Check out my new book on Amazon!
About
125 years ago, immigrants from Portugal sailed to Hawaii and brought with them
an 8-stringed instrument called the “machete”. Three cabinet-makers, Dias,
Nunes and Santo opened up a shop in Honolulu in 1886 that created and sold the
machete instruments. This instrument became very popular with people on the
island, and it soon was changed into the ukulele.
The
main difference between the machete and the ukulele is that the machete has 8
strings, and the ukulele only has 4. Also, the ukulele is made from koa wood,
which is a tree native to Hawaii. These changes helped Hawaii to create a
unique sounding instrument in the ukulele.
At
this time, the King of Hawaii - David Kalakaua – discovered the ukulele and began
learning how to play it. As a musician and composer, he became good at playing
the ukulele, and he loved the sound that it made. During this time, King David
helped promote it to Hawaiians.
In the
early 1900’s, mainland Americans fell in love with Hawaiian culture, including
the ukulele. At this time, many American musicians used the ukulele to create
tropical sounding music. By 1916, Hawaiian music became a national craze, and
the ukulele was incorporated into popular American culture.
Soon,
many manufacturers were making different types and sizes of ukes to appeal to
different players. Some were high quality and expensive while others had a
cheaper price tag. These cheaper ukuleles became popular in the 1920’s because they
were so affordable and portable.
Ukulele
Extra Facts
1.
You may have heard that ukulele means “jumping
flea” in Hawaiian. However, the last queen of the Kingdom of Hawaii,
Liliuokalani, translated ukelele as “gift from afar”.
2.
Similar to a classical guitar, most ukulele
strings are made of nylon.
3.
The four strings of the ukulele are G, C, E and
A (from top to bottom). A good way to remember this is “Good Chefs Eat Always,”
or “Good Children Eat Apples.”
4.
Jason Mraz’s 2008 single, “I’m Yours,” is the
best-selling ukulele song of all time.
5.
There is a Ukelele Orchestra in Great Britain
that is very popular.
6.
The
first man on the moon, Neil Armstrong, loved to play the ukulele
7.
It is estimated that over 2 million ukuleles
are sold every year.
No comments:
Post a Comment