I am extremely proud to announce that world renowned ukulele builder Pete Howlett and I have teamed up to produce a new ukulele. It is a Mahogany Tenor Ukulele that is incredibly special - a maximum of 20 of these Ukulele's will be made.
Pete is an artisan ukulele maker and is recognized as one of the best ukulele makers in the world. His clients include Andy Fairweather, The Ukulele Orchestra of Great Britain, Martin Simpson, Gareth Malone, Richard Durrant, Warren Buffet and many more.
I got to know Pete after I reviewed his amazing Revelator Ukulele and he invited me down to his studio in Snowdonia to watch him build his ukuleles. After this we got chatting and he suggested he built a ukulele especially for me - one that I would be happy to promote and play at my concerts. For me this was a true honour. I explained to Pete what I wanted from a Ukulele - for me it has to have a wide range of sounds as I play a lot of classical pieces. It was also important that it had a good volume and sustain, as I never use a pickup on my ukes - for concerts I just have a microphone placed in front of me. Armed with this information Pete designed the Student Mahogany Tenor Uke.
I received the ukulele 3 weeks ago now and it has blown me away. I knew Pete's ukuleles were good because I had played them before. I was astonished at this one though. The sustain is amazing, the tone outstanding, and the volume awesome. It has perfect intonation and is easy to play. It is a gorgeous looking instrument too, with two soundholes - not in the usual places as they sit on the top corner and side. Not having the soundhole in the middle allows the top body of the ukulele to vibrate and resonate more. The ukulele neck also meets the body at the 13
th fret not the 12th - as this allows the bridge to be placed at the widest point of the ukulele.
The ukulele is made from 500 year old non plantation mahogany. The tree was felled over 40 years ago in South America and the wood came to England 25 years ago.
I will be debuting the Pete Howlett Student Mahogany Tenor Ukulele at the Ukulele Festival of Great Britain 24th to 26th July 2024. If you would like to try it come and see me. The ukulele is available to order now - but be quick as the run of this is limited to 20 maximum - as there is only enough of the amazing Mahogany to make that many. The cost for the Ukulele is £1250 - which for an artisan ukulele, built by a world class maker, with incredibly hard to find wood, is extremely competitive.
In the video's below I play Andantino by Carulli and a Spanish Dance. Hopefully from these you will see just what this amazing ukulele can do. You can order the ukulele directly through myself at pauldcmansell@gmail.com or through Pete on his facebook page.
to it in action.
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