Level 3 · Picking & the scale

finger/felt-pick strokes, the major scale, syncopation

Picking out the scale turns the uke from an accompaniment box into a melody instrument.

What you learn

• Finger-pick and felt-pick strokes (Roberts: ‘the common strokes are made with the first or…’).
• The C major scale across the fingerboard; simple single-note melodies.
• Syncopated and ‘Hawaiian’ rolled strums.
• Triplet feel and the swing stroke.
• Playing melody and chords in alternation.

Grounded in: Roberts Progressive Method for the Ukulele (1910s–20s) — for finger/felt-pick strokes, scales, chords by key. source

Note: a method-grounded technique curriculum (no score corpus for this instrument); levels are graded skills, not pieces.