“Great instruments just call to be played and are sources of new found inspiration. I am blessed to have such an ukulele in my possession.”

My first outing with my new KoAloha tenor ukulele was a beach wedding in Point Pleasant, NJ. Weddings hold a very special place in my heart. I feel there is no bigger honor than to have a couple invite me into their lives by including me in their wedding celebration! Congrats to the bride and groom, Amanda and Daniel! Perfect weather, great guests, and a beautiful ceremony. They transformed the New Jersey shore into Hawaii by including hula dancers at the reception. It sure is great to be getting outside now, a stark contrast from the cold of January when the ukulele arrived at my doorstep straight from Honolulu.

A big mahalo to Alan, Paul and everyone at KoAloha Ukulele for the friendship and support. KoAloha offers many body styles including soprano, concert, tenor, pineapple, sceptre (reminds me of a BC Rich Warlock), and D-VI 6 string. My tenor is clear, balanced, and sounds great plugged in. The craftsmanship is excellent. Great instruments just call to be played and are sources of new found inspiration. I am blessed to have such an ukulele in my possession.

In July 2006, I took a tour of the KoAloha factory. Check out the photos at Darin Leong’s www.hawaiiguitar.com. It was a pleasure meeting the Okami family and getting to see how they build their instruments from wood selections to bodies to necks to frets to finished instruments. I can truly say that their building process is a unique combination of aloha, feel, science and ingenuity. If you’re on Oahu, email the Okami’s to see if you can stop in for a tour. And mahalo nui to ukulele virtuoso Herb Ohta, Jr. who introduced me to and plays KoAloha. It’s shaping up to be a busy summer for my KoAloha and me. Yeah, my dog has fleas! Next stop, an upcoming New York wedding.

Looking for a New Jersey ukulele player? Andy has performed Israel “Braddah IZ” Kamawiwoʻole’s medley Somewhere Over the Rainbow/What a Wonderful World and other songs at wedding ceremonies, wedding cocktail hours and wedding receptions in New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Connecticut and California. For booking information, please email.