Ukulele Teachers in Boulder

All about Ukulele Lessons

Ukulele Lessons:

Ukulele is a great instrument for children to learn. It is small, relatively simple and affordable. It is the perfect size for children. With only four strings unlike a guitar which has six, ukulele lessons can begin at an earlier age. If tuned in the normal fashion, just strumming a Ukulele with all the strings open will sound nice. You can then make different chords with as few as one or two fingers. It really is the perfect instrument for a child to start on, especially if they want to pursue string instruments.

Ukulele History:

You may be thinking that the Ukulele originally came from Hawaii, that is not exactly the case. Although the ukulele has long been regarded as uniquely hawaiian, it is actually a redesign of the Portugese Machete, a small string instrument from Portugal. The only real difference between the two was the amount of strings they have.

The Ukulele was introduced to Hawaii about 125 years ago from Portugese immigrants. These immigrants were specifically from the island of Madeira. When a ship came to bring workers for the sugarcane fields, it also brought along two talented cabinet makers, Augusto Dias and Manuel Nunes.

They played a key role in popularizing the Machete, renamed Ukulele. In the hawaiin language Ukulele means jumping flea. It became very popular and became Hawaii’s national instrument. The reason for the changes to the instrument was the patronage of Hawaii’s royal family. Mostly King David Kalakaua, he was an accomplished musician and composer. Dias had a long standing relationship with the King. He would regularly perform at the palace. He even taught the king to build his own ukuleles.

Apart from the royal patronage, the redesign of the machete made it easier to play and made the instrument even more popular. On account of the use of Hawaii’s native Koa wood, which has long been associated with royalty on the island, the ukulele became the symbol of Aloha Aina (love of the land).

When did it become so popular in America? Well, the booming consumer economy of the 1950’s saw mass produced plastic goods flooding shops, among them were Ukuleles. This caused people not to take the Ukulele as seriously as an instrument in the 1960-70’s. Then Tiny Tim cemented the Ukulele as a gag instrument. Although the ukulele is still associated with traditional hawiian music and culture, the development of different types of ukulele has started the ukulele revival and their popularity world wide.

Our Favorite Ukulele Players:

Taimane Gardner: Tiny Desk Concert

Jake Shimabukuro: Bohemian Rhapsody

James Hill: Voodoo Child