The NW Keiki Hula and `Ukulele Festival will feature `ukulele ensembles from Seattle, Hawai`i and Canada.
Here's more information from the Hawaiian and Canadian youth performing groups.

Sr. B Langley `Ukulele Ensemble from Langley, British Columbia

In the community of Langley, British Columbia, ukulele instruction has been a popular pastime for young people for nearly 30 years. This ukulele phenomenon got its start in the Langley School District during the 1970s, when an "Honour Group" was established to help motivate the students who wanted to pursue the ukulele outside of music class. In 1980 current director, Peter Luongo joined the after-school group as an assistant director and assumed the lead role shortly thereafter. Peter, along with a group of enthusiastic parents and kids, had great ambitions for the Langley Ukulele Program. There are now six “Honour Groups” performing in Langley, with the top group, the Langley Ukulele Ensemble (Sr. A), now doing between 50 and 80 concerts a year and taking major performance tours within Canada and abroad. This particular Ensemble has developed a reputation for being a virtuosic, highly entertaining, and inspiring performing group. Their ukulele skills and choral sound have gained this Ensemble a world-class reputation.

The group that will be attending the Seattle Festival is known as the Sr. B Langley Ukulele Ensemble, and it is one of the six groups that has developed as a result of Langley’s Ukulele Program. This is the group responsible for preparing students to audition and join the top Ensemble (Sr. A) and echoes the motto of Sr. A: “Enriching Lives through Music,” striving to teach kids musical, stage, and public speaking skills. All groups aim to show young people the importance of being community-minded and responsible citizens, using the ukulele as a means of bringing students together to engage in teamwork, embrace positive friendships, and understand the commitment needed to accomplish excellence. The directors, Lisa Luongo and Joylin Northey, are both past members of the Langley Ukulele Ensemble. The Sr. B Langley Ukulele Ensemble, which consists of 27 kids (ages 11 to 16), performs within their community and the Province of BC about 25 times a year. The students rehearse once a week for two hours and spend time together outside of the classroom going on retreats, having socials, and sharing their talents among friends. One of the wonderful things about this group and Langley ’s Ukulele Program in general, is that young people learn that they can make a significant difference in this world through exercising their talents. Every time an audience stands and cheers for these kids their faces light up – they realize that musical and personal excellence can change lives.

For more information, go to www.langleyukes.com

Peter Luongo started playing the ukulele while attending the University of British Columbia . Once he became the director of the “Honour Group,” Peter made it the group’s destiny to perform in Hawaii and to have young people accomplish great things with the uke. Peter now takes his Sr. A to Hawaii every summer to perform for two weeks at the Sheraton Waikiki . The group has also played at the Ukulele Festival and the Choral Festival.

Peter’s daughter Lisa says that her father has been a great inspiration and helped her achieve many of her successes with ukulele and community development. She and Joylin Northey are in their 3 rd year at a university in B.C.

Kaiaulu-Ka Waihona o ka Na`auao from Nanakuli, `Oahu

Kaiaulu - Ka Waihona o ka Na’auao Public Charter School
Gifted and Talented Music Class Student Performance Group

The student performance group participating in the NW Keiki `Ukulele Festival is made up of eight (8) girls and one (1) boy from the gifted and talented (GT) music class. Their ages are from 9-12 years old and they represent the student body of 300+ students of Ka Waihona o ka Na’auao Public Charter School in Nanakuli on the Leeward Coast of the island of O’ahu. These students attend a class after school every Tuesday and Thursday for one hour to expand their abilities in Music. The Music Standards set forth by the Hawai’i Department of Education are used as guidelines for GT classroom instruction. The major focus is on ‘ukulele instruction, singing alone and with others, dancing ancient and modern hula, speech and drama, Hawaiian history and Hawaiian language in music.

The goal for the class is to provide an extensive experience in music performance at school and throughout the community. Standards of “na mea waiwai” (cultural excellence) such as kuleana (responsibility), malama (care for), ho’ihi (respect), and aloha (compassion) are required from each student.

The class is taught by Aunty Franny Villareal (Papa ‘Ekolu Kumu) and Kamuela Binkie (Papa ‘Elima Kumu).

The Northwest Keiki `Ukulele Ensemble

The Northwest Keiki `Ukulele Ensemble (left to right): Victoria Alquiza, Sabrina Bacungan, Tori Ann Alquiza, Kylie Bacungnan, Brita & Molly McAuliffe, Miko Habu, Mathew Ferrer, Kai Miyata with `ukulele instructor Pekelo at top left.
Missing from the photo is Rod Lopez, Sr., another `ukulele instructor.

Photo courtesy of Pomaika`i Miyata

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