The Complete Ukulele Method: Mastering Ukulele: Ukulele Book & DVD

Daniel Ho's involvement elevates this beyond a typical beginner method. The book balances foundational chord-melody arranging with immediate access to recognizable repertoire, so students stay motivated while building real fretboard literacy. The DVD format lets you show fingerings and strumming technique in real time, something still rare in ukulele pedagogy at this level.

A master class filtered through a method book. You'll move from learning individual techniques (triplet strums, fan strokes) to hearing how they actually sound in context through well-known melodies and the DVD demonstrations. The range of styles keeps the experience fresh, moving you from the warmth of Hawaiian playing to the snap of fingerstyle funk.

Ukulele players moving beyond strumming patterns who want to understand how to construct solos and navigate the full fretboard. This works for self-taught players seeking structure, students in group lessons who need supplemental material at home, and experienced musicians picking up ukulele for the first time and wanting to skip the basics.

• Record yourself playing the rhythm patterns from different styles (Hawaiian, ragtime, old school) back-to-back so you can hear how your touch and dynamics shift with each genre.
• Practice the split strum and burst techniques slowly with a metronome before attempting them in the jazz progressions; these strums reward precision over speed.
• Use the chord-melody arrangements of familiar songs to test your fretboard navigation across all four strings, not just the upper positions where most players camp out.

Use this as a self-directed study tool in a group ukulele ensemble program, assigning different style sections to different quarters or semesters. If you teach private ukulele lessons, the DVD makes it an ideal supplement for students between lessons, especially those learning chord-melody arranging or exploring styles beyond the folk repertoire typically featured in beginner methods.

• Chord-melody arranging across the full fretboard
• Specialized strumming techniques (triplet strums, bursts, split strums, fan strokes)
• Style-specific approaches (Hawaiian, ragtime, old school, fingerstyle, rock)
• Jazz improvisation over chord progressions
• Rhythmic vocabulary from multiple cultural traditions
• Fretboard familiarity beyond first-position chords