Discover joy of the ukulele

English singer-songwriter, and now ukulele aficionado, Samantha Brown will be in Busselton as part of a three-day ukulele event next week.

The Busselton Ukulele Strummaganza will be held over the long weekend and will include a number of workshops and three concerts.

Headlining the event will be Brown, who found success in the 1980s with her single Stop, as well as tours with Pink Floyd and performing for the Queen and British prime ministers.

However in 2007, after having a cyst removed from her vocal cords, Brown found herself no longer able to sing and had to find an alternative career, which she found in humble ukulele.

As a way to pay the bills, Brown taught friends to play the ukulele, and this turned into running courses and then into a full-blown club with more than 100 people.

“I have seen so many people get a great deal of joy from the ukulele,” she said.

“I will be very happy to show anyone the basics at the festival. It’s definitely a little door into a lovely world. I would recommend that everyone at least tries it.”

Busselton Ukulele Strummers Incorporated president Barbara Taylor said the Strummaganza was organised as a way to put Busselton on the map as a centre for the instrument, with 55 people from across the State already registered for the workshops.

The event will include the workshops, already booked out, as well as a number of public concerts on Friday night and Sunday morning, with the headline concert to be held on Saturday at the City of Busselton’s Undalup room, 7pm-10pm. Cost is $15 a ticket.

The Strummaganza will be from March 1 to 3.

For more information, or to purchase tickets for the main concert, contact Barbara Taylor on 0433 441 655.