When Ben Ahn was 13, he decided to follow in his father’s footsteps.
“I was in intermediate school when I became interested in the ‘ukulele. My father was a musician,” the born-and-raised Kaua‘i local said.
Though he lacked a specific “ah-ha” moment calling him to the ‘uke, Ahn said he was inspired by all the well-known guitar and ‘ukulele greats —Barry Flanagan, Peter Moon and Jake Shimabukuro, to name a few.
“Musically I look up to them, of course,” Ahn said. “They’re just incredible.”
Ahn, a Chiefess Kamakahelei Middle School ‘ukulele teacher for sixth-, seventh- and eighth-graders, recently returned to Kaua’i from Japan, after having taught abroad. And he’s been making a name for himself in the local bar scene ever since.
Ahn got his performing start after moving to Oregon for school, he said. “In 1999 I was part of a little band ‘til I graduated. After Japan I moved back to Kaua‘i and got active here with music again.”
Part-jokester, part-‘ukulele performer, on stage, Ahn plucks a mean series of strings but doesn’t take himself too seriously. He actively engages the audience, whether humorously or to gauge what type of music in which they’re interested. “It’s kind of like just hanging out with songs in between the talking,” he said. “That’s the vibe of my show. It makes it fun.”
Part of the fun, too, is ribbing audience members, something he does gently and with witty quips.
“You’re from Australia and my sister, living in New York, is dating a guy from Australia,” Ahn jokes in a set. “That makes us friends.”
Ahn also can put humor into a song that wouldn’t otherwise be there, such as the dramatic theme to “Braveheart,” demonstrating not only that such music can in fact be played by an ‘ukulele but that such thematic material remains moving yet humorous when paired with an obviously faux brogue.
Establishing a humorous rapport with the audience has also let him get away with jokingly humming along requests after announcing that he doesn’t know the lyrics.
However, despite the lyrics he doesn’t know, Ahn does have a broad repertoire of songs in his cue — everything from the oft-played Jawaiian number “Drop Baby” to the Hawaiian favorite “Hene Hene Ko Aka,” and the island music standards of Bruddah Iz —even an amped-up ‘ukulele version of the one-hit rap wonder, “Jump” by Kriss Kross.
Ahn enjoys playing covers, he said, but also writes his own music on his own time.
“My creative outlet is writing,” he said.
Though he doesn’t have any formally-produced recordings, Ahn does do “home recordings for fun,” he said. But he doesn’t have any recordings for sale.
His legacy for now is the lessons he teaches his ‘ukulele students.
“What I try and teach them is that the ‘ukulele is different from other subjects,” he said.
“First, it’s conceptual — you have to understand the music. After the brain learns that element, you still need to teach your fingers, so it’s also kinesthetic.”
The point Ahn tries to drive home?
“It’s impossible for me to teach you how to play. It’s 100 percent up to you to train your fingers how to do it. It’s repetition and practice,” he said.
“No. 1, you have to expect to succeed, and No. 2, you have to be willing to work hard.
“It’s something you enjoy and have to be willing to work at and have fun doing.”
A lesson Ahn surely practices as well as teaches.
To learn more or for a booking, e-mail: benahn7@hotmail.com.
