Custom Kawika Tenor Ukulele

(Circa 2001.) Custom ukuleles by Kawika Ukuleles. Beautiful Kawika Tenor Ukulele in gently played condition. This piece is tremendously rare and with David Hurd having long retired from making custom ukuleles Kawika Ukuleles are amongst the best sounding, most desired and rare Hawaii-made player ukuleles around. Handcrafted on the ‘Big Island’ of Hawaii.

Kawika makes incredible ukes! We’ve owned a number of his pieces thus far and each one (redwood, koa, cedar, or douglas fir tops) has its own aesthetic appeal and tonal quality. But there are certainly consistent character traits in David’s building in terms of sound that really carries through on each piece. This beautiful ukulele is a truly stunning build but definitely a great playing and sounding ukulele as well. David Hurd, or ‘Kawika’ is now a retired scientist / professor that fell in love with the ukulele and specifically how to scientifically build an ukulele to sound its absolute best. He authored a book called, “Left-Brain Lutherie” and in it he describes the optimal range of tone and how he scientifically approaches the build to achieve a consistently great sounding ukulele. It’s definitely a scholarly read to ukulele lutherie but many of today’s finest ukulele luthiers have benefitted from his approach and willingness to write down his findings. In addition, there are many musicians in Hawaii and in Japan, in particular, who treasure his instruments.

This beautiful custom Kawika tenor ukulele was handcrafted of gorgeous curly Hawaiian Koa wood face, back, & sides. 20-fret ebony wood fingerboard with abalone dot inlays, ebony wood bridge, and black celluloid top binding. 14-fret jointed solid koa wood neck, graphite rod insert in neck for added stability and increased sustain, and a french polish finish that allows for maximum excitement on the soundboard. A very rich and full sounding instrument with a classic punch of an all Koa wood ukulele.  Great clarity all the way up the neck with a big and bold sound, exceptional volume, and remarkable sustain. A highly recommended musicians grade ukulele that rarely becomes available on the open market. ID#:180208

Price: SOLD