Ohana TK-35-10 Tiple 10 String Ukulele

Ohana Music has a long and established appreciation for vintage and unique instruments. One of our most specialized is the Tiple, or TK-35-10, based on vintage Martin builds of the early 1900s. Those made by Martin were inspired in turn by instruments first taken on trans-Atlantic voyages to the Americas in the 1800s. The word “Tiple” comes from the spanish for “treble” as the many steel strings worked to produce a bright and cheery tone.

In its current form, the Tiple was especially sought after in the -30s and -40s, where its bright and full tone complimented current popular music. The chorus of the multi-tonal steel strings provided a truly unique voice that suited the upbeat and often humorous tunes of the time.

The Ohana Tiple is built in all-solid mahogany, with 10-steel strings across 4 courses. We chose a simple and stately cream rosette and wood binding to compliment the instrument’s vintage feel. The strings are paired in sets of 2-3-3-2; with the first top 3 string sets featuring an octave tone. The Tiple is most like a tenor scale ukulele in terms of size and build, with additional bracing and body mass to allow for the tension of 10 steel strings.