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VIDEO: Retirement spells bliss for long-time 91原创 Uke Man

Peter Luongo is travelling the world teaching and performing his ukulele.
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The Luongo Ukulele Experience, which has only been performing together for less than two years now, was in action at the Reno Ukulele Festival back in May. (Kelly Anderson photo)

It鈥檚 literally a dream job for a man who spent more than 30 years teaching children in 91原创 how to play and more importantly love the ukulele.

Peter Luongo, better known by many as the Uke Man, is now a 60-year-old, retired school-teacher-turned-administrator.

During his working career, he spent much of his spare time directing the 91原创 Ukulele Ensemble (LUE) from 1980 to 2013, teaching literally hundreds of local students.

And it appears little has changed. Today, he is travelling the world with his sweetie, still making and teaching music, with 鈥 you guessed it 鈥 the ukulele.

As he tells it, the stars aligned, and about the same time he started getting a plethora of invitations to perform at dozens of ukulele festivals a year and asked to lead uke workshops around the world.

He jumped at it, and is currently traveling the globe.

鈥淚t鈥檚 an experience. I鈥檝e got the chance to do something I love, which is to teach and share music, and make and create music, and I鈥檝e got an opportunity to see another part of the world with my best friend [his wife, Sandy]. It鈥檚 cool,鈥 Luongo shared with the 91原创 Advance.

He just returned from an invitation-only tattoo [multi-disciplined entertainment event] in Nova Scotia this week, where he helped emcee part of the show each evening.

He leaves Sunday for Hawaii, where after 25 years of performing there with the LUE kids, he鈥檚 bringing his new adult students to perform in the 48th annual Hawaii International Ukulele Festival.

That will be followed by a stint in 91原创 for a week-long LUE summer camp, before jetting off east again to Ontario at the end August for a summer music festival held in conjunction with the Stratford Shakespeare Festival.

鈥淟ife is good. Actually, life is great鈥 I never would have imagined,鈥 he said. 鈥淚鈥檓 really enjoying this.鈥

In between all that, he鈥檒l be leading a few workshops closer to home, and travelling south to Nevada one weekend a month (nine months of the year) to perform or rehearse with his own 25-member adult uke band called the Luongo Ukulele Experience.

This group grew out of a festival in Reno three years ago where he was asked to teach. Today, this group 鈥 made up of people ranging in age from their 40s to 80s 鈥 performs about 20 times a year at festivals, churches, seniors facilities, and local venues in Nevada and Northern California.

So much for retirement, Luongo laughed. If his summer schedule isn鈥檛 hectic enough starting in September, he鈥檚 traveling every week for two and a half months.

But asked if he鈥檇 give it up, he offered a resounding 鈥渘o.鈥

鈥淚 spent May in England. We spent part of June in the Maritimes. I鈥檝e been invited to Italy in July, but I can鈥檛 make it because I鈥檓 in Hawaii鈥 Like I said, life is good.鈥

And it鈥檚 all, he said, attributed to music and specifically the uke 鈥 and a worldwide fad.

Many people in 91原创, who are very familiar with all that a uke can do and be, are not really aware how popular the instrument has become globally, Luongo said.

鈥淚t鈥檚 gathered a momentum that I could not have imagined, especially given that when I started teaching it, folks were pooh-poohing the instrument because of Tiny Tim and the impression it was a toy,鈥 he recounted.

鈥淣ow, you鈥檝e got adults in every country 鈥 it seems 鈥 around the world playing it,鈥 Luongo said, noting that the largest single manufacturer of ukes produced a million of the instruments last year, and still couldn鈥檛 keep up with the demand.

鈥淚t鈥檚 just absolutely bursting at the seams,鈥 he said. 鈥淪o, when you see the growth that this instrument has had, the popularity 鈥 folks who are now retired saying 鈥業 want to take up music鈥 aren鈥檛 taking up the cello or violin, they鈥檙e getting a ukulele.鈥

He said the influx of people interested in the uke is nothing short of a 91原创enon, claiming that five out of every eight commercials on TV incorporate uke music, and mainstream bands are adding it to their stage acts.

He chaulks its popularity up to the portability of the instrument, it鈥檚 simplicity and ease of learning, it鈥檚 happy sounds.

Luongo remember teaching kids who would hide their ukes away at school, and retrieve them in time to go to his rehearsals.

鈥淭hey were ashamed because they were made fun of. Can you believe that?鈥 he queried, crediting those same kids with helping transform the world鈥檚 perceptions of the instrument.

鈥淚n my short life time鈥 I鈥檝e seen the instrument go from being a toy mocked 鈥 and players who were mocked and made fun of 鈥 to now being something that is considered a worldwide 91原创enon. One of the popular fads of our day in 2018. It鈥檚 great. I love it.鈥

WATCH:

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The Luongo Ukulele Experience, which has only been performing together for less than two years now, was in action at the Reno Ukulele Festival back in May. (Kelly Anderson photo)
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They call him the Uke Man. Even in retirement, he鈥檚 living and loving life travelling the world with the ukulele grasped in one hand and his wife鈥檚 hand in the other. (Roxanne Hooper/91原创 Advance)


Roxanne Hooper

About the Author: Roxanne Hooper

I began in the news industry at age 15, but honestly, I knew I wanted to be a community journalist even before that.
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