This a gorgeous, beautifully made Kiwaya tenor uke, constructed from all solid rosewood from Honduras. It sings beautifully, looks great and sounds fantastic as well - with a rich tone that almost seems to posess it’s own internal reverb. It seems to reverberate and harmonise with itself for an achingly pretty sound, with bell-like clarity and chiming sweetness, against depth and warmth.

I got this on the back of having a couple of Peerless ukuleles last year - Kiwaya’s own domestic high end brand. They usually only sell these in Japan and had to beg to get them. This one has Kiwaya branding but there’s a P inlaid in the fingerboard… it’s one of their Peerless models but given the Kiwaya name. I find it interesting (and I may be in the minority!) that they call their elite level ukes ‘Peerless’ in Japan, but I find ‘Kiwaya’ sounds more exotic here. Funny how marketing works - ‘Peerless’ presumably sounding more exotic to the uke-mad Japanese public.

There are other clues as to the custom nature of this tenor uke, with the KPT-F sporting a stylish headstock like the other peerless models, and finished with a lovely faded denim stain. The unusual bridge is another feature, as well as the telltale ‘P’. One of those Peerless models I had went to the BBC’s Nicky Campbell, who is delighted with it… as would any owner of this truly fantastic uke!

The KPT-F tenor has a deep red finish from the rosewood body, which contrasts beautifully with maple binding, while a layer of abalone purfling brings sparkle to all that natural wood. The gloss is perfect, the fingerboard is smooth as marble and the 37mm nut, combined with slightly flattened neck profile, is supremely playable.

Unlike most Kiwaya ukes, this KPT-F model comes with a good quality hard case. So, from the list of standard options shown at the bottom of the page you can ignore the case/bag options.