Plucky players plan to Uke Aberdeen City’s Music Hall

April 27th, 2011

It takes more than a little pluck to turn a bit of ukulele fun into a full-blown orchestra which can tear off the roof of an auditorium with laughs, entertainment and beautiful music.

The Ukulele Orchestra of Great Britain are set to do just that when they make their first visit to Aberdeen this weekend, to stage a show at the city’s Music Hall on Saturday night.

The range of their repertoire has already amazed audiences up and down the country – from classical to grunge and Motown – and yet it is the comedy element of their performance that shines through.

That probably springs from their roots, for the orchestra was started as a bit of fun, when one of the founding members was given a ukulele as a birthday gift while studying at Leeds University.

In the 25 years since, they have developed from a fun gigging orchestra playing in the upstairs room at a London pub, to a fun gigging orchestra playing in some of the most established venues in the UK and the world.

In celebration of one plucking thing after another, on instruments bought for loose change, they have 16-handedly turned the world on to the ukulele and its entertainment possibilities.

The Ukes appear on stage with one ukulele each, no gimmicks, no tricks, no vocal enhancers or overproduced wizardry – and yet they still manage to tear the house down.

The orchestra’s Hester Goodman admitted audiences have their favourite pieces to hear, but the players enjoyed most the latest thing they’d rehearsed.

“We update the set-list regularly to keep it fresh and challenge ourselves; we’re particularly proud that we’ve recently learned Danse Macabre – it was quite a feat to get under our belt.”

Tickets for this Saturday’s gig at the Music Hall are available online at www.boxofficeaberdeen.com, by phone at 01224 641122 and at Aberdeen Box Office at the Music Hall, His Majesty’s Theatre and The Lemon Tree.

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