Greetings from San Francisco!

Hello all,
My name is Benjamin. Longtime musician (percussionist), picked up ukulele a few years ago and fell in love. Looking to meet other players and enthusiasts for conversation and education.

I play a non-traditional style. More rock/funk and jazz in nature, but love hearing and seeing players of all styles whether preserving tradition or pushing the envelope.

Looking forward to being an active part of the community.

Hello! I'm just across the Bay from you. Blessed to live in an area with a nice, friendly uke community. They've introduced me to lots of events all around the Bay, so many to choose from! I had a late start with the ukulele - some people have been going to these events for years.

MeetUp.com has a SF Uke Rebellion Group. Very nice peeps.
If you haven't already, check out Cynthia Lin & UkuLenny on Facebook. They do jams regularly under "SF Uke Jam." (if you're into that stuff)
This event in Hayward is also great - bring your uke!
http://www.ukulelefestivalnorcal.org
There's the Reno Ukulele Festival that's fabulous!
http://ukulele.cafe/reno2017/
Last but not least, Jake S. is playing again at Davies Symphony Hall. Wonderful acoustics!
https://sfjazz.org/events/35sfjf/0611/jake-shimabukuro

Ask around, there's always more events to attend and more friends to make.
Cheers.

Nice! Thanks for the links. And for the warm welcome.

I randomly met Cynthia and Lenny at a Zombie Prom event a few years ago. Coincidentally, the first song I learned on uke was Stand By Me, from a UkuLenny YouTube tutorial, unaware at the time he was local. Also watched a few of her videos, which is how I recognized them.

I've never really thought about doing one of the meet-ups. Maybe I should. In the back of my mind I think I'm worried I'll be shunned by traditional style players for my atypical approach to the instrument. That's probably silly, but it's in the back of my mind still.

Welcome Ben:

There's a wonderful ukulele builder named Mike DaSilva who is in Berkeley. Occasionally he holds events at his workshop. Here is the link to his website:
http://ukemaker.com/ukemaker.php

If you go to his shop, be forewarned to leave your wallet at home. Otherwise you might end up bringing home one of his gorgeous ukes. I know because it happened to me!

Benjolele said:

I've never really thought about doing one of the meet-ups. Maybe I should. In the back of my mind I think I'm worried I'll be shunned by traditional style players for my atypical approach to the instrument. That's probably silly, but it's in the back of my mind still.

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It's unlikely to happen. Ukulele players tend to be laid back and open, far more inclined to be inclusive than exclusive. It's part of the uke culture and probably a side effect of playing an instrument that the average person doesn't seem to take overly serious. A lot of liberation comes from that, which may well be the reason that many ukuleke players are cooperative rather than competitive. I think you should give it a whirl.

Welcome to the UU forum! Glad you joined our community here.

Welcome aboard.

Whilst the majority do sing & strum, there are some of us here who play tunes on ours.