The Ukulele Foundation of Hawai`i

Thousands of ukulele lovers from around the world enjoyed “3rd Annual Ukulele Picnic in Hawai`i” at Kaka’ako Waterfront Park. Despite of storm and heavy rain warning all over the island, the picnic site was blessed with beautiful sky throughout the day. The organizing committee has put up a huge tent so people can escape from heavy rain, but it was only used to provide nice shaded area to avoid strong sunshine. People enjoyed endless music, ono food, Hawaiian crafts, and breathtaking 360 degree view of Hawaiian ocean, city, mountains. Keiki’s enjoyed inflatables and cardboard grass slides. Mahalo for Hawaiian Airlines and many other companies for supporting this event. People really had such a great time.  There are many YouTube uploads of the event. We link some of them below.


Sweet Hollywaiians are based in Osaka,Japan. They were originally street musicians who share a common passion of Hawaiian, Swing, Ragtime, Blues, Calypso and Italian for the 1920s~1930s string band tradition in collecting the music of long forgotten legends like Sol Hoopii, King Bennie Nawahi, Roy Smeck and Eddie Lang.

This string quartet containing a dozen of string instruments like a Hawaiian steel guitar ( a lap steel guitar), banjo, tipple, ukulele, mandolin, a bass and guitars. Most of the members are multi-instrumentalist and they change their instruments song by song.

Since they founded their band in 2002, so far they have released four Albums,”Ticklin’ The Strings”,”Hula Girl”.”‘O Surdato ‘nnammurato”,”Maile Swing”. And they have gone to many over sea live performances and earn the great reputations from the audiences in the U.S.A, Canada, France, Belgium, Netherlands and of course Japan.

Come and meet them at 2011 Ukulele Picnic in Hawaii!

Ukulele Picnic in Hawaii Committee has announced that the 3rd Annual Ukulele Picnic will be held on Sunday, February 13, 2011, at Kaka`ako Waterfront Park. Talented musicians from Hawaii and Japan will perform on the hilltop stage overlooking Diamond Head, Honolulu Harbor, the ocean and mountains. Performers from U.S. include 

Ohta-san, Uluwehi Gurerro,

Brittni Paiva,Holunape,

Kalei Gamiao, Ku`uipo Kumukahi,

Weldon Kekauoha,

Herb Ohta Jr.,Pali,

and others

Performers from Japan include

Sekiguchi Band,Iwao,

Katsu Seiji, Johnny-Ginowan

and others

Be there and you will be reminded how blessed you are to live in Hawaii.  Admission to the picnic is free. Along with the main stage non-stop entertainment, exhibitors will show ukulele related exhibits and merchandise and food vendors will be selling ono food and drink. Parking is available and shuttle service will be provided from Waikiki. There will be inflatables for the kids and all are encouraged to bring mats for lawn seating.  For the latest event information, please visit:  http://www.ukulelepicnicinhawaii.org 

Meet lovely keiki ukulele players at Mele Kalikimaka10, a charity event to be held at Yebisu Garden Place in Tokyo on December 5, 2010. This year, kids will play “Drop Baby Drop” and “Lele Happy Day”.  Do you want your kids to play with Makoto and many happy keiki’s in Japan? Apply at ukulelejane@hotmail.co.jp (Keiki Ukulele of Japan Project) before 11/25 deadline and have your kids practice these two songs. Lessons are available on YouTube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gDpa5RJIK7E.

For the ukulele fans in Japan, H.I.S. has created a complete tour package to 2011 Ukulele Picnic in Hawaii. The tour price will include round trip air fare from Japan,  4 nights accomodation in Waikiki, BBQ party with musicians,  transportation to the Ukulele Picnic, and more.   Please visit H.I.S. website for more information.

Thousands of people came to the 2nd Ukulele Picnic in Hawaii enjoyed exceptionally clear sky and beautiful music by local and international artists.  Mufi Hannemann, the Mayor, and Duke Aiona, Leutenent Governer, also enjoyed this great event.  In their speech, a surprise gift of proclamations were presented to Mr. and Mrs. Kazuyuki Sekiguchi, executive producers of the event.   The city  proclaimed 2/13/2010 as “Ukulele Picnic Day” and the state proclaimed this day as “Ukulele Day in Hawaii.” Ukulele Foundation of Hawaii congratulate all those involved in making of Ukulele Picnic in Hawaii for this achievement. 

Ukulele Picnic in Hawaii Committee has announced that 2nd Annual Ukulele Picnic will be held on Saturday 13, 2010, at Kaka`ako Waterfront Park. Ukulele virtuosos and legends from Hawaii and Japan will perform on the hilltop stage overlooking Diamond Head, Honolulu Harbor, the ocean and mountains. Performers from U.S. include Lyle Ritz, Kumu ukulele Ohta-san, Pali, Holunape, Manoa DNA, and the Roy Sakuma Ukulele School.  Performers from Japan include Iwao, Kiyoshi Kobayashi & Ukulele Orchestra of Japan, Kazuyuki Sekiguchi, and Kimiko Wakiyama. Be there and you will be reminded how blessed you are to live in Hawaii.  Admission to the picnic is free. Along with the main stage non stop entertainment, exhibitors will show ukulele related exhibits and merchandise and food vendors will be selling ono food and drink. Parking is available and shuttle service will be provided from Waikiki. There will be inflatables for the kids and all are encouraged to bring mats for lawn seating.  For the latest event information, please visit:  http://www.ukulelepicnicinhawaii.org      [Read more →]

Ukulele giant Lyle Ritz will be performing as an added “legend” this Wednesday night, February 10^th at the Ukulele Legends in Concert at the Waterfront at Aloha Tower Marketplace. Bill Tapia, who was to perform in person, will now perform via a media hook up to his home in California. The 102 year old Mr. Tapia who had fallen and broken his hip was not cleared to travel by his physician.

Mr. Tapia had fallen and fractured his hip and underwent surgery over two months ago.  He was all ready and excited to come to Hawaii to perform for everyone but was told by the physician that he is still unable to travel.  With this sad news, Lyle Ritz, a good friend of Herb Ohta and Bill Tapia has accepted to help with this event.  

“It’s unfortunate that Bill will not be able to be here in person,” said Kazu Sekiguchi the Ukulele Foundation of Hawaii’s driving force and promoter of the concert. “We were saddened when we received the news that Bill Tapia will not be able to be here in person but we’re pleased to announce that we have another legendary performer, Lyle Ritz, that will be flying in all the way from Oregon to perform for us on the 10th and the 13th.”

The Concert’s producers quickly scrambled when they received the news that Mr. Tapia would not be coming in person. Through the magic of modern technology and the kind assistance of Lori Estrada of ACN communications a video phone hook up is being put in place to have Bill able to perform at the event. ACN will provide the hardware and technology to beam a video and audio feed to a large screen at the event.  

Lyle Ritz firmly owns the right to be called an ukulele legend. He was one of the first to record and treat the ukulele as a bona fide jazz instrument. The ukulele is often considered a novelty instrument when in its usual Hawaiian surroundings, but Lyle Ritz never felt that way. Born in Cleveland, OH, Ritz studied violin and tuba as a child. While attending college in California, he found a job at the Southern California Music Company in Los Angeles. Working in the “Small Goods Department” meant he took care of harmonicas, accessories, and the instrument that was to become his love, the ukulele. It was the ’50s and he started by playing the hits of the day and some novelty numbers. Guitarist Barney Kessel was also working as an A&R man at the Verve record label at the time, and when he heard Ritz playing live he quickly signed him. Verve released Ritz’s albums How About Uke? in 1957 and 50th State Jazz in 1959. The albums did well in Hawaii but failed to get much attention on the mainland past hardcore jazz collectors. Ritz gave up playing the ukulele professionally and switched to bass.

Ritz experienced a steady stream of work during the ’60s and ’70s as a session musician in Hollywood. Herb Alpert’s “Taste of Honey,” the Righteous Brothers’ “You’ve Lost That Lovin’ Feeling,” and the Beach Boys’ “Good Vibrations” are just three of the 5,000 recordings that feature his bass playing. Ritz later found work in the world of television and film, and his bass was part of the soundtrack to The Rockford Files, Name That Tune, and Kojak, to name just a few. The only work he found with his ukulele was when he was hired to play the parts Steve Martin would pretend to play in The Jerk, but his fandom in Hawaii was slowly growing. Ukulele player and record producer Roy Sakuma hunted Ritz down in 1985 and brought him to the islands for a festival. Ritz had no idea his Verve records were the stuff of legend in Hawaii, but it did influence him to return to the festival during the next three years. In 1988 Ritz decided it was time to “retire” to the islands with his wife, but he still kept up his playing; Roy Sakuma Records released Ritz’s third album, Time, that year. In 2004, Verve reissued How About Uke? Currently living in Oregon, he continues to play his loving tenor ukulele with his unique style.