Ukulele Lessons in Louisiana

How ukulele learning works in Louisiana

Louisiana’s main school honor groups are built around band, choir, orchestra, and jazz, so ukulele does not have a direct school All-State route. The Louisiana Music Educators Association (LMEA) also runs solo and small ensemble assessments, but its instrumental categories do not include ukulele. A ukulele player can still use the Louisiana High School Rally Association (LHSRA) route after earning a Superior rating at a District Rally or an LMEA contest, while the Louisiana Bandmasters Association (LBA) serves band students rather than ukulele players. That distinction helps you choose an honor path that fits the instrument.

Auditions and events in Louisiana

How does an ukulele player reach Louisiana's top student honors?

Ukulele does not have a direct Louisiana Music Educators Association (LMEA) All-State audition route, because the high school ensembles are band, choir, orchestra, and jazz. Students who qualify for Louisiana High School Rally Association (LHSRA) State Rally music events can pursue those as a separate school honor. The Louisiana Assemblies of God Fine Arts Festival also accepts ukulele instrumental entries for students in grades 6–12. These are performance opportunities, not an All-State ukulele path, so a student should choose the event that best fits their goals.

What do auditions ask you to prepare?

Louisiana’s school solo assessment rules do not set repertoire for ukulele. At LMEA district solo and ensemble assessments, instrumentalists have up to six minutes for a selection and do not have to memorize it; eligible state solo entries use selections from the Texas PML or the LMEA middle school supplemental list, and piano accompaniment is required when the solo calls for it. Those requirements do not create a ukulele category. For a ukulele performance goal, weekly lessons over three to six months give you time to settle chord changes, rhythm, tone, and a confident beginning and ending.

Homeschool and private school students

Louisiana law protects an approved home-study student from being excluded from public school extracurricular activities solely because of home-study status, provided the student lives in the school’s attendance zone and follows the same tryout or application process. For LMEA’s 2026–27 All-State High School Orchestra, a homeschool student auditions in their home district and needs an active LMEA-member sponsor. That orchestra route is for orchestra instruments, so a ukulele player should focus on performance goals suited to ukulele.

Starting at any age

Starting a child on ukulele

Ukulele is a comfortable first instrument for many children because its small body and four strings make basic chords accessible before a student has the reach or finger strength for larger string instruments. Louisiana school music benchmarks in grades 5–8 expect students to perform patterns, read notation, compose, and join organized music activities, but ukulele is not a standard school ensemble instrument. Private lessons can build steady rhythm, chord changes, and simple reading before those school music years, then give your child individual attention alongside classes.

A teen in Louisiana

For a Louisiana teen, ukulele does not match the state’s usual All-State school ensembles, which focus on band, choir, orchestra, and jazz. Rather than planning around that route, a teen can use lessons to build a solo or group repertoire that fits their interests and school commitments. A teacher can set a manageable weekly goal, helping you or your child keep playing through busy classes and activities.

Starting or coming back as an adult

Adults in Louisiana can learn ukulele without needing a school music background, and a private lesson gives you a clear place to begin or rebuild. In Shreveport, The Strumdingers of Shreveport practices weekly and performs for assisted-living facilities, nursing homes, and community groups, giving ukulele players a way to make music with others. A teacher can meet you at your current level, whether you are learning your first chords or returning after time away, and help you build toward playing with a group.

Finding the right teacher

What should a good ukulele teacher do?

A good ukulele teacher helps you turn chords into controlled playing, with a relaxed fretting hand, even strumming, steady pulse, and clear changes between chords. Since Louisiana’s school honor routes do not directly include ukulele, the teacher should help you choose goals that fit your aim, whether that is a first song, a solo performance, or playing with others. Fit matters as much as training: a child may need short, encouraging steps, while an adult may want a practical song-based approach. Every Lesson With You teacher holds at least a bachelor’s degree in guitar, and you can choose one yourself or ask us to recommend a teacher.

How do live online ukulele lessons work?

In a live Zoom lesson, your teacher can watch both hands and hear how your ukulele’s strings ring, so you can get real-time help with chord shape, strumming, timing, and sound. Set the camera so the fretboard and your strumming hand are visible, and place the instrument where you can hear it clearly. Online lessons remove the commute and let you work with a teacher who fits rather than only someone close by. A student in New Orleans and a student in Opelousas get the same choice of teacher and the same weekly one-on-one lesson, which is easier to keep alongside school or work.

What $35 a week gets you at Lesson With You

A teacher with a degree in guitarEvery Lesson With You ukulele teacher holds at least a bachelor's degree in guitar.

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Ukulele in Louisiana

Where to hear ukulele

In New Orleans, the Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra’s 2026–27 season moves between orchestral and chamber music, with programs ranging from Rachmaninoff and Mahler to tango and folk traditions. K–12 and university students with current ID can buy one ticket at the student price set for each concert. The New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival returns each spring with blues, gospel, Cajun, zydeco, folk, and other styles, giving you or your child a broad view of Louisiana music.

Where to play with others

A ukulele player looking for a group setting can start with the Jefferson Parish Library Ukulele Club in Metairie. It welcomes tweens, teens, and adults, so a family member can join at a different age or experience level. The December 1, 2026 gathering asks participants to bring a ukulele; for ongoing performance experience, a player can build songs and steady ensemble skills through regular individual practice.

Ukulele around Louisiana, area by area

Shreveport area

Shreveport offers two free outdoor music events for families. The Levitt AMP Shreveport Music Series brings 10 family-friendly concerts to Caddo Common Park in summer and fall, while the annual Highland Jazz & Blues Festival features jazz and blues at Columbia Park. A ukulele player can listen for how rhythm supports a group, even when the program is not centered on the instrument.

Lafayette area

Lafayette’s free student recital and ensemble performances offer a close view of how players prepare and present music. For a ukulele student, hearing performers share a piece with an audience can make a future solo goal more concrete. The performances also provide a chance to listen for how melody and accompaniment work together.

Mandeville area

In Slidell, Bayou Jam offers free concerts at Heritage Park, generally in March and April and again in September and October. Covington’s Sunset at the Landing holds free concerts downtown on third Fridays from March to October. Both give families a relaxed setting to hear live music and follow a song’s pulse and form.

Houma area

In Thibodaux, Boogie on the Bayou is a free family-friendly outdoor concert downtown. It gives families around Houma and Thibodaux a chance to hear live music together in a community setting, while a ukulele student can listen for how a song’s rhythm supports a group.

Lake Charles area

Lake Charles offers free public music through Downtown at Sundown. Red, White, Blue and You is a free family event with a patriotic concert and live music on July 4, 2027. Both give families a way to hear live music together, with one event tied to a recurring concert series and the other to a holiday.

Monroe area

The Brown Bag Concert Series brings free live music to Palace Park every Wednesday in October from noon to 1 p.m. It gives families and students a short daytime performance to enjoy in a public park. The varied setting is a useful contrast to a formal concert experience.

Alexandria area

Alex River Fête offers free admission to a three-day downtown festival with live music and children’s activities. Families can also attend the free Summer Sounds by Brophy series, which typically brings concerts on Tuesday evenings in July. Together, these events give younger listeners and adults accessible ways to hear live performance.

A little ukulele history in Louisiana

Ukulele has a small but visible place in Louisiana’s current music life. South Louisiana jazz vocalist and ukulele artist Ashley Orlando has performed with the instrument at the New Orleans Jazz Museum and Baton Rouge’s Manship Theatre, showing that a ukulele can be part of local performance beyond informal song playing. In Shreveport, Ukulele Gumbo serves audiences in the Ark-La-Tex area, and its members include teachers for beginner and intermediate players. For a student, these examples show the instrument can support solo playing and group performance in Louisiana.