A great time was had by all ukulele players at the South Florida Ukulele Fest on August 5 put on by Ty Olopai's Florida Ukulele Network.
The fest, located in the middle of Ft. Lauderdale, is the brain child of Ty Olipai, a local who works diligently to keep the Ukulele enthusiasts busy in this area.
The Fest was conducted between 9AM and ended approx 10PM. In between were classes, jams, and a concert.
The guests were:
Sarah Maisel and Crag Chee
Bryan Tolentino
Kalei Gamia
Jason Colannino
Ty Olopai
Classes were offered by each of the musicians, ranging from Ukulele Boot Camp to building song arrangements, as well as an entire class dedicated to learning one song. I personally took a class on using inversions all the way up the fretboard, using your ears to know what is right and wrong with how you are playing, learning Eleanor Rigby, and playing with various strum techniques.
A total of approx 10 different classes were offered. In between the first and second class times were the jams.
The concert started with Ty playing a number of Hawaiian classics. Then Bryan played, both solo and with Kalei. Up next was Jason and then Kalei. Sarah and Craig played and then they all joined up at the end for a great group play along. The concert lasted 3 hours.
Quite a day.
If you haven't been to a fest yet, many of the fests are conducted this way and it's a fun time. Get to one when you can.
