Customer Rating: 
Summary: Overall 2 stars
Comment: With all honesty I was hoping that I could trust the fellow reviewers of this product, unfortunately my opinion differed that than the majority who like it. This course was taken basically in one shot . I didn't notice any editing, basically it was a camera on a tripod, and a guy sitting on a stool with a black backdrop, and he either read from queue cards or had a poster bored that listed the topics had to go over.
I was disappointed that there was never any zooming in on the fingers or any type of editing to stretch the course out for those who don't catch on after the first try of things. Honestly it felt as if this was a rushed course that had a deadline. I was very dissatisfied by it and am in search of a better ukulele teaching book/video.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Excellent primer for beginners
Comment: This DVD is an excellent primer for beginners on strumming styles and "tricks" and techniques. The title is misleading though; really how can anything be complete in an hour?
Ralph Shaw is a great teacher, although I vacillate between finding him charming and finding him a tad "nerdy." I really didn't start playing the ukulele to learn how to play "Froggy Went A Courtin'" or "Hello My Baby," but to each his own. He explains things very clearly and then demonstrates how it actually sounds. He is a very accomplished player.
I had been playing the uke for about 2 months before getting this DVD, and it has made playing the uke about 10 times more fun. Using Shaw's techniques can turn your plunking and plinking into real, joyful sounding music.
I recommend this for anyone beginning to learn the ukulele.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Great DVD!
Comment: Ralph Shaw is so great. He goes over techniques in detail, and he's quite endearing. I've definitely improved my playing quite a bit. The reason I don't give it 5 stars is because though it's labeled the "complete" course, I wish it had some charts of commonly used chords. I'm teaching myself to play, and this is one of my best tools!
Customer Rating:
Summary: Play the uke in a morning
Comment: This video covers 6 months lessons in an hour. Although he starts with the very basics, he quickly goes into more difficult terrain and is best understood if you have already mastered the basics of chords. I really enjoyed watching it, and plan to watch it again after I have some more experience.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Good stuff to practice
Comment: When I first put in the DVD I was a little put off by the low-budget production, but the actual content is really pretty good. The very basics are VERY basic, but he moves really quick into good techniques to master. Don't get this to learn lots of songs, but to learn good habits. The rewind, pause and fast-forward are essential with this tape. Although it's only about 1 hour long, there's probably 10-20 hours of good practice work from it. Despite the black curtain background, the DVD is one of the better instructional videos I've bought.
Summary: Overall 2 stars
Comment: With all honesty I was hoping that I could trust the fellow reviewers of this product, unfortunately my opinion differed that than the majority who like it. This course was taken basically in one shot . I didn't notice any editing, basically it was a camera on a tripod, and a guy sitting on a stool with a black backdrop, and he either read from queue cards or had a poster bored that listed the topics had to go over.
I was disappointed that there was never any zooming in on the fingers or any type of editing to stretch the course out for those who don't catch on after the first try of things. Honestly it felt as if this was a rushed course that had a deadline. I was very dissatisfied by it and am in search of a better ukulele teaching book/video.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Excellent primer for beginners
Comment: This DVD is an excellent primer for beginners on strumming styles and "tricks" and techniques. The title is misleading though; really how can anything be complete in an hour?
Ralph Shaw is a great teacher, although I vacillate between finding him charming and finding him a tad "nerdy." I really didn't start playing the ukulele to learn how to play "Froggy Went A Courtin'" or "Hello My Baby," but to each his own. He explains things very clearly and then demonstrates how it actually sounds. He is a very accomplished player.
I had been playing the uke for about 2 months before getting this DVD, and it has made playing the uke about 10 times more fun. Using Shaw's techniques can turn your plunking and plinking into real, joyful sounding music.
I recommend this for anyone beginning to learn the ukulele.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Great DVD!
Comment: Ralph Shaw is so great. He goes over techniques in detail, and he's quite endearing. I've definitely improved my playing quite a bit. The reason I don't give it 5 stars is because though it's labeled the "complete" course, I wish it had some charts of commonly used chords. I'm teaching myself to play, and this is one of my best tools!
Customer Rating:
Summary: Play the uke in a morning
Comment: This video covers 6 months lessons in an hour. Although he starts with the very basics, he quickly goes into more difficult terrain and is best understood if you have already mastered the basics of chords. I really enjoyed watching it, and plan to watch it again after I have some more experience.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Good stuff to practice
Comment: When I first put in the DVD I was a little put off by the low-budget production, but the actual content is really pretty good. The very basics are VERY basic, but he moves really quick into good techniques to master. Don't get this to learn lots of songs, but to learn good habits. The rewind, pause and fast-forward are essential with this tape. Although it's only about 1 hour long, there's probably 10-20 hours of good practice work from it. Despite the black curtain background, the DVD is one of the better instructional videos I've bought.