C Major Scale with Harmony – technique exercises

Posted on January 17, 2026 by Anne Ku

Combinatorics was the math class that completely changed the direction of my post‑college life. Do you remember a class that did that for you? Combinatorics has everything to do with C Major Scale with Harmony – my next book in the Pick Pluck Play Series – released on Friday 23rd January 2026. It contains 24 progressive studies plus two waltzes and a bonus arrangement – Auld Lang Syne, just in time for Robert Burns Night.

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Step by Step to Chord Melody

Posted on January 15, 2026 by Anne Ku

My third ukulele book is available worldwide on Amazon. This special edition for World Ukulele Day (2-2-2026) contains 12 short pieces I wrote in the past few weeks, since we sang “Five Arpeggios” in the parody “12 Days of Christmas.” If you don’t know your skill level, get this book to find out. If it’s too easy, then wait for Book 3. If just right, get Book 2. If too hard, get Book 1. Pick Pluck Play! is my new ukulele curriculum for fingerstyle ukulele.

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Jen’s Zoom Fitness Class

Posted on January 6, 2026 by Anne Ku

Move. Smile. Feel stronger.

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Step by Step by Anne Ku

Posted on January 6, 2026 by Anne Ku

Getting started is usually the hardest part. That’s why I tell my students that showing up is half the battle. It means you’ve already taken the first step. From there, a journey can lead anywhere: down a rabbit hole, toward insight, or somewhere completely unexpected. Step by Step is a new ukulele piece I’ve written for high or low G ukulele. It’s built on a simple idea and an even simpler truth: progress begins one step at a time. It’s the first of 12 progressive pieces in my third book “Step by Step to Chord Melody” – available worldwide on Amazon.

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FAQ: how to get started on the ukulele

Posted on December 28, 2025 by Anne Ku

Different strokes for different folks. What got me started on the ukulele may not work for you. Let me share what got me started. And let’s figure out how to get you started.

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Snow White Waltz for high G ukulele

Posted on December 15, 2025 by Anne Ku

The first snowfall is always magical—just like the first day of anything new. The snow lies fresh and white, and in its stillness, I hear a waltz: the Snow White Waltz. It begins as an arpeggio, a chord melody that invites a second player to join with gentle um-pah-pah strums. The tune feels familiar, echoing something timeless, yet waiting to become its own story.

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Harp on Arpeggio

Posted on December 9, 2025 by Anne Ku

Typical of my composition frenzy, I can’t stop at one piece. The “five arpeggios” of the 12 Days of Ukulele Christmas Parody got me thinking: what’s the second arpeggio? After “Intro to Arpeggio” which comprises ascending arpeggios, why not descending ones? As arpeggio in Italian refers to the harp, why not “Harp on Arpeggio” ? I haven’t had enough of arpeggios yet. Here is a short fingerstyle piece for high G ukulele with descending melodic lines and descending arpeggios in succession.

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Intro to Arpeggio

Posted on December 9, 2025 by Anne Ku

At the 10th Annual Holiday Party of the Ukulele Union of Boston, we sang a playful parody of The Twelve Days of Christmas. Molly and Dan Watt cleverly chose the phrase “five arpeggios” for the fifth day—a perfect musical twist! Inspired by that, and still in an arpeggio mood, I couldn’t resist writing a short piece for Pick Pluck Play! But first, let’s answer the question: what exactly is an arpeggio?

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Arpeggiated chord melody arrangement

Posted on December 9, 2025 by Anne Ku

Breaking up a chord into a sequence of its individual notes—while weaving in melodic tones—is what I mean by the admittedly mouthful phrase “arpeggiated chord melody arrangement.” Since I couldn’t find this term anywhere online, I’m sharing this blog to showcase examples of my own work. I use this four-word phrase as if it already exists in the musical lexicon, even though I may be inventing it here.

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About Pick Pluck Play!

Posted on December 7, 2025 by Anne Ku

Pick Pluck Play! is a series of ukulele books composed for fingerstyle ukulele by Anne Ku, available worldwide on Amazon. Owners of Pick Pluck Play! are invited to attend, participate, or watch the livestream recordings of 3 Chord Thursday in 2026, which dives into the contents in the one-hour session in Zoom. It’s a new ukulele curriculum.

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