April 2023 Community Check-In & Newsletter (Patreon)

{Patron-only post: please click through and heart this post so I know you've seen it, thank you!}

Aloha, Patrons!

Happy April, and a special welcome to new Patrons!  If you're new, please introduce yourself in the comments, and check out the special New Patrons section below.

I’m currently in Taipei, enjoying some family time, so this month’s Patron event dates will be shifted to the latter half of the month.  See the monthly schedule below, and you can always confirm on our Patron Google calendar (which by default displays California time, but you can add to your own Google calendar to display events in your own timezone). 

Community Check-In: Tokyo + Taipei squad meet & greets!

This past week I made my first ukulele appearances in Tokyo and Taipei (fun fact, I performed in Tokyo way back in 2013, but on the guitar!).  What a delight to meet Patrons and 100-Dayers in both cities!  Follow along on my ukulele travel adventures, which I’ve been posting as part of the 100 Day project on instagram or facebook.  Would you like to see more pics and videos here on Patreon as well?  If you have photos to share, feel free to post them on our Community tab.

Community Announcements

⏱ Check all Times Carefully this month! Across the world, Daylight Saving Time begins in March/April depending on your country. Hawaii does not participate in Daylight Saving Time, and we will continue to use Hawaii Time as our reference point for lessons. I encourage you to use a time zone converter to check a lesson time against your time zone on any given date.

🎶 Tour dates in Huntington Beach, Spokane and Vancouver have been announced for my band U3. You can also find info on our West Coast appearances in Seattle and  Berkeley.

💯 Save the date for 100 Days of Ukulele 2023 Mixer #3:  On March 24th, we had our second 100 Days Zoom Mixer. Join us for Mixer #3 on Friday, April 28 at 12pm Hawaii time.  Be sure to check out the 100 Days FAQ for all of your project questions.

🎥 Open Mic Video Submissions for "Hey Jude": I welcome you to submit a practice video of last month's lesson on "Hey Jude."  You can add your links in the comments of the lesson post if you'd like to share for our Open Mic. This lesson is now available to all Patrons.  I'd like to create a 100-Days Flash mob for "Hey Jude" so let's put in some practice time!

🧠 Mindful Barre Chords for this month's Beginner Jam: We are continuing with our Mindful Ukulele Practice series, and I welcome your input on specific struggles that you'd like me to mindfully cover.

🗣 Voice Workshop focus on “Hey Jude”:  After working on “Moon River” from January through March, we’ll switch gears to a different vocal style.  I’d like to do a 100 Days Flash Mob using “Hey Jude,” and I thought folks might enjoy some dedicated practice on the vocals.  I'm grateful to our dedicated Voice Workshop squad, who show up weekly for the challenge of discovering your own voice.  If you can't attend live, you can watch lesson replays and submit videos for feedback.  Join anytime, and watch archived lessons to catch up.

My 2023 Community Focus: Developing more confident and compassionate ukulele players, singers, and teachers through Mindful Practice, Open Mics, and Song-Leading Circles. See more in January's Newsletter post.

Thanks for reading, for being here, for supporting my journey and for sharing yours.

xo cynthia 🌺

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Special note for new Patrons

If you're new, I invite you to take some time to get to know the platform - there's a lot here, and it may take a while to navigate the many lessons and posts.  The community WelcomeGuide/FAQ post is a good place to start.

To find a specific song or lesson, learn to use the updated Cynthia Lin Song Index.  Thank you to the Community Managers for creating and maintaining this helpful resource.

Please introduce yourself in the comments: I'd love to hear how long you've been playing, what kind of uke you play, if you have a group to play with, what songs you've been working on, or anything else you'd like to share.

If you have questions about Patreon, I encourage you to post your questions in the comments below or to one of our Community groups. Our community has tons of friendly folks who love sharing their uke experience. Join our Patron-only Facebook group (be sure to answer BOTH membership questions) or post your question on the Community tab here on Patreon.

Seasoned Patrons, I always appreciate it when you help me answer any newbie questions in the comments of this or any post.  Thank you! Feel free to post your questions in the comments as well.

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APRIL '23 PATRON EVENTS CALENDAR

See all Patron events on our Patron Google calendar (set on Pacific Time, click the bottom right corner to add to your Google calendar). Access this calendar and get notifications for events on the Cynthia Lin Patron App, created by our Patron Community Manager, Rich!  Download: Android app | iOS app

• Special dates in April, Tues and Fri 4/18, 4/21, 4/25, 4/28 @ 10AM Hawaii Time - Weekly Voice Workshop ($30+ Patrons). Focus on “Hey Jude”
• Thurs 4/13 @ 2:30PM Hawaii Time / 5:30PM Pacific Time - Beginner Live Jam on Mindful Barre Chords ($10+ Patrons).  Pre-lesson Zoom Social at 2PM HT / 5PM PT.
• Thurs 4/20 @ 2:30PM Hawaii Time / 5:30PM Pacific Time - Patron Monthly All-Levels Live Lesson ($5+ Patrons). Pre-lesson Zoom Social at 2PM HT / 5PM PT.
• Thurs 4/27 @ 2:30PM Hawaii Time / 5:30PM Pacific Time- Intermediate Live Jam  ($20+ Patrons)
• Friday 4/28 @ 12PM Hawaii Time - 100 Days Mixer #3 on Zoom, come meet other folks from the 100 Days of Ukulele project!
• plus tune in Wednesdays 4/19 and 4/26 at 5pm Pacific Time for my weekly 5@5 LIVE show, streaming on my LIVE YouTube channel.  I often share new arrangements for upcoming lessons. 5@5 will NOT air other Wednesdays this month, due to my Tokyo and Taipei solo tour.

Details for all Patrons events will be posted separately.  To edit your pledge level, visit https://www.patreon.com/join/cynthialin and select your desired reward tier.  (Patreon will only charge you for the difference in the upgrade).

For those who are looking for more live jam or song-leading opportunities, NYC Squad leader Jenny hosts 4 monthly free play-alongs at both USA- and UK/Europe-friendly times. Patrons are welcome to try their hand at leading a song!  Support her on Patreon and find dates and more information here.

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March 2023 Recap - News, Patron Events and new Videos:

• There were 4 live voice lessons in March ($30+ Patrons). We continued working on on the song "Moon River." Voice students are encouraged to submit a video for feedback!
• 2 Song-Leading Practice Circles ($20+ Patrons) were offered on Zoom.
• In our Beginner Live Jam ($10+ Patrons), we talked about Mindful Chord Transitions, using songs from the Beginner Songbook.
• For our Live Lesson, I taught my arrangement of The Beatles' "Hey Jude." This lesson is now available to All Patrons ($1+).
• For the Intermediate Live Jam ($20+ Patrons), we prepped "Hey Jude” for performance using the metronome.
• I hosted our second 100 Days Zoom Mixer on March 24th.
• I shared information on my upcoming solo tour dates in Tokyo and Taipei.

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COMMUNITY NOTES:

1. Join our private Facebook group: In the Facebook group, Patrons can share videos, advice, support, and encouragement! Be sure to answer both membership questions so that Community Managers can verify your Patron status. If you wish to connect and are not on Facebook, you can share a post on the Community tab here on Patreon. If you have questions about Patreon or ukulele or otherwise, posting the question to our very helpful and active Community will generate the fastest answer.

2. Facebook public groups - we're using Facebook as our community gathering place because it has the best community features. Find all the CL groups using the link below, including the CL Uke Newbies group, an all-levels group, and several active regional groups (NYC / LA / the Pacific Northwest / Hawaii and more).  https://www.facebook.com/cynthialinmusic/groups

3. Learn to use the Cynthia Lin Song Index, created and maintained (and updated recently!) by the amazing CL Community Managers! The super helpful CL Song Index organizes all CL songs, Patreon posts, YouTube videos, and tutorials.

4. Download the Cynthia Lin Patron App, created by our Patron Community Manager, Rich! Android app | iOS app

5. Find all Patron events on our Patron Google Calendar

6. Find answers to many Frequently Asked Questions in our New Patron Guide/FAQ post.

7. To edit your pledge, visit https://www.patreon.com/join/cynthialin