Manitoba Hal

For over 15 years, Canadian blues artist Manitoba Hal has been forging a career as one of the country’s most preeminent roots and blues multi-instrumentalists. With 15 recordings under his own name and appearances on countless others, guitarist, ukulele master and singer-songwriter Manitoba Hal is a musical renaissance man.

Known for his deep baritone voice and mastery of his instrument – whether it be on guitar or his trusty ukulele - Manitoba Hal takes his audience from the deep south to the islands with songs that are mournful, hopeful, silly, romantic and introspective. His original songs have become modern classics and his take on standards and popular blues songs of the past have brought him to the forefront of the blues scene.

Beginning his career as a guitarist, Manitoba Hal began to play the ukulele when he inherited a 1955 Martin uke from his beloved grandfather who told him “you can have it if you learn to play it”. And so, he did, continuing to master the tiny instrument, thus proving that the ukulele can be small but mighty as he pulls out powerful riffs and melodies adding background beats with looping technology showcasing the blues in all its passion and groove. His approach to playing is simple – there’s not a lot of flash, just a brilliant understanding of the music, the mood and his audience. Whether on four strings or six, Manitoba Hal is one of Canada’s most versatile, engaging, expressive and down-to-earth blues artists.