UKULELE MIKE LYNCH – All things UKULELE

PLEASE NOTE:  My “UKULELE BASICS” DVD is currently  available for purchase. . . For more information email me at mike@ukulelemikelynch.com

After composing THE KEYPORT RAG several weeks ago I became inspired to explore the Ragtime genre even more and THE ROSE GARDEN SERENADE was born.  I’ve been intriqued by Ragtime music ever since I was in High School and I would play Scott Joplin rags on my piano day in and day out.  My favorites were Maple Leaf Rag, Easy Winners, The Entertainer and Sunflower Slow Drag.  Later in life I had an opportunity to visit the home of my mom down near Eugene, Oregon.  The current owners of the home invited us in to see and recall what it was like as a child growing up.  The most vivid memory I had of that house was the old upright player piano that sat in the corner of the living room. …

Here we are again.  . . . an other year of superb music making on our beloved ukuleles. .

Ever since WORLD UKULELE DAY began 5 years ago, It has blossomed into an international event in countries everywhere.  Truly, the UKULELE has the power of bringing the world together . . . . FOUR strings at a time

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Here’s how they celebrated WORLD UKULELE DAY last year in Poland . . .

 You can reach Ukulele Mike at TheUkuleleman2012@hotmail.com

THE KEYPORT RAG by Ukulele Mike Lynch

Upon a generous invitation of dear friends several years ago, my wife and I spent a relaxing week on Liberty Bay in the tiny town of Keyport, Washington. While there I was inspired to compose this lazy little ragtime tune and it became a constant soundtrack to our musings on the porch of the bay side cottage we were living in. Taking walks around the town, I had the melody of this little tune running through my head and I would frequently head back to the cottage to pick up my ukulele and try out new ideas that would pop into my brain. KEYPORT RAG is largely played in a swinging, bouncy travis picking style and below is a small example of the tablature arrangement of this song.

EXAMPLE OF KEYPORT RAG #1

Throughout the piece the thumb plays the 4th and 3rd…

When I was quite young I have distinct memories of visiting my grandma who lived in Oregon and in her home where she lived from about 1915 was this very cool player piano. I would spend hours pushing on those pedals and watching the magic of the keys going down to produce that delicious old player piano sound. Many of the rolls I enjoyed the most were performances of ragtime pieces composed by the KING of ragtime: Scott Joplin.

Later in life as a young college student I would regain my interest in Joplin and acquired his complete works. I recall my mom being in the living room sitting down crocheting and listening to me play and would as me to play another and another. I thumbed through the book and fell upon this piece called The Heliotrope Bouquet and almost as soon as I began playing it my mom…

In 1915 San Francisco was host to the Panama-Pacific International Exposition. This year was specifically chosen by the city to celebrate 2 significant events: The opening of the Panama Canal and the resurrection of the city out of the ashes of the great earthquake. San Francisco was teeming with pride and enthusiasm and wanted to share that with the entire world and specifically the Pacific Rim region.
The governing body of the Territory of Hawaii appropriated a large some of money to construct a pavilion to promote Hawaiian products and tourism. One of the most memorable attractions of the Hawaiian pavilion was a show which featured Hula dancers in grass skirts playing the ukuleles. One song that was featured at the pavilion was called “On The Beach At Waikiki” which can be heard in the movie “Cheaper By The Dozen”. Tourists could purchase these new little novel ukuleles to take…

For many many years I’ve been a great fan of the music of the French composer Erik Satie.  When I was in High School and studying classical piano my music teacher introduced me to the 3 Gymnopedies by Satie.  So beautiful and yet so incredibly simple and complex all at the same time.  It’s not so much the notes but how one phrases the notes in their slow melodic fashion that speaks from the heart.  Other pieces have spoken to me in the very same way.  I would include Traumerie and Clair de Lune in that category.  Also Sibelius’ FINLANDIA which I’ve also done a ukulele arrangement of.

About two years ago I made a visit to the beach near my home on Puget Sound.  I was struck by the balmy summer air and the beautiful sight of the Olympic Mountains in the west.  The people quietly lingering around the…