experience the joy of playing ukulele!
Here’s what’s in this course…
- You’ll learn to play at least 10 songs.
- You’ll learn 12 essential chords.
- You’ll learn how to play six different strum patterns, and which songs to use them in.
- How to confidently read chord charts and song charts.
- How to tune your ukulele.
- How to buy a ukulele, if you don’t already have one.
- You can learn at your own pace, without having to turn up to classes.
Some frequent questions:
Do I need to read music?
No. You don’t need to read music in order to play ukulele.
During this course you will learn how to read chord tabs. This is the notation that shows where to place your fingers on the ukulele to play different chords.
I’m a total beginner with no musical experience – is this for me?
Yes! I (Alice) have taught hundreds of adult beginners to play ukulele. Many had never played an instrument before in their lives.
How fast can I learn ukulele? Does this really take four weeks?
Yes. In my experience it will take at least four weeks and probably longer, to build your foundation of beginner skills.
Give yourself time. It is true that the ukulele is a relatively quick instrument to learn (compared to the violin or other classical instruments). But, it still won’t happen overnight.
Put in the groundwork, learning the basics, piece by piece. It’s worth it!
I’ve designed the course to take four or five weeks to complete. But you’ll have access to the practice videos and other material for the lifetime of the course.
How much practice should I do?
Ten minutes to half an hour, most days a week, is enough practice.
You can’t make faster progress by practicing longer or harder. You’ll just get sore fingers. Practice gradually, over time.
What gear do I need for this course?
You need an ukulele. If you don’t have one yet, the course book includes advice on how to choose one.
You will also need a device (e.g. a laptop) to watch the videos on. And a stable internet connection.
An electronic tuner, that clips onto the ukulele, is handy. But some folk use online tuner apps instead.
There are suggestions for “nice to have, but not essential” ukulele gear in the coursebook.
Ready to start playing? Buy the Strum with Alice self-paced Beginner Ukulele course for a single payment of $US75.
Here’s how it works:
The Strum with Alice self-paced Beginner Ukulele course consists of:
A songbook – downloadable
A course book with other important information – downloadable
35 online videos – these are short videos (mostly less than 5 minutes) to maximise your time investment.
Links to the videos and course materials are delivered to your email inbox gradually, over four weeks. That’s the way I recommend you do the course.
You also have the option of logging in to the course HQ and going faster.
The cost is a one-off payment of $USD75
To buy the course, click on the button below. You will be directed to a secure payment system.
Terms & Conditions:
For full Terms and Conditions see here.
Terms of sale
The self-study courses are intended for the use of one person, or up to three people accessing the same computer. They are not transferable to more people.
Refunds
I will refund the full price of the course, less $US10 admin fee, with no questions within two days (48 hours) of purchase. After that there will be no refund.