Posture and freedom of movement
- Develop an appropriate relaxed posture and hand position when sitting:
- supporting and balancing the instrument comfortably
- ensuring that both hands can move freely
Demonstrate an appropriate sitting and standing posture. With guidance, ask learners to imitate, experiment and adjust their posture.
Reinforce the importance of always taking a moment to ensure that posture is correct before starting to play, whether in the lesson or in individual practice.
Try chairs of different heights in order to find the most comfortable one. (Chairs with arms are inappropriate for ukulele playing.)
Creating effective exercises and drills to enable learners to adopt appropriate posture is invaluable in large-group and whole-class teaching. It promotes independence, giving learners the necessary skills to recreate the desired posture in their individual practice.
Encourage learners to explore holding the ukulele in different ways in an effort to find the most comfortable and practical posture. Take into account the need for the left arm and right forearm to move freely while the instrument remains secure.
Be aware of learners’ individual physical characteristics and make adaptations as appropriate. Those learners with a dominant left hand generally find it comfortable to play with the ukulele in the standard position, as the use of each hand is comparatively equal. If however a learner does need to play the other way round, the ukulele will need to be restrung.
Encourage learners to use a mirror to help evaluate their posture.
Video-recording could also be used for this purpose, but it is vital to check the policy of the school or other organisation you are working in with regards to any form of recording. Children must never be videoed without parental consent and all policies regarding use and storage of recordings must be adhered to.
Invite learners to play a few notes or a short phrase individually. Ask other learners to observe and comment on the player’s posture, suggesting how improvements can be made.
Encouraging positive observations and constructive suggestions help to build confidence.
If learners have photographic permission, encourage them to take photos of themselves and annotate them to identify elements of good posture. This can be done with a photo editing app or presentation programs such as PowerPoint or Google Slides.
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