January 8, 2010
Leilehua High School Workshop - Oahu, HI
Jake was asked to lead an ukulele workshop at Leilehua High School for the ukulele class. There were about 30 students present for the workshop and they were ready to pick up on some of Jake's instrumental techniques and advice. The workshop opened with a short explanation on how Jake uses his ukulele to play various styles of music from all sorts of genres. He opened up with the emotional tune, Piano Forte, which was fashioned like a song that would be played on the piano. This was a very interesting and expressive piece to play since the song itself correlates with Jake's message of playing various styles.
Followed by Piano Forte, Jake began to demonstrate different techniques on how you would manipulate the tone of the ukulele to achieve different sounds. One technique Jake showed the students was alternative picking styles that do not make use of a pic. Instead, Jake uses different parts of his finger in combination to get the sounds he wants. Like using the fleshy parts of his fingers to achieve a softer, more gentle sound. Or alternatively if he uses all the fleshy parts of his fingers he can achieve a string sound that is very subtle.
A more aggressive finger technique was demonstrated by playing the tune "Let's Dance". Jake makes use of his fingernails to create a drumming sound during the tune. The ooh's and aah's really came pouring out during the opening of Let's Dance. You could really tell the students were making the connection with what Jake was explaining.
To explain a more mental side to playing, Jake explained to the students his whole philosophy on music. When Jake plays, he can put his entire self into playing because that is where his passion is. That is what music is all about, it's basically a reflection of who you are inside. Like many other art forms, the true art comes from inside. The tool, or in Jake's case the ukulele, is just the vessel which your message and expressions are delivered. Playing music and expressing yourself revolves around the choices you make, and the things that you feel.
It's very interesting how Jake can bring both ukulele techniques and mental connection to a workshop. We are reminded that music is not just about how it sounds, but the message that comes from within.
Mahalo to Keith Fukumoto from Leilehua High School for helping to bring this workshop to the school. We hope the students walked away with a better understanding of how to express themselves through music and a few playing techniques as well.
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