Becoming a ukulele teacher...by accident

Having always sung, played guitar since I received one for my ninth birthday, and bass for more than a decade, in 2008 I had plans to take up ukulele and bought one online but it turned out to be disappointingly crummy and no fun to play!

In 2010 I moved to Newcastle and soon after had a serious bicycle crash resulting in a nasty bump to the head. However, excellent medical attention, the luck of the draw and the discovery of a local ukestra (ukulele orchestra) and its founders Mark Jackson and Jane Jelbart, set me on another path applying my skills and knowledge to this new instrument and sharing them as a ukestra leader, uke and U-bass teacher and music therapy facilitator.

It’s tempting to say (and some ungenerous souls might think it inevitable!) that a brain injury was a clear pathway to ukulele, but I have no doubt that playing music and the support of a musical community was the key to my successful recovery.

Part of that journey was switching from bass guitar to U-bass - it's so much smaller and lighter and the sound is incredible!! I even sold my standard sized Maton acoustic guitar and bought a Mini Maton because once you've experienced the spatial freedom of a ukulele, there is no going back!

I built Ukulele Central because I'm really interested in people, what they’re aiming for in music playing and how they learn. With that in mind, I listen to what they have to say, research and implement methods and develop products which achieve results for ukulele and U-bass players. 

I've also gained a micro-masters in Instructional Design & Technology to inform the design & delivery of Ukulele Central's instructional products.

Danielle Scott