- May 2, 2024
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Douglas Bell isn't a member of Aloha Ukulele, but a friend told him about Play Music on the Porch Day.
Photo by Lesley DwyerAbout 35 Lakewood Ranch residents play ukuleles and guitars at Town Hall to celebrate Music on the Porch Day.
Photo by Lesley DwyerCarl Backman and Nancy Cunningham, members of Aloha Ukulele, perform with the Lakewood Ranch Community Activities club for Play Music on the Porch Day on Aug. 26, 2023.
Photo by Lesley DwyerAug. 26 is Play Music on the Porch Day. It's too hot outside, so residents gather inside Lakewood Ranch Town Hall.
Photo by Lesley DwyerAloha Ukulele President Alice Baumann leads the group in a rendition of "The Lion Sleeps Tonight."
Photo by Lesley DwyerPatricia Hebert, Cynthia Hebert and Darlene Oaks join in for Play Music on the Porch Day. The trio has their own ukulele band that plays around Sarasota called "The Hawaiian Shirts."
Photo by Lesley DwyerMusicians arrive prepared with music stands holding either paper or electronic sheet music to play along with the group.
Photo by Lesley DwyerEarl Hutchison aka "Uke of Earl" and Susie Greene play and sing along to "Take Me Home, Country Roads" by John Denver.
Photo by Lesley DwyerLakewood Ranch residents Rocky Trombasso and Sue Brady are members of Aloha Ukulele. The group has up to 40 members, depending on the time of the year.
Photo by Lesley DwyerA big circle forms in Town Hall for Play Music on the Porch Day. Residents brought their ukuleles and guitars.
Photo by Lesley DwyerNancy Cunningham had never picked up a ukulele before joining Aloha Ukulele.
Less than two years later, she was singing and strumming her heart out at Lakewood Ranch Town Hall for Play Music on the Porch Day.
“It’s a lot of fun, even if you make a mistake,” Cunningham said, “But I’ve gotten a lot better.”
Aloha Ukulele is one of several clubs offered by Lakewood Ranch Community Activities. The group meets at Lakewood Ranch Town Hall on the last Friday of each month and at Lakewood Ranch Town Hall North on the first and third Thursday of each month.
“We also play around Lakewood Ranch, Sarasota and the Bradenton area. We play assisted living facilities, downtown, on Main Street and at the mall,” Club President Alice Baumann said. “We’ll play wherever they’ll have us.”
Aloha Ukulele has between 25 to 40 members, depending on the time of the year.
On Saturday, the club offered an open invitation to the public to join their jam session for Play Music on the Porch Day, except it was far too hot to strum outside.
Baumaan pointed to the window and said, “We can see the porch.”
With the air conditioning and rhythm flowing inside, the group sang singalong favorites from the grade school classic, “This Land is Your Land,” to the Hawaiian staple, “Tiny Bubbles,” by Don Ho.
About 35 people attended. The musicians were a mix of club members and local ukulele groups, including “The Hawaiian Shirts,” “Sarasota Uke” and the “Sarasota Buskers.”
Play Music on the Porch Day has been celebrated annually on Aug. 26 since 2004. The movement is global. Over 70 countries participate, and participants post videos to social media.
According to its website, the day started out as an idea: “What if, for one day, everything stopped, and we all just listened to the music?”
