Ukulele Hooley Festival attracts players from all over the world

A LOCAL ukulele group will give an upbeat performance in the People’s Park in Dun Laoghaire this weekend as part of a ukulele festival in the town.

Members of the Rathfarnham Ukulele Group (RUGs) will be taking to the stage as part of Ukulele Hooley Festival this Sunday, August 27, at 5pm.

The group has 100 members, 35 of whom perform live at events as RUGs, who have a varied repertoire including crowd-pleaser ‘Ring of Fire’ by Johnny Cash and George Ezra’s ‘Budapest’.

Audrey Caulfied from RUGs, who is originally from Aylesbury in Tallaght and now lives in Knocklyon, said she decided to join the group after spotting their performance at the Hooley several years ago.

“I was looking for something to do,” she told The Echo. “The kids were grown up and they were doing their own thing.

“I was looking at choirs and things like that. Then I was out in Dun Laoghaire and the Hooley was on and I saw all the RUGs.

“They were outdoors, and all dressed in brightly coloured clothes and playing what looked like, to me, little guitars.

“They all looked so happy, and then I thought, ‘That’s what I want to do’.”

That was six years ago, and Audrey has gone on to be a dedicated member of RUGs ever since.

She is delighted to be a part of the group once again bringing their feel-good factor to the Hooley where she first encountered them.

“The Ukulele Hooley is the top festival where all ukulele players aim to go, they come from all over the country and places like the UK, Canada and the Netherlands,” explained Audrey.

Preparations are in full swing for the performance this weekend, with RUGs members eagerly rehearsing in advance of the gig.

As for her enduring enjoyment of playing the ukulele, Audrey said the upbeat nature of the instrument keeps her coming back, along with the welcoming environment that RUGs fosters.

“It’s just a happy instrument with a happy soul,” she said. “There are only four strings, so it’s easier to play than a

guitar, and it’s portable because it’s so small.”