Ukulele
Since I live in Hawaii, I certainly can't leave out the ukulele in my series on musical instruments. The ukulele was developed in Hawaii in the late 1800s from guitar-like instruments brought by Portuguese immigrants.
The word "ukulele" is said to mean "jumping flea" in Hawaiian, and although everyone pronounces it YOU-kuh-LAY-lee, the Hawaiian pronunciation is actually more like OO-koo-LAY-lay.
In any case, it's like a small guitar, with four nylon strings tuned to the jingle "my dog has fleas" (G C E A). The instrument is not used in the orchestra and seldom used in bands except for Hawaiian music.
Nevertheless, it has spread far beyond Hawaii. Here's a ukulele player in Seattle's Fremont Solstice Parade.
And here's a player at England's Nozstock music festival.
And here's a naked ukulele comedy routine from Australia's Got Talent.
Tomorrow: a ukulele band that's actually talented.
4 comments:
When I read the topic "Ukulele" I had concerns you were going to force a nude of Tiny Tim upon your viewership. Whew! We dodged a bullet.
LOVE the video!
Let's not forget Tiny Tim!
Well I had totally forgotten him, and now you've gone and reminded me...
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