Huge trend toward ukulele-makers (Kala, Pono, etc) and performers (Danielle Ate, J Nunez, etc) moving toward the guitar.
#trendwatching
If this is really true, it would follow the "fad like" quality that ukulele seems to have had historically with the general public. Over the years, the guitar and piano seem to have been consistent. These days, digital pianos are becoming a larger portion of the piano market, but they still function as "pianos" in general. The types of guitar (i.e. acoustic vs electric) seems to change from time to time, depending on what is popular that week or month, but both are "guitars" in general. So for both these instruments, sales seem to have always been relatively steady. With ukuleles, it seems (from what I have read here and elsewhere) there are periods in history that are marked by a strong and temporary upswing in general public interest in the ukulele. I seem to have gotten into the ukulele during the recent upswing, so I am definitely a part of that, while others in these forums have been playing the ukulele much longer and more consistently.
I have the impression that companies such as Martin and Collings follow the trends in terms of ukulele production. I owned a Collings acoustic guitar (000 12 fret) for a number of years, and did own a 1927 Martin 2-17 for a while too. I never knew either company made ukuleles, or that "vintage" Martin ukuleles were sought after, until I got into the ukulele. Outside of the ukulele crowd, the ukulele seems to have a very small footprint in terms of visibility. The advantage of this is that many people still think of "ukulele" as tourist "schtick" in Hawaii and Tiny Tim with his famous "Tiptoe Through The Tulips", so when I play a fingerstyle or chord melody piece, people tend to pay attention and are constantly surprised that this can be done on a ukulele. It has been done to death on the guitar, so nobody really cares or pays attention anymore to that. I can honestly say that I was equally surprised when I got involved with the ukulele and discovered the depth and history that the instrument has.
Since I am reading in these forums that local ukulele groups, especially among retirees, are growing, I assume that the ukulele is still going strong, rather than going away or diminishing. However, it seems to depend on whose posts I read and the demographic being discussed, as to whether the market is growing or shrinking. I have not dug up statistics to support either claim and am merely observing what I read in the forums. I can certainly ask the next time I am in a music store that sells ukuleles. Around here in the Twin Cities, Guitar Center, Groth Music, and Willie's come immediately to mind though there are probably more since we do have a lot of music stores around here. This is a very musical area with many healthy music scenes going on.
Tony
