Well folks, my experience of wanting, ordering, and receiving my very first custom instrument is now complete. If you’ve been following along, I have been writing about my Boat Paddle Ukulele journey since the end of March when Jerry Hoffmann began building my custom concert sized uke. I won’t re-write that entire story as you [...]
The ukulele originated in Hawaii, so it shouldn’t be a surprise that someone who is interested in this little instrument, would want to try a uke built in its native habitat. My goal is to be able to review at least one model from each major Hawaiian luthier. My first review towards that lofty ambition [...]
A couple of months ago, I attended an all day ukulele intensive workshop that was led by Geoff Davis of the Blue Stone Folk School. During the class, a couple of students were asking for ukulele instructional book suggestions. Geoff recommended Ukulele Method Book 1 by Lil’ Rev. I’ve seen several of Lil’ Rev’s videos [...]
Title: Ukulele Journey Artist: Herb Ohta, Jr. Label: Lele Music Productions Year: 2007 Tracks: 1. Sand Castles 2. It Might Be You 3. Kaleohano 4. Together 5. Tsunami 6. Waiting in Vain 7. Hawaiian Sky 8. Holo Wa’apa 9. Thousand Springs 10. Sunny Day 11. Nada Sou Sou 12. Ka Na’i Aupuni [bonus track]
I’ve had the opportunity to play with quite a few wacky USB devices in the past few years via my other website The Gadgeteer. Everything from a USB refrigerator and a USB drum kit, to a USB letter opener. The latest interesting USB gadget to show up on my door step is the USB Hygro-Thermometer fromBrando. This flash drive [...]
Title: The Complete Ukulele Course! Taught by Ralph Shaw Label: Ralph Shaw Productions Year: 2003 Price: $29.95 Target audience: First time ukulele players Ralph (King of the Ukulele!) Shaw has two popular DVDs on the market. The newer Essential Strums for the Ukulele and his first instructional DVD that I’m reviewing here.
I used to own a metal music stand, but always found it to be more trouble than it was worth. Storing it when it wasn’t being used was a pain, and on more than one occasion, I tripped over it while it was setup. Yes, I can be a bit clumsy, but still When I [...]
KoAloha ukuleles are one of the most popular Hawaiian made instruments on the market. When I was shopping for my first uke, I kept reading good comments about them, but their looks kept me from actually purchasing one. The pictures that I saw on the web made them look a little boring as they didn’t [...]
Title: Parlour Music – Ragtime & Classical duets for uke and guitar Artist: John Kavanagh Year: 2006 Tracks: 1. Temptation Rag (4:41) 2. Sonatine in D minor (2:51) 3. Sonatine in D major (3:18) 4. The Honolulu Cakewalk (3:11) 5. Gnossienne #3 (2:52) 6. Maple Leaf Rag (3:38) 7. Sonata in D – Allegro (3:08) [...]
If you want to learn to play the ukulele, but you’re on a tight budget, which brand do you buy? While there are many inexpensive ukes on the market these days, you might spend your money on one, only to find out that it is hard to play or has issues with intonation. Today, I [...]