How to read the diagrams
Hold the ukulele upright, facing you. The four vertical lines are the strings in the order G, C, E, A from left to right; the nut is the heavy line across the top. Dots are fingers, circles are open strings, and a short bar is one finger pressing two strings at once.
Standard tuning is re-entrant: the G string, nearest your chin, is tuned higher than the C next to it. That is where the ukulele's bright, close sound comes from, and it is why the lowest note of a ukulele chord is often not its root. The diagrams are drawn for this tuning; on a baritone ukulele, tuned D-G-B-E like a guitar's top strings, the same shapes give different chords.
Which chords to learn first
C needs one finger, and A minor needs one finger too. Add F and G, and C–G–A minor–F is the four-chord loop behind a great many songs. After that, D, A and E minor, then the seventh chords. B flat, which needs a short barre, is usually the first one that takes real practice.
Strumming
Start with steady down strums with the index finger, four to a bar, brushing all four strings. Add up strums on the way back, then leave some out to make a pattern: down, down-up, up-down-up is a common one. Keep the arm moving even when you skip a strum, so the rhythm doesn't wobble.
Questions
Which size ukulele is best for a beginner?
Soprano and concert ukuleles both work. A concert size gives adult fingers a little more room. The guide to ukulele sizes compares them.
Why does the top string sound higher than the next one?
That is the re-entrant high G of standard tuning. Some players fit a low G string instead for a deeper range; the chord shapes stay the same, only the sound changes.
How do I tune a ukulele?
To G, C, E and A, with the G above the C. The online tuner has the ukulele tunings and reference notes for each string.
