McTelenn Trio || Astrid Waltz || June 2010-Paris

This is a beautiful trio experience. Was it just me or was the sound of the big harp making it hard to hear the little harp (uke)?



Alternate Instruments

Ba-la-uke-a

I have a Balalaika that I removed the metal strings from and put on worth medium brown strings. I have tuned it C-E-A to make it easier for me to play and now call it a Ba-la-uke-a. Lil' Rev. put together the arrangements for the Hal Leonard book Easy Songs for the Ukulele. The songs have ukulele chord diagrams, music notation and tablature. The tablature for many songs are on the high 3 strings: C-E-A so I can play around with All My Loving, I Walk the Line, Yesterday... and several others.

DIVERGENCE into RUSSIA (BALALAIKA)

It always amazes me how little I know about this world. My curiousity got the best of me again. There is an instrument that is a cross between a ukulele and a mandolin and it has three strings. The triangular "balalaika" was on my mind in today's YouTube searches. I have seen typical 3-string and double up 6-strings. It is a Russian instrument from sometime around 1717 A.D. Steven Strauss told me that he thinks that the Bass Balalaika has become the most popular. This quartet is quite amazing. I'm enjoying seeing the similarities in the strumming techniques to the ukulele. It's like the UOGB...

Here's the James Hill mixed with Jake Shimabukuro, Aleksei Arkhipovsky, of the Balalaika. This man has lightning quick fingers. Faster, faster, faster.... WOW!



And Roy Smeck showmanship...

THIS VIDEO IS 10mins LONG -- DO NOT MISS IT!

HERE's some detailed information about Balalaika tuning and several songs. The thumb is used quite frequently in the chord shapes http://www.kaikracht.de/balalaika/english/school/school.htm

http://www.barynya.com/balalaika/balalaika_lesson_12.stm