Only One Ukulele?

dgame

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I had a Rouge Baritone, BugsGear Concert, and an Outdoor Tenor. Gifted those away. The Outdoor Ukulele Carbon Soprano is now my only ukulele.

How many here have only one ukulele? If so, what ukulele is it?
 
I have too many, and would likely trade them all in for a custom aNueNue Moon Bird Tenor if I could...
 
I couldn't limit myself to one. I'd have to insist that I have one wood instrument and then one travel/durable ukulele.

And then you would have to make some magical things happen for me.

I think I would want a KoAloha Sapele Opio Concert (I own the tenor version) as my wood instrument (but they don't make this any more), and then a concert sized Outdoor Ukulele (which they don't make).

But the good news is that I don't have to make that decision!
 
Hmm, even though I don't play much just now, I would never get rid of my other ukes, though I mainly play just my long neck concerts, & on occasion, my giraffe neck soprano, & my long neck soprano........ :D:music:
 
I strive to be a one uke guy. Then I get another and another. Then I feel guilty and start getting rid of some until at some point I no longer feels guilty. Then I start looking for something new to own again. I realised I will never be a one uke guy. Now I strive to be a 3 ukes guy. I think I should be able to make it this time.
 
"One is the loneliest number that you'll ever do..." Three Dog Night.


This is Michael Kohan in Los Angeles, Beverly West near the Beverly Center
9 tenor cutaway ukes, 5 acoustic bass ukes, 11 solid body bass ukes, 9 mini electric bass guitars (Total: 34)

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I have too many, and would likely trade them all in for a custom aNueNue Moon Bird Tenor if I could...

If I was forced to live with only one ukulele, it would be my Moon Bird Tenor. Fortunately, no one has ever held a gun to my head and told me to get rid of all the rest!
 
I play both linear and reentrant daily, so I would need at least 2 ukuleles.
I have more than that, though, but I play them all regularly. I rarely just play one or two per day.
 
For 10 years I had one uke. A no-name bought from an antique store in the 1980s. I only played it occasionally; mountain dulcimer was my main axe... and that's stretching the truth because really I wasn't much of a musician at all. Months would pass when I never touched an instrument.

In the 90s the bridge popped off. I went to the guitar store and bought the only uke they had -- cheap garbage. I might as well have wrapped a shoebox with rubber bands. It was that or travel to the one store in town that stocked Kamakas and pay a fortune. At that time I was only playing uke to amuse my toddler (whose rough handling of the old uke is implicated in the loss of the bridge) so investing in a quality instrument would have been absurd.

Life happens, and around 1999 I decided I did indeed want to learn to play music at a measurable level of competence. And I wanted a new dulcimer. Searching for dulcimers online, I saw a report from NAMM about the Magic Fluke company and ukes that cost a manageable price and (reportedly) did not sound like wet cardboard. I ordered one (it is still my main player) and discovered, as only a clueless indifferent musician can discover, that a good-quality instrument makes a heck of a difference.

Fluke became my one uke (the garbage laminate went to my son but he doesn't play it now, either). Then in 2007 there was an ad in the paper about a uke club, and I attended the first meeting, and suddenly I was playing and gigging weekly. And we were all playing each others' ukes. By this time the ukulele market had grown far beyond K-brand, garbage, Flukes or nothing. Banjo ukes are nifty. Resonators too. Warm-toned tenors, punchy sopranos, ringing cedar-topped concerts. I was discovering a whole new world of tone color -- after literally decades of not paying attention and not being a good-enough player to notice.

So now, yes, I own several ukuleles. 8, maybe 10. Offhand I lose count and I'm not sure whether to count the garbage laminate or my first uke (which I believe could be fixed by anyone with the right adhesive and clamps, which is not me). Some ukes it is not clear whether they belong to me or my son (he claims the Werco banjolele and might be the true owner of the baritone but don't tell him I said that).

Could I still get by with only my trusty Fluke? Sure. I can eat rice & beans all week. In fact, I love rice & beans (red beans with andouille, moros y cristianos, frijoles charros...) but I love other foods, too.

Sorry to ramble on like this. You asked! I think any discussion about this needs to be understood in the context of each player's own personal journey and where they happen to be at this moment along the path. Someday I might become such a serious musician, with such a strong personal style and focus on one type of music, that I pick one perfect uke and that's the only one I'll want to play. Hasn't happened yet, might never happen, but the future is bright and unpredictable. Wherever you're at, more power to you.
 
I tried. I went a whole year with only one. But for the long run it didn't work out.
 
I lasted about 3 months with only one ukulele. The laminate Fender Nohea tenor that was my first. First ukulele, & first instrument I seriously & tried to learn how to play.

Then I found out about setup & action. And strings. And solid vs. laminate.

I bought a solid rosewood/cedar Ohana TK50G at a local music store. Had it setup. World of difference. And the start of a very slippery slope of UAS.

If I had to limit myself to only one, I would probably go with my Mike Pereira mahogany/spruce tenor. With Living Waters Low-G strings. It has a very sweet sound. And just feels right in my hands.

Thankfully, I do not have to abide by that limitation.
 
I told myself that I would play my one ukulele for a year. If after a year I was still playing it regularly I would upgrade. I did that. Then I upgraded several times.
 
I've done the mega collection of ukes thing and am now almost down to just one as I sell them off! Every one out the door makes me feel a little lighter, a little less cluttered. I like knowing my instrument, not having any guilt about nice ukes gathering dust. I like focusing on improving my playing rather than shopping for more stuff I don't need.

Maybe in a year I'll be drowning in ukes again but I doubt it.
 
Great discussion everyone. I figured there would not be a lot of only one ukulele owners here in the Land of UAS. :cool:

So is there ONE ukulele (like YogiTom’s custom aNueNue Moon Bird Tenor) that you would give them all up for?
 
Since everyone is different, for those who are one ukulele folks - best wishes and more power to you. However for me it's a definite nah. Although I don't at present own 25, I'm thinking that will be my magic number. For me one uke is sort of like a life without flavors, colors, sights, sounds, etc. Hum I don't even want to go there. But best wishes to you one uke folks. :)
 
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I told myself that I would play my one ukulele for a year. If after a year I was still playing it regularly I would upgrade. I did that. Then I upgraded several times.

:agree:

Up to the point of being owner of a handful of custom ukes, some vintage ones, sopranos, concerts, tenors, not to forget the in-between models, longnecks etc., and still a few more.
I couldn‘t restrict myself to only one. I love to have the choice between high and low g stringed ukes, longneck sopranos vs concerts and tenors with steel strings, not to forget 4stringed ukes vs a taropatch... the whole world of sonic options to choose from. I somehow admire the minimalists who can truly claim that just one uke is enough. But then again... why should I? I don‘t own so many (yet) that I would have to rent some extra storage to have space for them. I mean, we are talking about ukuleles, not grand pianos, after all.

Stlll, I don‘t consider myself a serious collector, rather a would-be musician looking for different sound options for different kinds of music. And I play them, well, at least most of them, regularly. And for those I don‘t play for some time, well, I don‘t have any problem with letting them go. I must of owned a few dozens in the course of the last eight years, since I discovered the uke for me. Most of them I didn‘t keep, and a few I did. I‘m somewhere between fifiteen to twenty right now, which I consider to be slightly too much. So a few will have to go. I‘ve yet to decide which ones will have to bear that fate...
 
So is there ONE ukulele (like YogiTom’s custom aNueNue Moon Bird Tenor) that you would give them all up for?

I own four but am considering reducing that number to two. The jury is still out.

I would give up all other 'ukulele for one that's loud and clear but also highly resonant and with gobs of sustain, dark and complex in the lower register while also brilliant in the upper register, free of wolf tones, balanced across all strings, and responsive with JUST enough resistance to mostly hide my warming up period. Oh, and it need to be durable. Is that asking too much?
 
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One ukulele, I'm saying for most that is a temporary condition. Just saying.
 
Great discussion everyone. I figured there would not be a lot of only one ukulele owners here in the Land of UAS. :cool:

So is there ONE ukulele (like YogiTom’s custom aNueNue Moon Bird Tenor) that you would give them all up for?
Here’s the problem. I can’t decide which one is “The One.” So I keep searching, which leads to more buying. 5-6 was the most I’ve had at one time. I’ve been happy with 4 for about 6 months now. There are too many really new, really old, really innovative, and down right beautiful ukes to land on just one.
 
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