Morelli/Santini Ukulele

Morelli ukuleles and Santini Ukuleles are made by the same people. They're sold very cheap (around $35) and have a very similar shape to other ukueles such as the Fluke, the Roy Smeck Vita uke and the J Chalmers Doane triangular uke.

I haven't played a Morelli or know anyone who has. There seems to be only one seller of them on eBay and their listings make me very suspicious:

- They claim the instrument is, "Hand Made by a Master Luthier" but it looks decidedly mass produced. In one of the close up photos, you can see a very slapdash job around the bottom of the fretboard. That is not the work of a 'master luthier' (if it was, they'd burn it before it had a chance to ruin their reputation).
- The picture of their distribution center looks like it has been manipulated to add their name to the sign.

I've never played one, so I could be wrong in my judgment. But there's no way I'd buy a Morelli ukulele. If you are shopping for a ukulele in this price range, I'd suggest a more reputable brand such as Makala.

Santini Ukulele Review

I have three ukuleles. A novelty one bought in Hawaii,the Univeral Trading type, albeit this was the concert size. I changed out the tuning keys and strings and was able to learn to play on it. My next purchase was the Ohana Vita, a wonderful soprano uke. And last but certainly not least was the Santini tenor. This is actually a great sounding ukulele and thus far, my favorite to play, or at least on par as my favorite with the Ohana Vita. The only thing lacking on the Santini are the missing pearl dots on the fingerboard. Upon receipt, I immediately changed the strings to Aquila nylgut and they are still setting in, so I have to tune it often, but I am confident this will take care of itself...as it becomes less and less of a problem day by day. I am still a novice player, but this uke is a keeper for me.

Review by Rick Robinson.