Hawaiian Musician Brings Unique Sound to Interlochen

July 29, 2016

When you hear the words “musical virtuoso,” the vision of a musician jamming on a ukulele probably doesn’t come to mind. But a skilled musician from Honolulu, Hawaii, is changing that perception with his unique performance and composition style on the instrument. Jake Shimabukuro’s ukulele music combines elements of jazz, folk, funk, rock, and even more contrasting elements like classical and flamenco music, and it’s this diversity that’s helped bring him fame in his home state and across the Pacific.

In 2006, the rest of the world found out why Hawaii and Japan were going crazy over Shimabukuro’s music; a YouTube video of him performing the Beatles’ “While My Guitar Gently Weeps” was posted without his knowledge, became one of YouTube’s first huge viral videos, and has notched over 14 million views to date. Since then, his career has exploded, including albums, concerts, projects with fellow musicians, and even a documentary, Jake Shimabukuro: Life on Four Strings, which aired on PBS in 2013.

From six hours away in lush, beautiful Hawaii, we spoke with Shimabukuro by phone to find out more about why he was drawn to the uke, how he manages to wrangle so many beautiful sounds out of just four strings, and what he’s working on next.

WHY THE UKULELE?

Shimabukuro grew up in the the Aloha State, where he said the ukulele is just a normal part of the culture. “We even learn to play it as early as fourth grade, kind of how other kids on the mainland start with the recorder,” he said. “It’s not uncommon at all to pick up a ukulele really early. My mother was my first teacher when I was four years old, and I remember absolutely loving playing it. As a kid, I’d have one around all the time; I’d even be sitting there playing the uke while I was watching TV.”

STRUCTURED SOUNDS

While Shimabukuro played drums in high school band and wished he had aptitude for guitar or piano, the ukulele is really where his musical skills are meant to be. “I can’t play those other instruments much at all, and I also realized I’m a horrible singer,” he laughed. “So I had to learn to combine chords and rhythms on the ukulele that would allow me to bring the main melody of each song out, because if I don’t, then people don’t recognize the song. I do listen to a lot of guitarists and pianists and vocalists, too, to pick up some of what they’re doing and apply that to the ukulele — especially singers, as I try to be as lyrical as possible in my instrumentation.”

COLLABORATION DREAMS

With 11 American albums released, plus a number of Japanese-only releases, Shimabukuro has an impressive catalog of music, made even more so by the musical work he’s done with other artists. In addition to appearing on talk shows hosted by the likes of Conan O’Brien, Jimmy Kimmel, and Garrison Keillor, he’s also performed in the studio and onstage with Bette Midler, Ziggy Marley, and the aforementioned Jack Johnson, among others. “Yo Yo Ma was one of my childhood heroes, so collaborating with him was a dream come true,” Shimabukuro said. “Working with Bela Fleck was also tremendous for me; and then performing with Cyndi Lauper was great. She’s so much fun to work with.”

STUDIO SESSIONS

A new album, Nashville Sessions, is on the way from Shimabukuro this fall, and he said it’s his “most different” album to date. “We went into the studio for six days with no prepared music at all,” he said. “We just jammed and played. So style-wise, it’s kind of all over the map, but I was really happy with the results. I had no idea we’d get a whole album out of it; I thought we might get one or two tracks.” Shimabukuro and the two Nashville session players he recorded with, Nolan Verner on bass and Evan Hutchings on drums, approached the album like a jazz record. “We tracked everything, all three of us, in a very spontaneous and inspired way, then I went back and layered more ukulele over the top,” he said. “When you listen to it, it has a very fresh sound. You can tell that we’re discovering the songs right as we’re playing them.”

UNCHARTED TERRITORY

On his current tour dates, Shimabukuro is testing the waters by playing some of the new tracks from Nashville Sessions, and said that he loves playing during the rehearsals and soundchecks just as much as the concerts themselves. “I love that I’m so very free to explore,” he said. “There’s a lot of uncharted territory with the ukulele. If you’re a guitar or piano player, it’s tough to break new ground, but the uke is relatively new to the scene. So whether there’s one person listening or a thousand, I have fun all the same. I’m just happy there are people who love the instrument and who support what I enjoy doing.”

Jake Shimabukuro will be in concert at Interlochen Center for the Arts’ Upton-Morley Pavilion on Aug. 2 at 8pm. For tickets and more information, visit tickets.interlochen. org. For more information on the artist, visit jakeshimabukuro.com.

Ukulele Power!

More Musicians Who Play

Plenty of other musicians have experimented with the mighty little instrument. Girl-power singer-songwriters like Joni Mitchell, Nellie McKay, Sara Bareilles, Colbie Caillat, Amanda Palmer, Lisa Hannigan, and even Taylor Swift and Madonna have strummed one, while in the classic rock department, the Beatles’ John Lennon and George Harrison were said to be fans of it too. Bands like Noah and the Whale, Beirut, TuneYards, The Magnetic Fields, and She and Him also can be seen working the instrument into their performances. Fellow Hawaiian folk-rocker Jack Johnson plays the ukulele too. And if you really want to go oldschool uke, be sure to check out the music of early vintage greats like Arthur Godfrey, Tiny Tim, Cliff Edwards, and Hawaii’s legendary Don Ho.