Ukulele for a musical 8 year old.

As per title, the eldest is musical. He plays piano well, and is learning drums and double bass.  We’d like to get him a ukulele to muck about on but don’t really know the best place to look. I get that cheap ones may be little more than toys, but neither do we need a small batch artisan jobbie crafted from African Blackwood with 24 carat gold plated strings.  Just something that he can get into and enjoy.

Any advice, info and experiences all gratefully received ?

Non idea, my dad plays a bamboo one that wasn’t expensive but definitely isn’t a toy. I decided my nephews were getting cigar box guitars because kids playing musical instruments is ace good job.

My mum plays in a U3A ukulele group and they recommend the £30-40 Mahalo, Stagg, Tanglewood or Redwood ones for beginners to get started. There’s plenty of other brands but that sort of cost a proper music shop will get something decent. Get a tuner too, electronic ones are cheap now.

Will be absolutely fine until they’re playing a decent level and by then they’ll know what they want from a posher one.

I had a Mahalo when I started to learn about a decade ago – get one of those cheap electric tuners would be my first advice as they go out of tune extremely quickly.

Definitely avoid the cheap ones. We were given one for my son and it went out of tune while playing one song. Frets were all wrong as well, on one string the tuning was a whole fret out.

Worth going to a music shop and trying a few. I know he’s only 8 but if he plays DB, a soprano will feel tiny. I play bass guitar and went for a tenor size uke as I was too clumsy for a soprano or concert.

We got a couple of Mahalo ones. They’re ideal. Need a regular tune. Bought my wife a larger one for more money but I still prefer the Mahalo.

* I am not a musical person but like to tinker.

Kala seem to be the ubiquitous, reliably good ones. I picked up a kanilea islander tenor from ebay recently which is lovely, but doesn’t feel immensely better than the £25 second hand Chard tenor I keep in the car.

This guy is good for reviews: https://www.gotaukulele.com/p/ukulele-reviews.html?m=1

And the Enya composite ukes that cab be had for around fifty quid look like a good robust option

https://www.gotaukulele.com/2020/11/enya-nova-u-mini-soprano-ukulele-review.html?m=1

My mum plays in a U3A ukulele group and they recommend the £30-40 Mahalo, Stagg, Tanglewood or Redwood ones for beginners to get started

Are they trying to put people off from joining them? Stagg ukes are horrible – cheap sound, awkward to play, don’t hold tuning for the length of a tune. Absolutely avoid.

Has he picked up a commission from a bank to soundtrack their latest twee advert? If not, try and get him a proper guitar instead.

😉

Has he picked up a commission from a bank to soundtrack their latest twee advert? If not, try and get him a proper guitar instead.

Yes, and that! 😀

I got tempted into buying a guitarlele ( https://uk.yamaha.com/en/products/musical_instruments/guitars_basses/cl_guitars/gl/index.html ) last year – 6 strings, just a bit bigger than a uke. It was £20 from Marketplace, not including a daytrip to Someset, lunch, coffee and cake and a replacement tyre and wheel-straighten after hitting a pothole. My daughter occasionally plays it but it generally sits on top of the wardrobe in its case, because I have guitars to play.

My youngest has a Mahalo, she seems happy enough, a retune isn’t too hard with a cheapy digital tuner or even using a phone app [hides]…

Yup, got a cracking little app that tunes the Uke and Bass and all sorts. Plenty good enough for my ears and the kids for messing about.

My boy started mucking around with a cheap Octopus uke when he was about that age. Seemed to suit him well. It stayed in tune ok and doesn’t sound awful. He asked for a guitar about a year ago and the uke seems to have set him up for that really well.

Has he picked up a commission from a bank to soundtrack their latest twee advert? If not, try and get him a proper guitar instead.

?

Thats where cigar box guitars come in. Powerchord machine.

Thanks for the replies all. Some names to look into, and I’ll check out cigar box guitars as well.

@BlackFlag, think of it as a gateway drug.  Something to get him started.  He’s a gentle soul, he likes a bit of twee. So do I, just as much as I like a bit of Dragged Into Sunlight. Who knows, start him off on a Uke and in 20 years time it’s “Hello Donington!”

Who knows, start him off on a Uke and in 20 years time it’s “Hello Donington!”

‘Hello Donington, we’re Deep P-Ukeple and this is Smuke on the Water’, plink plink plink,,,

http://www.southernukulelestore.co.uk is a good place to start looking.

I`d suggest concert size for an 8 yr old – small enough for the hands with little compromise on sound. Sopranos sound different levels of bad IMO.

Depending on budget. Something laminate for under £100, or something composite for over £100 .. it sounds like your child is quite talented and the instrument isnt likely to go to waste; so I`d go quality composite mindful of the knocks etc an 8 yr old will give it.

My eldest has a Magic Fluke which despite being bashed about a fair bit is still lovely sounding.