How to Play Fingerpicking Patterns on Your Ukulele

For most of us, we begin playing our ukuleles by strumming them. And when we strum, we typically play all of the strings at once. When we fingerpick, we pluck strings individually. My introduction to fingerpicking came via a copy of Earl Scruggs and the 5-String Banjo. In his book, Scruggs outlines his renowned style of playing—it’s called three-finger picking because it utilizes the thumb, index, and middle fingers to play the strings. Classically trained string players are often taught the PIMA method, which adds the ring finger into the mix, but my picking feels much clumsier when I try to incorporate it. Perhaps I would feel differently if I had learned the PIMA method first, but I’ll never know. As is true for many areas of making music, there no singular way of doing things. Try these picking patterns using whatever combination of fingers feels most natural to you. So how can we fingerpick? Well, so long as you can keep a steady beat, you can play your strings however you’d like. But if you’re just starting out, it’s helpful to begin fingerpicking by playing a pattern.

Download My Free Fingerpicking Guide

How to Read Fingerpicking Pattern Diagrams

Fingerpicking patterns are frequently depicted in a standardized notation called tablature (tab or tabs for short)—basically a simplified version of sheet music. Tablature shows the sequence of notes to play. Here’s a sample pattern:

Rest your pinky on the body of your ukulele, just below the strings—doing so will help you keep your bearings as the other fingers move from string to string. Pick in a downward motion with your thumb; curve your index and middle fingers to play the strings upward.

To pick the pattern depicted above on an uke in standard (GCEA) tuning, pick the G string with your thumb; the C string with your thumb, the E string with your index finger, and the A string with your middle finger. Repeat, repeat, repeat. Try to play as evenly as possible, giving an equal amount of time to each note.

LET’S PLAY!

The easiest way to practice any new pattern is to play it on its own until you can do so comfortably for an extended period, then work your way up to playing while incorporating chord changes, and then adding singing into the mix. Do your best to pick smoothly and evenly, and consider taking my piano teacher’s advice to “play at the speed of no mistakes,” no matter how slow that is! Your ability to play at a fast tempo will come with practice.

Ready to give fingerpicking a try? These videos can help:

How to Read Tablature

Four Fingerpicking Patterns for Ukulele Beginners

Wildwood Flower, Easy Fingerpicking Play-Along for Ukulele

Looking for more? My Fingerpicking Patterns Chart has eight versatile fingerpicking patterns that work for ukes in standard and baritone tuning!

How to Strum Your Ukulele - Download My Free Guide for Brand New Players

Just getting started on the ukulele? I’ve created a free one-page PDF to help you get strumming right away!

"Take This Hammer," a Three-Chord Protest Song for the Ukulele

Take This Hammer is one of the fifteen songs featured in Americana, 15 Easy Folk Tunes for the Ukulele. In the book, I share a brief bio or background for each of the songs. Here’s what I included for Take This Hammer:

Music can provide an emotional way to connect us with our complicated American history. Work songs like Take This Hammer come to us from the Black Americans who were imprisoned and leased out as laborers after the Civil War. The lyrics envision an escape from a brutal reality, as this song was sung by men working on the railroad line under the watchful eyes of prison guards. Singing gave the men a beat that they could swing their hammers to, so even if they experienced some emotional relief in singing, it’s important to note that they were only allowed to sing rebellious songs like Take This Hammer because doing so made them more efficient workers. Take This Hammer is a brilliant protest song that conveys an intense yearning with its concise, haunting lyrics, and I hope you find it as moving as I do.

Play along with me, won’t you?

LEARN MORE ABOUT THE SONG

• Protest Song of the Week from Shadowproof

• Take This Hammer (1 of 2) from Cultural Equity

• Take This Hammer (2 of 2) from Cultural Equity

• African-American Work Songs from The History Engine

• The Music of Louisiana’s Angola State Prison from NPR

• Negro Prison Songs from the Mississippi State Penitentiary from archive.org

• Prison Worksongs from Smithsonian Folkways

Resources referenced in the video

• Get the Americana book!

• Watch all the Americana videos

• Ukulele strum patterns chart

• Ukulele chord chart

VIDEO DETAILS

Played in the Key of A using the A, D, and E7 chords using Strum Pattern #5 from my strum pattern chart