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Auntie Maria
Ha`aha`a
USA
1918 Posts |
 Posted - 06/18/2004 : 6:01:12 PM
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Jake's new DVD -- interviews, performances, and instruction -- is finally being released in the USA <cheer!> on Tuesday:
http://www.mele.com/v3/info/2907.htm
Love the title -- "Play Loud `Ukulele" 
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Auntie Maria
===================
My "Aloha Kaua`i" radio show streams FREE online every Thu & Fri 7-9am (HST)
www.kkcr.org - Kaua`i Community Radio
"Like" Aloha Kauai on Facebook, for playlists and news/info about island music and musicians!
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Auntie Maria
Ha`aha`a
USA
1918 Posts |
Posted - 06/25/2004 : 12:14:53 AM
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To answer the most-oft question about this DVD -- yes, Jake does indeed teach uke methods.
Killer concert footage, too! |
Auntie Maria
===================
My "Aloha Kaua`i" radio show streams FREE online every Thu & Fri 7-9am (HST)
www.kkcr.org - Kaua`i Community Radio
"Like" Aloha Kauai on Facebook, for playlists and news/info about island music and musicians!
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chunky monkey
Ha`aha`a
USA
1021 Posts |
Posted - 06/25/2004 : 2:12:12 PM
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| At the risk of offending everyone - I used to like Jake when he at least gave Hawaiian music some thought. Stevie Ray Vaughan could play a mean guitar folks, but he seldom played Hawaiian music. I was told a story about Otah-san: He told Jake "You want to make your ukulele sound like something else? Play something else. |
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Dana
Akahai
USA
61 Posts |
Posted - 07/04/2004 : 1:54:50 PM
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No offense taken....Just some thouoghts on Jake.
I think that Jake is an awesome player. Now I'm not a history expert, but I think that when Ohta San started playing, he started something big, by playing in a style that was very new for the instrument at the time,taking the ukulele to a place it it had never been before, he is/was an inspiration to a new generation (i.e. Roy Sakuma and others) that went out and taught many of the current "hot" players of today. I see Jake in much the same way..he is taking the ukulele to new place; in fact I heard him play and I seriously started playing ukulele after playing the guitar for many years. Many of my musician friends are absolutly blown away by the fact that he is playing an ukulele. I have a friend who thought it was so cool that he was playing "Spain" on the uke. This is magic of what he does in my opinion; he shows that you can play much more on the instrument than Hawaiian music. He opens up the possibilties for the ukulele, much in the same way Ohta San did in years past. And by playing perhaps Jazz and Rock, he demonstrates these possibilties. Lets face it, the majority of people on the mainland seem to think that the ukulele and tiny tim are synonomous. He shows it isn't...and in doing so, becomes an inspiration to those that after picking up the instrument, will learn its roots, learn its rich heritage and play with aloha on this "noble little instrument". This is a good thing for Hawaiian music.
Aloha no
Dana
PS I think that James hill is pretty darn good too! Would like to see something like a guitar G3 tour, only on ukulele! Jake, James and Herb Ohta Jr....hmmmmmmmm :-) |
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kihoalukid
Lokahi
USA
289 Posts |
Posted - 07/04/2004 : 3:24:47 PM
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| That does it, im puttin a whammy bar on my uke and runnin it thru a marshall stack! ;) |
Lee |
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Dana
Akahai
USA
61 Posts |
Posted - 07/04/2004 : 9:39:31 PM
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Go for it! I already got mine running through my Mesa Boogie! :-)
Dana |
Edited by - Dana on 07/04/2004 9:39:49 PM |
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hapakid
Luna Ho`omalu
USA
1533 Posts |
Posted - 07/05/2004 : 01:55:50 AM
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What a great topic! Jake S. is a wonderful player with lots of feeling in his music. The fact that he doesn't invoke Hawaiian musical idioms isn't necessarily bad, but it seems more like jazz or pop.
At George Kahumoku's concert series at the Ritz in Kapalua, uke players Peter De Aquino and Garrett Probst often play a number or two with George and the featured artist and they tend to "rock" the song rather than play it straight. They can certainly play basic Hawaiian style music, but prefer to rev it up. They'll throw in blues runs and blue note bends, which kind of detract from the feeling of a traditional Hawaiian song, which is usually in a major key.
I think it's a fact of life that each generation puts its own stamp on things. Most of the young players I met at the camp wanted to play the spanish/flamenco genre that Jake and other young ukulele artists use to show off.
I prefer nahenahe style and traditional music.
Jesse Tinsley |
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RJS
Ha`aha`a
1635 Posts |
Posted - 07/05/2004 : 1:03:05 PM
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| Hawaiian music is not unlike any other musical genre -- Throughout its history Hawaiian music has been influenced, and in turn has influenced, lots of other genres and styles. If this were not the case, we would be listening to chants, and not much else. |
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Dana
Akahai
USA
61 Posts |
Posted - 07/05/2004 : 1:45:35 PM
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No doubt...."Jawaiian" is a perfect example....
D |
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marzullo
`Olu`olu
USA
923 Posts |
Posted - 07/06/2004 : 12:29:31 PM
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This thread reminded me of the following quote. It's from Kaai's Hawaiian Methods for Ukulele and Guitar, whose first music book was published about 90 years ago. It's a nice example of how the tension between innovation and tradition has existed in Hawaiian music for some time: quote:
It has often been asked of late, "Oh dear, why don't we have more of those real old Hawaiian songs? They are so much more beautiful than the ones we are hearing today..." One can readily appreciate the reason: First, the commercial value of the older songs is very low, and, secondly, the public makes such insistent demands for variety and for novelty songs that singers and song writers are urged to write only for this popular demand.
(On the other hand, one of the most popular Hawaiian "novely songs" from that era was One, Two, Three, Four. The lyrics are so dated that I'll reproduce them here so you can appreciate Jawaiian even more:quote:
Down by the stream where I first met Rebecca, Down by the stream where the sun loves to shine, Bright hued the garlands I wove for Rebecca, Bright were her eyes as they gazed into mine. (Hui) One, two, three, four, Some times I wish there were more, Eins, zwei, drei, vier, I love the one that's near, Yet, nee, sam, see, So says the heathen Chinee, Fair girls bereft, there will get left, One, two, and three.
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Keith |
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hapakid
Luna Ho`omalu
USA
1533 Posts |
Posted - 07/06/2004 : 1:25:50 PM
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I really like how the uke and reggae work together in music by Keahiwai, Iz and Sean Na'auao. Beside slack key style fingerpicking and changalang strumming, it sounds so natural and reminiscent of the relaxing mood of the islands. More so than jazz or spanish guitar-influenced styles, which seem to be "borrowed" from the guitar repertoire.
Two cents only,
Jesse Tinsley |
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RJS
Ha`aha`a
1635 Posts |
Posted - 07/06/2004 : 3:11:56 PM
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Jesse, there a very old saying which translated into English goes something like, "No sense in arguing about taste." In other words, each person's taste deserves respect. I agree. That said, I just can't resist the following.
As to Spanish influence, doesn't slack key have something to do with Mexican cowboys playing guitars around a campfire somewhere or other...
As to jazz influences., Teresa Bright's music is still very high on my list - to me a pefect example of how a deep understanding of jazz lead to enriching traditional Hawaiian music without destroying its essential character. |
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hapakid
Luna Ho`omalu
USA
1533 Posts |
Posted - 07/06/2004 : 5:30:00 PM
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I agree with you, Raymond. As the French say, "Chacon son gout!"
I like pretty much anything played on the ukulele, including classical, marches, anything by Petty Booka or even bluegrass. That's what makes this a fun topic to debate.
I like Teresa Bright's work, too, especially her version of "Poliahu". Also the album "E Apo Mai" by Nathan Aweau, which has beautiful jazz settings behind classic songs like "Akaka Falls" and "Kaimana Hila".
Like a lot of recent uke enthusiasts, I was inspired to play (and build) ukuleles by Iz, who stripped away other instruments to showcase the simplicity of the uke and voice together.
But I love jamming any kind of music on the uke.
Jesse Tinsley |
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Dana
Akahai
USA
61 Posts |
Posted - 07/07/2004 : 11:03:44 AM
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"But I love jamming any kind of music on the uke."
Me Too!
Dana
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cpatch
Ahonui
USA
2187 Posts |
Posted - 07/07/2004 : 7:49:31 PM
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| The lesson material on this DVD seems to be an excerpt from something bigger (Jake refers to previous lessons and other songs). Does he have another teaching DVD/video available, or is he testing the waters? |
Craig
My goal is to be able to play as well as people think I can. |
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Auntie Maria
Ha`aha`a
USA
1918 Posts |
Posted - 07/08/2004 : 12:03:32 AM
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Probably...
Most (if not all) of Jake's solo releases, have come from a producer/label in Japan -- and not all of them have been released in the USA yet. You can check his site to see what else he's done:
http://www.jakeshimabukuro.net |
Auntie Maria
===================
My "Aloha Kaua`i" radio show streams FREE online every Thu & Fri 7-9am (HST)
www.kkcr.org - Kaua`i Community Radio
"Like" Aloha Kauai on Facebook, for playlists and news/info about island music and musicians!
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