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Steve McNie has elevated jamming to the level of art form

Ralph Shaw

UKULELE PERFORMER,

AUTHOR, TEACHER

 

→  read his take on how we roll 

Democratizing the arts, one strum at a time -
our hugely diverse network of 2,000+ people includes
some of the region's most respected musicians,
songwriters and community leaders

 

Big on style, groove, expression and arrangement and a range that spans all genres, we balance playing and singing with a little theory, and chordal awareness. The multi-faceted work we do has inspired the formation of ukulele communities in Scarborough, Orangeville, Kingston, Port Dover, Niagara On the Lake, University of Waterloo, Comox Valley and Martha's Vineyard.

 

WEEKLY EVENTS   → torontoUKES.com

Corktown Ukulele Jam *, Monday Morning Kickstart *,
Annex Ukulele Jam *, CUJam West (with Dan Misener), Toronto North Ukulele Jam (at Richmond Hill's Cosmo Music)

* current

 

SPECIAL EVENT PRESENTATION

Jake Shimabukuro (sold-out concerts at the Markham Theatre in 2013 and 2015), Ralph Shaw (x2), Manitoba Hal (x6), Jim & Liz Beloff, Lionel Hubert, Jim D'Ville, the Hawaiianaires, David Woodhead (x2), Dan McLean Jr. (x3), Small World Project, Douglas Cameron, Scott Rogers, David Newland, Jake Shimabukuro: Life on Four Strings documentary (Canadian premiere with the Reel Asian Film Festival), The Mighty Uke documentary (Toronto premiere) 

 

FESTIVALS   → canadaUKES.com

Producer: Canada Ūkes (Midland Cultural Centre, May 2015)

Featuring: Ralph Shaw, David Woodhead, Small World Project, Dan McLean Jr., Steve McNie, Douglas Cameron, the Skinnydippers

Beaches International Jazz Festival (leader, 7 seasons)

Martha's Vineyard Ukulele Festival (leader, Sept. 2015)

Summerfolk (leader, 2010)

 

PUBLIC WORKSHOPS

Our 3 hour UKE 101 workshop has introduced hundreds of new players to the ukulele

 

SCHOOLS

Havergal College (grades 6-10), Bishop Strachan (grades 10, 11), St. Clement's (grades 9-11), Mabin School (grades 4-5)

 

PRIVATE TEACHING

I have worked one-on-one in person and by Skype with a lengthy list students including Academy Award nominee, Jessica Chastain

 

METHOD

I have developed a learning series of YUGA Song Salutations, a powerful approach to develpment of playing technique at all skill levels

 

→  read about us in the media 

torontoUKES

Principal

 

2009 - PRESENT

Toronto

 

We create opportunities for people to experience the enjoyment of making music as a collective. A growing appetite for analog interaction in an increasingly digital world makes our work compelling to a large and hugely diverse community.

Our platform for engagement is music.

There is no instrument more suitable than the ukulele to put music in the hands of almost anyone. torontoUKES presents the Corktown Ukulele Jam at the epicenter of Toronto's happening ukulele scene.

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