SUPER STRUMMERS IN TUNE By Cameron McCullough Photos Gary Sissons
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t is an instrument that conjures an image of tropical breezes and happy times. The ukulele; quirky and fun, it quickly brings a smile to the faces of those listening to its sound. But this story about ukuleles doesn’t start in a background of white beaches, and Hawaiian shirts. Instead, it starts in an apartment tower in Singapore. When Michael Bell was there visiting his son in 2011, he came across a ukulele group in the apartment tower. People would get together, play uke, and enjoy each other’s company. Inspired, Michael decided to start his own uke group. Melbourne already had a ukulele group, Melbourne Ukulele Kollective (MUK) but they were based in Brunswick, and too far for bayside or peninsula residents to travel to. Luckily for Michael, one of their members, Sue Telfer, was retiring from MUK and agreed to help establish a bayside group.
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16 | PENINSULA
December 2017
In January 2012, they had their first meeting in Aspendale. With just four members, they began getting together on Thursday nights, playing ukulele and having fun. “Initially it was just all about getting together as like-minded people and playing ukulele,” said Michael. But Michael had hit on something, and the popularity of his little uke group grew fast. “Now we have around 60 members who meet weekly”. So, what is the attraction? “Longbeach Ukes (LUKES) is about getting active. It is about getting off our backsides, and away from our televisions, and involved in something,” said Michael, who is president of the group. “We are open for all ages, and the beauty of it is that even if you can’t play a single chord on the ukulele, you can come along, join in, and learn!”.