Being a musician is not an easy life. It’s hard. You either make it or you don’t.
When I do performances in Japan, I don’t speak English, you know. I talk to the audience in Japanese. And right now, I’m known more for telling jokes than playing the ukulele. [laughs]
Contributed by: Watase Media Arts Center, Japanese American National Museum
Interviewee Bio
78-years-old, is known by ukulele fans in Japan and around the world as "Ohta-san." Ohta-san is a master ukulele player who learned to play the instrument from his mother in the pre-World War II era in Honolulu. He played a major role in popularizing the ukulele in the 1960s and 70s, expanding the repertoire of the instrument beyond Hawai`ian songs to include international pop and jazz. In his interview, Ohta-san vividly demonstrates his stylistic development by playing excerpts from songs that were significant to his career. (June 2014)