Ukulele Weekend

Ukulele playing in a rut? Time to take it up a notch!  Power up your uke and take it to the next level.  Celtic Connections own ‘Mr Ukulele’, Finlay Allison, will show you how to improve your strumming, add shuffles and licks to old favourites, improve your dynamics and generally raise your game.

Presenter of the Ukulele School at Glasgow’s Celtic Connections, Finlay returns to Cromarty in person (for the first time in 3 years) with some great great workshops for 2023!

 All of these workshops are ’stand alone’ enabling you to build a toolbox of techniques you can apply to invigorate and develop your ukulele skills. 

Download the worksheets and continue working on the material to keep you improving for months to come!

Covering songs and arrangements in the key of C, moving on to other keys. If you can play C, Am, F and G7, it’s a short step to the next stages.

We offer a great residential package for the weekend with accommodation at the historic Old Brewery. Scroll down for full details and click here for booking form. 

• Saturday 10:30 - 12:00 - Come and Try Ukulele for Absolute Beginners - Old Brewery Loft £10.00

Is there a Uke gathering dust in your house? Start your musical journey on this easy to learn instrument and join the ukulele revolution! Start your ukulele journey here. No previous experience necessary. (Ukuleles available to borrow for this workshop.)

• Saturday 10:00 - 12:00 - Ukulele Intros, Outros, Fills and Breaks - Stables £15.00

You know the chords…you know the song…now how can you make it…better? Good starts and finishes can improve any song immensely. And if you can add a flashy break or fill you’ll be making your music soar! In this fun workshop Finlay will show you how to make familiar songs sparkle with a few simple additions. Make your uke vibrate!

• Saturday 14:00 - 16:00 - Useful Shapes on the Ukulele - Stables £15.00

The chord shapes for G and Em are well-known-but have you tried playing them in different places on the fingerboard?  Suddenly you’re playing Minor 7ths and 6ths! Finlay will help you to play chords whose names are a puzzle.

• Sunday 10:00 - 12:00 - Matt McGinn’s songs for the Ukulele - Stables £15.00

Matt, Glasgow’s most well-known Scottish folk poet, wrote a reputed 1000 songs, many now standards, like ‘The Red Yo Yo’ and ‘Coorie Doon’.  But there are many more that are ideal and fun to play on the ukulele.  Finlay won’t manage the whole thousand but he’ll grab a handful of the most lively and best for you to add to your repertoire!

• Sunday 14:00 - 16:00 - Country Jazz and Blues for the Ukulele - Stables £15.00

Learn how to slide and shuffle, damp and strum, fill and riff. A selection of different styles feature in this workshop helping you understand characteristics of the genres- add simple moves to make your own song arrangements whizz.

Residential with full board and all four workshops - two night stay on Friday and Saturday £220.00

Residential with full board and all four workshops - one night stay on Saturday only £155.00

Click here for booking form.