At the club meeting last night we had a short discussion about different ways to play the D and D7. I'll take a couple minutes to try and explain my thoughts on the choices. I'll only discuss working in the top 5 frets (but the experienced player will work the entire fretboard).
There are two common ways to play a D ( D,F#,A) -- 2220 and 2225. With 2220, the A note is doubled and with 2225, the D note is doubled. I play the 2220 with three fingers and the 2225 with a bar on the 2nd fret and the pinky on the A, 5th fret. Which to choose? I tend to minimize hand and finger motion and select the one base on the preceding chord fingering or the fingering for the subsequent chord. Or, since the only change is on the A string, if I want the highest note to be the A (2220) for a lower tone or the highest to be D (2225) for a higher tone. Personally, most of the time I make the selection based on minimum hand-finger movement in the chord sequence.
Now there are at least a half dozen ways to play a D7 chord (ACF#D) in the top 5 frets. All the books show 2223 and some show 2020, sometimes called the Hawaiian D7. 2020 does not really give a D7 chord -- there is no D note in that fingering, but the tone is similar to a normal D7 and it is accepted as a D7 in the ukulele world. In some cases it is easier to finger the 2020 in a chord sequence, other times 2223 is easier. For example, if I am playing a C chord, going to a D7, it is easy for me to keep my ring (or pinky) finger on the A string and drop the pointer finger and bar the 2nd fret to get a D7 -- this gives 2223. Sometimes it is easier to do a 2020 from other chords. Generally I try and listen to the song melody and then select the one that is best for the melody. 2020 gives a lower tone that 2223 with the C and A strings both giving lower notes than 2223 since they are open strings in that fingering. I see that most of the recommendations in the Daily Uke book for D7 is 2020, so it is very acceptable.
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