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Not long after I added the hobby of four part a capella singing to my repertoire of interests, my younger sister, Diane, mentioned that she liked singing in the church choir. Being an amateur singer myself, I was impressed. I asked her to give me a sample and she eagerly complied.
“Amazing Grace” was the song she chose, and she sang it with confidence and power. At its completion, I politely clapped as she waited for my comments. Thinking of myself as a beginning expert, I proceeded to explain that although she sang it well, I thought her voice was too breathy and her vibrato too pronounced. She asked me to explain and I went on for some time, adding that I didn’t think she’d make it as a professional singer, but would be fine for the chorus. All very uppity and know-it-all. She took the criticism quietly and promised to hear our quartet the next time she was in our area.
Five years later I got a postcard from Diane from the decks of a large cruise ship as it passed through the Panama Canal. She had been chosen to be the featured singer on the ship and even had the floating nightclub named after her. In love with her keyboard player, they later married and settled in Florida. I was flabbergasted! My little sister who I thought couldn’t sing a note - famous?
I found out why when three months later I received a tape recording of Diane singing to the accompaniment of a small trio. Her voice spoke to my mind, projecting the words with emotion and like Peggy Lee sounded as if she were singing just to you. A southern drawl enhanced the pure melodic tones as she performed nine of the favorite pop songs of the day. She had quite a good range and phrased the words like a female Frank Sinatra. Her arrangements were striking and individual, far better than even the original hits. My wife, Marianne, who is quite particular about who she likes, stated that Diane sang better than any of the pop singers on the radio. We, of course, wrote Diane of our amazement and wished her success in her new trade. So much for my “professional” advice.
I am the baritone in a barbershop quartet called “The Bell Tones”
Have you ever played a melody on your ukulele? Well, if not let this be the first time! I will show you how to play Mary Had A Little Lamb on two strings on your ukulele. We will use easy ukulele tab so you don’t need to know sheet music.
Mary Had A Little Lamb is a popular nursery rhyme. Here is the first verse:
Mary had a little lamb
little lamb, little lamb
Mary had a little lamb
its fleece was white as snow
Thomas Edison used this poem in testing his invention of the phonograph in 1877. It became the first audio recording to be successfully made and played back.
Let’s start playing the first notes! The melodi you now will play will correspond to the text line:
Mary had a little lamb
0/1 3/2 1/2 3/2 0/1 0/1 0/1
This is my special form of ukulele tab for articles to be sure that they are readable on article sites.
0/1 means that you play the first string with your right hand thumb without pressing down any left hand finger. It is called to play on an open string.
3/2 subsequently means that you press down the third fret on the second string. Now when you understand how to read my ukulele tab notation we will proceed with the next line of lyrics:
little lamb, little lamb
3/2 3/2 3/2 0/1 3/0 3/0
This type of ukulele tab doesn’t indicate the length of the notes. I guess you hear that the third and sixth note ought to be a little longer than the rest.
Here is the third line of lyrics and the corresponding ukulele tab:
Mary had a little lamb
0/1 3/2 1/2 3/2 0/1 0/1 0/1
Identical with the first line as you can see.
I haven’t told you anything about which left hand finger to press down on the frets.
You can of course use your first finger for all the notes. A more professional approach is to play the notes on the first fret with your first finger and the notes on your third fret with your little finger.
It is a little bit tricky at first but as your fingers get used to it it will actually be easier to find the right notes. You don’t even have to look at your fingers.
Let’s complete the song with the last line:
it’s fleece was white as snow
0/1 3/2 3/2 0/1 3/2 0/1
I would suggest that you learn the melody by heart. The ukulele tab is a little help in the beginning but it’s fun to be able to have a repertoire with songs you can play whenever you want.
If your ukulele is tuned with the first string to A the song will be in the key of F. The chords you will need is F and C7. They are easy on ukulele but a little bit harder on guitar.
The F and C chord written with my type of easy ukulele tab will look like this:
F: 0/1 1/2 0/3 2/4
C7: 1/1 0/2 0/3 0/4
I hope you will find out by yourself where the chords will fit in the melody.
You can use this ukulele tab on a guitar too as the first three strings on a guitar are tuned in the same way but not in the same key as on an ukulele.
Peter Edvinsson is a musician, composer and music teacher. Visit his site Capotasto Music and download your free sheet music and ukulele tab at http://www.capotastomusic.com
Britney Spears was born December 2 1981 as Britney Jean Spears in Kentwood, Louisiana, USA.
Many people who knows Sagittarian Britney Spears knows that Britney Spears was born to sing. Before she made a name for herself in the entertainment world, Britney performed in local dance reviews and church choirs. Spotting her unusually keen interest in performing, her attentive parents, Jamie and Lynne Spears, sent Britney Spears for an audition in Atlanta when the Disney Channel’s Mickey Mouse Club called for performers. She was eight years old then. Although Britney Spears was not selected during the process (she was too young for the show), a producer on the set noticed the extraordinary talent in her and arranged for Britney Spears to spend 3 full summers in Broadway Dance Center and Professional Performing Arts School. Despite her young age, a door was opened to Britney Spears when she DID appear in an Off-Broadway Production, Ruthless in 1991.
Britney Spears remembers the role in Ruthless very clearly; recalling that at 10 years old, she was playing a child who was really sweet on the outside but evil on the inside. “It was fun!”, she laments.
The entertainer in 11-year-old Britney won the hearts of the judges when she auditioned for a place in The Mickey Mouse Club again and got the part for 2 years. After 2 fun-filled years of working on the Orlando-based set for the Mickey Mouse Club, Britney, at 14, returned to Kentwood for an ordinary year of high school - but as expected, the energetic Britney Spears found herself itching to get back into the limelight.
It seems that Britney was born to enliven the lives of those around her and enjoys idyllic lazy days on a beach. Beautiful Britney Spears took the world by storm when her first single “Baby One More Time” made its debut at number 17 on the Billboard’s Hot 100 chart!
The shopoholic Britney Spears proclaims her love for romance novels, her NEED to sing and her love for travel. Despite rumors and negative feedback from critics (mainly about being a bad role model because of the skimpy clothes on stage), Britney Spear’s reputation and attitude towards life as a famous teen remains relatively untarnished and refreshing to a fault.
However, life as a pop Princess is tough, especially when the rumor mill won’t stop spinning. Her influence on the young and old is indisputable. Britney Spears raised eyebrows when she pulled attention-grabbing stunts that stunned the world - like kissing Madonna at the Video Music Awards and her short (very short 55 hours) marriage to her childhood friend, Jason Allen Alexander. But obviously, that’s not all. The name ‘Britney Spears’ have been linked to several high profile names and figures in and out of the entertainment world - like Prince William (heir to the English throne), Justin Timberlake (N’Sync) , Collin Farrell (actor) and Fred Durst (Limp Bizkit). She married Kevin Federline, a back-up dancer, in 2004. Britney proclaims that she has done everything there is to be done at her age and the only thing that she can’t wait to do now….is to have a baby!
Britney’s sister, Jamie Lynn, is following in her sister’s footsteps and set to enter the world of entertainment herself. Jamie Lynn has the full support of her sister, the pop Princess, Britney Spears and with her support, we are all pretty sure that Jamie Lynn is set to have a very successful career in showbiz.
Britney Spears won the following awards in her career (till 2004)
MTV Europe: Best Female Artist, 2004
Access Hollywood: Top Star, 2004
MTV European Music: Best Female Artist, 1999
MTV European Music: Best New Artist, 1999
MTV European Music: Best Pop Artist, 1999
MTV European Music: Best Song, Baby One More Time, 1999
Center States of U.S.A: Miss Talent, 1990
Dean Erickson. Journalist, and web site builder Dean Erickson lives in Texas. He is the owner and co-editor of all-britney-spears.info on which you will find a longer, more detailed version of this article.