news & events
Ukulele Festival warm up at the Brewery
The first Ukulele Festival of Great Britain is coming to Cheltenham in June 2010, with performances at the Cheltenham Town Hall and other venues on the 19th-20th June. To promote the festival the Brewery is delighted to welcome four musicians to the centre on Saturday 12th June , where they will be busking and providing information about the festival from 12 until 3pm.
Celebrating the recent revival of this lovable little instrument and its amazing ability to make people happy, the festival will be a weekend of fun and frolics for all the family, and will feature top ukulele talent from Great Britain, Europe and America, quoted as being “the best uke fest lineup in Europe this year ” (Ken Middleton, Ohana Ukuleles). There will also be workshops for adults and for children, jam sessions, mass busking, a cabaret/open mic night, stalls, raffle and more.
Not many people can have failed to notice the huge rise in popularity of the humble little ukulele over the last few years, with the Ukulele Orchestra of Great Britain, uke clubs galore, YouTube artists, comedians and musicians using it in their acts, and schoolchildren learning to play ukes instead of recorders. It has a universal appeal – easy to play, portable, enchanting, affordable, and above all – fun! Three chords are enough for lots of songs – while more dedicated players can achieve a mind-bogglingly brilliant level of playing.
To know the uke is to love the uke, and we want to spread the word. The festival has already sparked a huge amount of interest, from the UK uke community and far, far beyond. The main event is in Cheltenham Town Hall on Sunday 20th June, with many more people taking part in other events and fringe activities over the weekend. The festival is supporting two charities - Sue Ryder Hospice Care and Gloucestershire SANDS - and we hope it will spread a lot of happiness, to everybody taking part and to everybody who benefits from it. It will be a weekend to remember, guaranteed!
For further information visit www.ukulelefestival.co.uk or call Tony Hodder on 01242 570330, or Email: info@ukulelefestival.co.uk .