I thought about the act of giving while recording “From Me to You” by the Beatles. Music enthusiast Paul (HI) had given me a list of Beatles songs that included the harmonica as a precursor to his harmonica workshop for 3 Chord Thursday. All I had to do was record the ones I could sing and play on the ukulele and/or piano.
Is it a gift when you give an opportunity to perform or record or collaborate? Is it a gift if you give an opportunity to learn or get inspired? Is it a gift if you give something that’s useful though not immediately?
In Hawaii, the aloha spirit is that of giving. During my six years living on the beautiful island of Maui, I learned about the deliberate culture of leftovers. It’s not wasteful but a deliberate over production (or over-ordering) to give more than what’s needed.
In Hawaii, when you host a dinner party, you deliberately pack left overs for your guests so that they can take something away. In fact, you deliberate make more than enough food so that your guests can take away the extras and remember the event. It’s like Thanksgiving dinner every day of the year.
Such is the way with music. We record the live music that’s performed and my music classes in Zoom, as leftovers, something to take away and remember. The music doesn’t end when it stops.
The gift of music is not just that instantaneous moment when you perform or when you hear someone else perform. It’s what you can keep and share with others.
A gift can be an invitation to collaborate on a piece of music. What I learned during the pandemic is that a jam can happen asynchronously. We learned to perform single file, one after another, in the so-called “tagging” or “tag team.” But with new apps for music collaboraton, it’s possible to record multiple tracks in different locations (time zones) and at different times.
I am looking forward to creating and giving new classes on music theory of the Beatles and authentic replication of Beatles songs with the ukulele (pluck, strum, riffs) starting next week. The songs include All My Loving, Love Me Do, and From Me to You.
Listen to the addition of the harmonica in the next video.
Background
I started a ukulele club in Boston in January 2018 so that I could jam with others, the way I did in London each week. Several people had just bought their first ukuleles and only two others were seasoned players. Everyone else wanted to learn to play their instruments.
By the end of that year, I had hosted numerous weekly song sessions in-person, compiled and curated several thematic collections of ukulele song sheets, finished my master’s thesis on the ukulele, and produced several concerts in the Boston area.
Starting 2019, I began giving ukulele classes at various adult education establishments (Milton, Arlington, Cambridge) besides the Dorchester area.
In 2020, the pandemic lockdowns forced me to move online — where I’ve operated ever since. I started 3 Chord Thursday to jam with others online. We are now in our third consecutive year of weekly thematic song sessions. Give the gift of music to someone who will benefit and appreciate taking a music class with me. Register for music classes.