Relative to guitars, the ukulele shares their shape and strings, but unlike the latter it emits a sweeter sound.
Invented at the end of the nineteenth century by Portuguese immigrants who moved to Hawaii as a Hawaiian adaptation of the cavaquinho instrument, the uku - this is its nickname - has survived with mixed success up to the present day.
Beloved by many music stars, today it is celebrated in national and international festivals, it is so popular in elementary and middle schools so much so that in many of these in Italy it is replacing the traditional recorder and is even the protagonist of a university-level course of studies in the conservatory of music from Alessandria.
A transversal popularity that fully reflects the instrument that was born with a spirit of accessibility to music, understood as a means of joy and sharing, capable of bridging distances and creating community.
On World Ukulele Day, February 2nd, the Monopolele team, the most important Italian festival dedicated to the ukulele, celebrates the anniversary by giving us a list of anecdotes and curiosities about music's most versatile instrument.
The festival.
Now in its third edition, Monopolele – Ukulele Mediterranean Fest, is the ukulele festival held every year in Monopoli.
Here, between May and June (from 30 May to 2 June), international artists and ukulele virtuosos, whose talent is widely recognized by the national and international music scene and coming from all over the world, perform in engaging live performances .
Three days of free concerts, jam sessions and workshops but also of street parades involving everyone, from musicians, to residents and even tourists.
Ukulele, i.e. “jumping flea”.
Although the ukulele is an instrument invented by the Portuguese, the name seems to come from the Hawaiians.
The inhabitants of Honolulu, in fact, called the four-stringed instrument that the Portuguese immigrants played "hopping flea" (in Hawaiian, ukulele), moving their fingers so quickly that they were reminiscent of jumping fleas.
However, there is also another interpretation on the origin of the name: according to the queen of Hawaii, Lili'uokalani, the word ukulele is composed of uku (gift) and lele (to arrive) and means "gift that comes from afar".
She finds the differences.
Unlike the guitar, the ukulele does not follow the order "thin string equals high note" and it is precisely from this particularity that the characteristic sound produced by the instrument arises.
Somewhere over the rainbow.
Hawaiian artist Israel Kaʻanoʻi Kamakawiwo'ole, known as IZ, released a medley of the songs Over the Rainbow and What a Wonderful World on ukulele in 1993.
A performance that gave new life to the two songs and contributed to making the ukulele known throughout the world.
Famous fans: George Harrison and more.
Many stars have fallen in love with the ukulele sooner or later.
Starting with George Harrison, the historic member of the Beatles who, in the last years of his life, played the uku more than the guitars, praising its sonic and spiritual virtues to the whole world.
Not only him, however: in Italy Rino Gaetano even took him to the most famous stage of Italian music, that of Sanremo, with the song "Gianna" and the singer of Pearl Jam, Eddie Vedder, in 2011, released the album Ukulele Songs, entirely played with this little instrument.
And then also Taylor Swift who, from time to time, offers new versions of her songs on the ukulele in her live shows and the very Italian Santi Francesi who, during a performance on playing ukulele.
Ukulele orchestras. There are entire ukulele orchestras. The most famous is called the Ukulele Orchestra of Great Britain, it has been active since 1985, and holds concerts filling halls all over the world, performing songs of pop and rock music in acoustic. Billie Eilish. The Californian artist, in collaboration with Fender, a historic American company producing musical instruments, has designed and launched a new ukulele model on the market in 2020. The choice is no coincidence: it is precisely with the ukulele In fact, Billie Eilish learned the first musical rudiments and learned to play her first song, "I Will" by the Beatles.
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