The Rye Ukulele Experiment is organising its third free-entry event on July 8, a great day, full of music and fun for individuals and families, at the Cinque Ports Arms, Cinque Ports Street, only two minutes from Rye station and a few yards from the bus stops.
The festival starts at 11am and residents and visitors will be entertained with live music. There will be many bands from across the south east including the home band, the Rye Ukulele Experiment.
In the last two years the festivals were a great success and this year’s event will again have the Big Busk where everyone who brings an instrument plays and sings together. It is a marvellous uplifting sound.
Food and drink is available and fantastic prizes are possible if you buy a raffle ticket. One prize is a concert ukulele signed by the Ukulele Orchestra of Great Britain.
The Big Busk is going to feature great songs from 50 years ago, the time of The Beatles’ Sergeant Pepper album, which many will remember and may be able to join in the singing. Songs include: All You Need is Love, When I’m 64, and With a Little Help From My Friends.
Proceeds of the festival will go to The Ukulele Kids Club UK, a charity that donates ukuleles to hospitalised children. We would like to thank the sponsors who have given funds towards the festival: JC Leisure, Rastrum Ltd and Atlas Business Park.
[Charles Harkness writes: Those attending are encouraged to slip into something from the 60s, such as hippy garb, beads and floppy hats. The fancy dress shop at The Strand end of Cinque Ports Street may be of some help. However it has been said that if you remember the 60s you clearly weren’t there. As the first two of my kids say they were born in the 60s, I must have been there.]
Photos: Pamela Stroud
I am afraid we are not planning our Ukulele Festival this year. While we and many who came loved it we felt we needed a break as it is a lot of planning for the few people involved.
But who knows, maybe next year.
We are doing quite a few gigs in the next few months and need to practice for them. We also continue collecting funds for charity at those performances.
Heidi