I’m delighted to be dealing directly with Maestro in Singapore, to bring a range of their ukuleles into the UK. Maestro Guitars are a prime example of how companies in the Far East are pushing to ever greater quality standards and innovation to produce some of the finest ukuleles - and often at a price point that compares very favourably with those made in the West.
A fairly young company, the vision for their instruments comes from their Master luthier, Hozen, who has continually innovated and upgraded his facility in Singapore to keep their ukes at the forefront of modern design. He has studied under renowned makers to get the best basis to make wonderful ukes. And they really are fantastic!
My initial selection of Maestro Ukuleles comes from their Island Series, all solid wood instruments with side soundports and a variety of wood combinations and exciting decorative touches. A couple of these are previous favourites, which I’ve had in before, but now I’m dealing directly with the company I can bring these in more rapidly, and keep the price competitive (and when I say competitive, they’re not cheap, but still represent great value and another great option at the high end of the ukulele spectrum).
The ukuleles I got in in the first batch, include five tenor ukuleles with a wider, 37mm nut, and a concert. They are as follows:
A uke I’ve had before is the UT-CO solid cedar and cocobolo tenor, which was the first one that switched me to to how impressive these instruments from Maestro could be. I’ve always been a fan of cedar for its even balance - but with Maestro’s five strut fan bracing, and that broad upper bout, it seems to have more bite than an average cedar uke, with a greater punch at the treble end and more of a bass response.
Another instrument to make a welcome return is the stunning Maestro UT-PA all solid padauk tenor ukulele - which looks utterly striking, but also possesses a fine tone, with a gorgeous chime and complex harmonics. I’ve not seen this wood used a great deal, outside of decorative touches, but it’s certainly loud and sweet, with a lovely long sustain.
High grade acacia can be absolutely stunning to look at, and that’s certainly the case with the Maestro UT-KO tenor ukulele. However, acacia can also sometimes be a little subdued for certain styles of play, almost a bit of a introvert tonewood. This uke though seems to get the best of both worlds, with strong trebles that punch through in the mix, while keeping that subtle trace of warmth you’ll hear with other all solid acacia models.
This solid spruce and Madagascan rosewood instrument is the Maestro UT-MR tenor ukulele. This is a very common pairing in the guitar world, and it works so well - with brightness from the German spruce top, backed up with a strong bass response from the solid rosewood. The result is a great balance made up of these two extremes - that lends itself to strong melodies and chiming chords in equal measure.
I’m sure to expand my range of Maestro ukuleles in the future, but from my initial batch, the final tenor is the UT-SR ukulele with cutaway. This contrasts from the UT-CO in having a slightly more gentle tone, balanced across the sound range, without any one aspect coming to the fore. This almost sounds like a negative, but that’s not the case - it is smooth and rich and really impressive.
My initial order did include a concert, the Maestro UC-MR ukulele. All of the tenors have a wider nut (37mm), but their concerts have a 35mm nut, an average width which I play myself, but perhaps bucking the trend a little these days, when people either do prefer, or at least think they’d prefer, a wider neck! This solid spruce and rosewood concert is a pocket rocket, with as much sustain as I can remember with a concert sized uke, and a lovely, powerful and melodic tone it is too.
I am really impressed with this range of Maestro ukes. I like the fact they are distinctly Asian in design. Some of the decorative features really fit with the region they’re from. But I like that. I like that these handmade instruments reflect the culture they are made in. And they are a great option for those who want something different and new, that not everyone else has, but that still represent excellent value at the elite level of instrument.