Kanile'a 'Manu Hu' Master Grade Curly Redwood & Claro Walnut Tenor Ukulele #26310

Here it is folks... After about 6 months of teases by Alex in other videos on our Youtube and everything from T-shirts to sew on patches doing the rounds with Ukulele groups in the UK, The Manu Hu custom shop series by Kanile'a is here. These special customs are limited to just two Tenors and three Baritones. One of which, is used by Alex Beds (Manager of Southern Ukulele Store) who designed the model.

Manu Hu is the unofficial name of the extinct Hawaiian Hummingbird and the concept came about after Alex and Kaimana Souza from Kanile'a discussed a signature Baritone Ukulele for Alex. Alex performs with Phil in the shop in a band called Hummingbird and the Crow and in a previous life was a prominent Gibson Hummingbird guitar player. The challenge was trying to create an iconic ukulele that built upon the excellent foundations we have set with the now discontinued SUS Alaskan Rainbow Cedar and Manako Hawaiian Mango Ukuleles.

'I have always felt and openly praised Kanile'a as the best Baritone Ukulele builders in the world in my opinion. Joe Souza's history playing 8 strings and the innovation they have put into bigger sizes whether it's a classic Tenor or, quirky shapes like the super Tenor, pineapples etc, The preferences of the Souza familys own players have always been a recipe for a good large ukulele. When I played guitar professionally, I always had a soft spot for the Gibson Hummingbird guitar which had this timeless look, plenty of easter egg worthy cosmetic detail and a dash of colour... Kanile'a have shown us with the Manakos, Platinum series and various one off customs Kahiau Souza has produced over the pandemic that they are not afraid to try new things, for me the most exciting option was to take absolute AAAAA tonewoods and leave the body largely untouched because the wood itself is so magical. I chose block inlays because so few ukuleles come with them but the practical application of being able to see your frets on stage in the dark is something you never tire of.

I don't know about you but when I play, I tend to spend more time glancing down at the neck than the body itself and the inclusion of the 'toothpaste' inlays to me were something that offered a bit of colour, could be seen well without looking tacky or garish and aesthetically they are quite fun because they are open to intepretation (yes, I know they look like various Countries flags, the actual inspiration are the colours of the Hawaiian flag). The inlay work was done by master luthier Joe Souza who used Poplar, a wood that takes a stain very well but ages quickly creating a vintage look on something practically brand new.

The Manu Hu logo is special to me because it was designed by my friend Phil who also works at SUS... He will also be playing this ukulele on stage so our personal Hoa Hana is present on both of these customs.'

Lets talk about the tonewoods used and why they are special... Curly Redwood is a bit of a secret weapon for many players, it doesn't sound very 'Hawaiian' but tonally it recreates the warmth and projection of a wood like Cedar whilst looking positively Caramel like when you face it head on. A good piece of redwood always sounds as good as it looks. The claro walnut back and sides were always in the back of my mind as being one of the best woods I have ever seen on the Ukulele. Kanile'a first used them on the 2017 platinum which tonally was a very open and piano like sounding Super Concert instrument. Most people at the time didn't get to hear it as so few were made but it was important to me that Kanile'a used that wood for this series. The combination of the Curly Redwood and the Claro Walnut makes for a naturally vibrant, rich, warm, loud and expressive uke.

Traditional paddle headstocks were chosen for this instrument to keep it as lightweight and as balanced as possible and the Tenor benefits from a set of rear facing planetary tuners because they are precise, reliable and traditional looking. The Baritone model has some heavier duty Hipshot open gear tuners, chosen for better stability over the longer scale which is often a sticking point for Baritone players.

Manu Hu Custom Tenor Ukulele by Kanile'a
Solid Master Grade Curly Redwood Top
Solid High Grade Claro Walnut Back and Sides
Toothpaste dyed poplar inlays
Manu Hu dyed poplar bird inlay at 12th fret
South American Mahogany Neck
Ebony Fingerboard and Bridge
Ebony Bridge Pins
38mm Nut Width
30mm sting spacing at nut
Gotoh Planetary Tuners with Black Tulip Buttons
Worth Clear Fluorcarbon Strings with Fremont Soloist Low G
Nubone Nut and Saddle
White MOP side dots (on both sides so lefty and righty friendly)
White MOP headstock Inlay
Ebony Faceplate
Kanile'a Deluxe Ukulele Gigbag Included
Cream ivoroid front binding and soundhole rosette