Meet your ukulele
Body, soundhole & bridge
Discover how your ukulele’s hollow body, soundhole, and bridge turn string vibrations into warm acoustic sound.
How your ukulele makes sound
Welcome! You do not need a single drop of musical background to learn the ukulele. We are starting at absolute zero.
At its heart, a ukulele is a simple wooden acoustic amplifier. When you pluck a tight nylon string by itself in the air, it barely makes a whisper. But on a ukulele, the strings are tied to a wooden block called the Bridge on top of a hollow wooden box called the Body.
When a string vibrates, that vibration travels through the bridge into the hollow wooden body, bounces around inside like an echo chamber, and projects out through the round Soundhole toward your ears.
Hold it with zero tension
Cradle the ukulele lightly against your body so your fingers stay free to move.
Right forearm cradle
Hug the lower curve of the black body gently against your chest with your right forearm.
10-o’clock neck angle
Tilt the headstock slightly upward toward your left shoulder so your wrist stays relaxed.
Relaxed thumb pad
Rest your left thumb pad lightly behind the neck with a small breathing gap under your palm.
Feel the Acoustic Vibration
Try these three steps right now with your ukulele in your hands.
- 1
Pick up your ukulele (or observe the interactive diagram if practicing virtually).
- 2
Place your palm flat on the wooden back of the ukulele body.
- 3
With your other thumb, gently pluck any string once and feel the wood vibrating against your hand.