meet my uke family

With the arrival of a new member last weekend I thought it would be a good time to introduce the family. On the left are the "Old Hawaiian Koas", a ca. 1970s Kamaka 6-string tenor (Lili'u tuning) and a 2000 Koaloha concert (re-entrant tuning), both with koa fretboards and friction tuners. One the right are the "New Hogs", a 2019 Sawchyn luthier-built concert (5ths tuning), and a ca. 2014 Gretsch tenor (linear tuning), both with rosewood fretboards and geared tuners.

I prefer the two tenors for playing out with others and performing, and the Kamaka is definitely my favourite, though the Gretsch is used often for songs that don't sound great on the 6-string. The concerts are for relaxed couch use and learning, where I don't need the punch and power of the bigger ukes. I am not familiar with 5ths tuning so definitely looking forward to getting familiar with the new baby.



and the backs:

That is a great lookin' bunch. You should be one proud papa.

Nice family. Expecting another soon?

What a beautiful family portrait and sharing about when you play them.

Very nice family.

Thanks for the eye candy!

Indeed, that looks like a great bunch. Re the new baby with fifths tuning, did it come that way or did you tune it in fifths?

The white tuners on the KoAlohas give an indication of their age.

Very nice. Which one is the crazy uncle?

John boy said:

Indeed, that looks like a great bunch. Re the new baby with fifths tuning, did it come that way or did you tune it in fifths?

Click to expand...

I just picked it up last weekend. It's a luthier build and I requested he set it up for fifths so the nut and saddle were adjusted from the outset. I think it will take me a while to figure out how to make it work as well as the others.

Right, fifths tuning took awhile for me, too. It's a very different sound and it helps in playing songs that have a wide range of notes from low to high. Is your fifths tuning CGDA, GDAE, or something else? My tenor uke is in fifths CGDA.

John boy said:

Right, fifths tuning took awhile for me, too. It's a very different sound and it helps in playing songs that have a wide range of notes from low to high. Is your fifths tuning CGDA, GDAE, or something else? My tenor uke is in fifths CGDA.

Click to expand...

It's in CGDA with the Aquila 31U set. There is not as much tension on the low strings as I am used to, so it's a good way to learn playing more accurately as it is immediately obvious when I go a bit sharp.