New Kala KA-C Concert Ukulele

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Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/11, 5 sec, ISO400
 “Soprano and Concert Sizes” Cedar Park, 2020

My new Kala KA-C Concert Ukulele arrived, and I couldn’t be more satisfied with it! I knew that the mahogany wood and cream binding would be the same as my Kala pineapple ukulele (which I love), but I was not expecting the metal tuning knobs to feel so nice, and the sealed gears were completely unexpected. Also, the new ukulele comes with a peg to attach a strap… a welcome surprise! I attached a fabric ribbon that I had saved from some packaging and it matches the cream-colored binding perfectly.

Like other Kala ukuleles, this one comes with Aquila Super-Nylgut strings which are good quality so I will not have to replace them. It’s fun to go through the new ukulele tuning process which can take several days as the new strings stretch out. I noticed that Kala included a note in the box to explain that it could take a few week or so to hold tune… I’m sure many ukulele beginners aren’t aware of this and might think they got a poor-quality ukulele, which isn’t the case. I bet this little note prevents many potential bad reviews or calls to customer service. 😀

Anyways, the ukulele sounds wonderful. The longer neck and more widely-spaced frets force me to stretch my fingers a bit more. With my small hands, it’s more challenging to play the concert size vs soprano size, but when I switch back to the smaller ukulele, it’s a lot easier! I suppose it’s like when baseball batters put the donut weight on their bats while warming up in the on-deck circle. When they go up to bat without the donut, the bat must feel super-light.

Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/4, 1/25 sec, ISO800
 “Soprano and Concert Sizes” Cedar Park, 2020

I knew the soprano size fits me much better, but I wanted the concert size so I could play the notes higher up on the fretboard that the the soprano ukulele’s smaller fretboard cannot provide. The sound that the concert-size ukulele is supposed to be louder and fuller, and I’m sure that’s the case, but honestly my ears can’t tell that drastic a difference between that and the smaller ukulele.

Overall, I’m very pleased with the Kala KA-C Concert Ukulele. It’s certainly an upgrade over my old Hilo brand concert ukulele, and a great addition to my ukulele collection, which is now dominated by the three Kala ukuleles.

Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/2.8, 1/100 sec, ISO1600
 “Kala Concert Ukulele” Cedar Park, 2020

Here’s a bonus photo of the cats enjoying the shape of the ukulele box:

Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/2.8, 1/40 sec, ISO3200
 “In the Boxes” Cedar Park, 2020

Watching Paris, Texas

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Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/2.8, 1/100 sec, ISO3200
 “Nastassja and Harry Dean” Cedar Park, 2020

What a great movie… I can’t believe I haven’t seen Paris, Texas before. Harry Dean Stanton is fantastic in it. What I love about it is that the characters are normal. There’s no gimmick here. I was always on edge that there was going to be some sort of disturbing scene, but that never came. And when I was watching the credits, I was thinking about how amazing it was that a movie can be so engaging without the violence, action, or intense characters that so many of today’s movies rely on.

Movie Afternoon

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Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/3.2, 1/25 sec, ISO800
 “Hua Mulan” Cedar Park, 2020

Watching 2009’s Mulan: Rise of a Warrior today… pretty good version of the classic story! If you’d like to learn more, you can check out my movie review. Sitting at the kotatsu with a beer and a ukulele, watching a movie, is a great way to spend the afternoon. 😊

Speaking of Mulan, I’m still slowly working my way through the television drama. It’s turning out to be a multi-year project.