It was our second day in Maui and we went to see the entertainment at the shops of Wailea on the Wednesday night. Mele and her husband entertainmed us for the first hour with Hawaiian singing, playing the ukulele and Hawaiian dancing that was a fabulous show! Then Mele gave a Ukulele lesson. She is a fabulous teacher and makes it seem so easy to learn. She had the whole group of us playing and singing songs very quickly and I had so much fun!! I realized then how easy it was to learn to play the Ukulele. I had always wanted to play one but never believed that I could do it but after that lesson with Mele, I realized that I could play and have a lot of fun doing it!! I made the decision that I was going to buy one and take a lesson from Mele. I spoke to Mele after that lesson and she recommended that I purchase my Ukulele upstairs in the Mele Ukulele store right at the shops of Wailea, so upstairs I went and I came out with my very own ukulele. I made an appointment for a private lesson with Mele and learned a lot in my one lesson. I am going for my second lesson next week and I am really looking forward to it. Thank you Mele. You have been a real inspiration to me and made me realize that I could do it!!! Barb Shields Victoria, BC read more

A group of us, friends from school days, were heading to Maui to celebrate our 50th birthdays together. I wanted to give my friends a gift that was memorable and unique to Hawaii. I happened upon the idea of a ukulele lesson! Googling from Australia to find out whether this was even possible, I found Mele and everything went smoothly from then on. Mele made it easy for me to arrange the whole surprise while still at home in Australia. The time was booked and my surprise was ready. We took the picturesque drive to the Bailey House Museum and found a warm and welcoming Mele. The lesson was great fun and we learnt interesting facts about the ukulele while learning to play. Mele presented each of us with detailed notes to take home so we could continue to learn. To celebrate our new Australian-Hawaiian friendship, Mele even taught us the old Australian song 'Waltzing Matilda'. I was thrilled with the lesson and my friends all had a great time. Mele wrapped my surprise gift for my friends in warmth and professionalism. It's been nearly a year since we had our magical holiday on Maui and we still talk about what a brilliant time we had with Ukulele Mele on Maui. Thank you Mele! read more

When the family announced we were going to Maui, I started researching for ukulele teachers that could give me a lesson at my level and cover what I missed in self-teaching, and Mele fit wonderfully. I am an intermediate player, and I knew the free lessons given at the mall and such were going to be for people picking up an ukulele for the first time- those "This is C, this is G, let's play a song! Yay!" kind of gigs. Initially, I sent in a request via her website, but unfortunately it didn't go through. When I called her, my phone kept dropping, but Mele was very patient and we had a bit of fun with our back and forth to try to schedule. I sent the information via her email on her site, and that worked. Mele was upbeat and encouraging as a person and insightful as a teacher. She taught me the correct way to hold the neck of the uke, which none of my books had taught me, which made chord changes much easier and sensible. She also taught me several strumming patterns and methods. Another great insight I received was concerning how to choose a new ukulele. I would recommend her to any ukulele player looking for a personalized lesson who finds themselves on Maui. read more

While we were traveling the world by bicycle, we came up with the idea to carry an Ukulele would be fun. What could be a better place to start playing the Ukulele than Hawaii? So we booked a flight to Maui and here we are. We booked intensive lessons for one week and are more than happy with our progress. Not only we are able to play the song "Happy Birthday", we also can sing it in Hawaiian! Besides teaching Ukulele, Mele also taught us a lot of Hawaii. We never played the Ukulele before, but after one week of intensive lessons, we have a variety of songs we can play such as the Happy Wanderer, Happy birthday and many three chord songs more. We really love her style and her approach of teaching. The beautiful location of Bailey House Museum is another highlight, we even played outside in the garden surrounded with a lot of native plants. We can highly recommend Mele as your future Ukulele teacher. By the way: Make sure, you can get a lesson on Friday: So you can see Mele in her beautiful "Aloha Friday" dress. :-) Greetings, -Sibil&Bruno from Switzerland. www.cleverpegontour.ch read more

I'm very grateful for what I have learned from Mele in the last 10 months! After receiving an Ukulele for Christmas last year I quickly signed up for private lessons with Mele. I really learned so much having this one on one time in my lessons. While taking lessons I was also able to attend her workshops at the Bailey House. Taking the next step and playing Ukulele with other people was really rewarding. Also while taking lessons I purchased a few of her songbooks that were another great learning tool. With the songbooks I practiced between lessons and continued to learn. Her lessons on the CD's were easy to follow. I could then review my questions with her at my next lesson. Finally I joined one of her group classes at Kaunoa! That's when I knew all the lessons and tools offered by Mele really paid off. The students I joined at Kaunoa had been playing for 2 years and I had no problem keeping up with them, and again, playing with a group is so much fun! I love to sing and play along with the group! Thanks so much Mele!!! read more

I have known Mele for many years, and she has an exceptional reputation as an excellent ukulele instructor. I recently had the opportunity to attend her strumming class at the Bailey House, and found it to be extremely helpful. There were a mixed group of students, several new to ukulele, several more experienced, yet Mele found a way to provide the exact right teaching method to address everyone's level. What surprised me the most was how fun Mele made the class. One could easily think that strumming could be boring, but not so with Mele. She makes is all so fun and exciting in her style of presentation, and class content. I really enjoyed that she kept the class pace moving forward, no lagging, no dead or dull time at all, but moving smothly in a very professional manner. I felt the entire time that I was in the presence of a true master ukulele perfromer and instructor. Thank you so much for providing such a valuable service! read more

Ukulele Mele... no ka 'oi! Mele is the best! After participating in one of Mele's strumming workshops, I was hooked! So, before returning to Maui in July, I contacted Mele, booked some lessons and the rest, as they say, is history. I took 6 private lessons over a two week period and have learned more than I ever did in the past 2 years. More importantly, Mele was able to help me sort out my improper left hand technique that was leaving me with a pain in my wrist! My time spent playing ukulele and talking story with Mele was a pleasure. So much so, that I intend to continue to take lessons with her via webcam from my home in Yellowknife. When in Maui, I highly recommend taking ukulele lessons with Mele. read more

Went to Ukulele Mele's Ukulele Strumming Workshop on Saturday October 15 and November 19, 2016. We had a really great time. Each and every time I go Learn something and reinforces what I have already learned. Get to meet new people each time that have a love for the ukulele and enjoy playing and learning together. Have taken one of her on line classes about a year ago and continue to take classes at the Kaunoa Senior Center in Spreckelsville on Maui. Love learning the different strums. If on Maui you need to contact her to set up a lesson or go on line and take some of her lessons from home I promise you won't regret it. It's all about learning and having fun doing it. read more

I had been practicing the ukulele on my own for about 9 months before I signed on for 2 private lessons with Mele during my visit to Maui. I developed some bad ukulele technique habits which needed addressing. She really helped me improve my technique and I now can move up to the next level. It was also fun working with her. In addition to being a skilled musician and teacher she is a delightful person who made learning the ukulele a lot of fun. Her teaching method is applicable to all levels of music experience from the newbie to the advanced student. I highly recommend her. In fact I will schedule more lessons on future trips. read more

I've been to Mele's class twice now and will surely go again. Her class is an all around good time and her big smile and positive attitude makes you believe you can "get it". She starts out with the basics, and takes the time for the students to get the different strumming styles down before moving on. You'll learn and sing songs you've known since childhood. Whether you're a newbie or an advanced student, I believe she has something to offer. Mele is a gifted teacher! I would recommend this class to anyone wanting who lives here and wants to learn or to anyone visiting the island that wants to experience a little Hawaiiana! read more

I was playing the Ukulele for about 9 months (self-taught) and I thought I was pretty good. While I was visiting Maui I took a couple of lessons from Mele. I was a former guitar player and was holding and strumming incorrectly. She showed me how to hold, cord hand position and strumming techniques. What a difference. I play much more relaxed. And the strumming styles can completely change the way a song sounds. I also purchased two of her books and am honing my style every day. Highly suggest you take a couple lessons as a lot of us new players are probably self-taught through the internet like me read more

I took a group lesson with Mele and two private lessons. Mele Fong is a Teacher. She has very good teaching techniques, patience, excellent teaching materials and a wealth of experience. I have been using one of the practice DVDs and really appreciate the book and the video and the lessons. Mele maintains a high standard and she gives good instruction on how to isolate the skills. My goal was to enliven my strumming styles and she definitely helped me with this. She also taught me how to be more efficient with my fingering. All in all, I am very pleased with my experiences with Ukulele Mele!! read more

I had a great time attending the ukulele strumming workshop at the Bailey House Museum with Mele Fong. she explained all the cords and especially the strumming techniques in a very clear manner. I specially like the fact that she had visual cues on the chord shapes. I've played guitar before but I'm pretty much a rookie on the ukulele and I found this workshop to be extremely helpful. I will definitely attend the next one. I am considering taking the online lessons. All the students had a great time and it was especially fun to feel the obvious enjoyment Mele gets out of sharing her skills. read more

We've been in Maui for two months and it was a great experience taking Ukulele lessons. This was my personal souvenir. Mele was a very patient teacher and explaining things very well and easy to unterstand. So in a short period of time I was able to get a good overview even though I have never a played a ukulele or guitar before. Definetly a good thing to take a personal lesson if you want to learn something. My ukulele, which I took home, now reminds me of that wonderful time we had on Maui. I also brought home a booklet with a DVD to play along and learn some more. read more

We (my wife and I) had two lessons during our visit to Maui. We had bought ukuleles on a previous trip and had a very basic lesson (plus bought some books), but we found Mele's instruction very helpful. My wife is very musical and I am not but we were able to play together and learn enough that we are able to practice after the inevitable return to the mainland. We had the lesson at Bailey house, which is a nice location as it is quiet and also a nice historical place. All in all, highly recommended! read more

I had the pleasure of attending Mele's ukulele strumming workshop recently on Maui and to say it exceeded my expectations is an understatement! There was something for everyone no matter what your playing level. Most importantly, I came away with a stronger and more determined desire to better my playing on this wonderful little musical instrument. I'm sure others did as we'll and the two-hour session ended all too quickly. We'll done, Mele! -Brian Lewis, Surrey, B.C. Canada read more

We thoroughly enjoyed having The Hawaiian Serenaders at my mother's 85th birthday party. I would recommend them as entertainment for any gathering. We had a backyard party in the parking lot of Cupie's Drive-in and the aunties, uncles, church ladies and young at heart loved the old songs of yesterday; hapa-haole Hawaiian music. Other nostalgic Hawaiian songs were included in their repertoire. The dynamic-duo of The Hawaiian Serenaders are awesome. read more

Totally enjoyed the free Wednesday program at the Wailea Shopping Center. Ukulele Mele played and sang with her husband Richard and then gave Ukulele lessons. Very entertaining and fun. As chance would have it the next day we attended a program at the Bailey House celebrating Prince Kuhio Day. Mele and Richard presented history of the prince and Hawaian songs. Very delightful couple and the Bailey House is not to be missed on a visit to Maui. read more

I enjoyed my ukulele lesson with Ukulele Mele. I have always wanted to learn to play the ukulele and was fortunate to find Mele through an Internet search while visiting Maui this week. I arranged for a private lesson and was amazed how much I learned in one lesson. Mele is a great instructor, patient and thorough. I intent to continue lessons with her via the Internet when I return home. Thanks, Mele, for getting me started. read more