With an enormous cheer, Cynthia Lin Ukulele Squad members filled the music room to the brim to take part in Cynthia’s latest jam session. The squad, based primarily online, had come together to record a jam, bringing members together to play as a large band. This time, Cynthia had gathered together a massive group of more than 100 ukulele players to record a unique cover of Creedence Clearwater Revival’s ‘Have You Ever Seen The Rain?’
Upon her countdown, the entire group launched into the song in unison. Music Man fans will be amazed by the sound the group makes, with over 100 people playing ukuleles and singing at full gusto. It might be difficult to imagine the classic rock song played on ukuleles, but it works surprisingly well thanks to the amazing synchronization. The comments on the online video were full of people who took part in the cover returning to reminisce, one sharing, “So fun. Glad to have been a part of this!”
When I watched the video of their performance, it was very clear to me how much joy the participants were having as they played. There were so many different kinds of people playing together, and there were smiles across the entire group as they played. It made watching them play even more enjoyable for me, as their joy was absolutely infectious. It gave me a lot of admiration for Cynthia, the force who had brought together so many people in a moment of connection.
Cynthia Lin has spent over ten years online, posting ukulele tutorials and involving others in ukulele playing projects. It’s easy to see how many people she has inspired to get involved, and how many more have been touched by listening to the music her followers make. Her most popular video received over 1.1M views and showcased a small class of hers playing ‘Shallow’ by Lady Gaga. The beautiful cover shows the humble beginnings that started Cynthia’s jam sessions, with only 27 players.
In the years since then, Cynthia’s jams have clearly transformed into something entirely new. Most often, Cynthia posts solo covers on her channel or jams with friends and family. With recent posts now featuring these enormous group jams, from San Francisco to Sydney, we are now getting a true insight into how many people her posts have directly impacted when it comes to playing the ukulele. Hopefully, with the success of her recent large jams, Music Man readers won’t have to wait long to see her post some more heartwarming examples of people coming together to play music in their hundreds.