Ukulele Brings Australian Music Teacher To Neligh-Oakdale

Pat Milller,with Nathan Cahill and Nate Metschke

A special guest from halfway around the world is spending a week at Neligh-Oakdale. 

After months of corresponding and then a 13-hour flight, an Australian music teacher is sharing his talents here in Nebraska.
 
Neligh-Oakdale Music teacher Pat Miller reached out on Facebook asking for someone who knew of a good ukulele program.
 
“And someone on Facebook said Nathan Cahill has a ukulele program," Cahill remembers.  "And so we started chatting.”

Nathan Cahill is a music teacher from Australia, who teaches around the country. 
 
Soon enough, both music teachers at Neligh-Oakdale were ecstatic to have him coming to the states. Cahill came to Neligh, to do the same thing he does in Australia.
 
“I do this. I’m a music teacher," Cahill said. "I also travel around the country teaching teachers ukulele and teaching them how to present it in their classroom. Exactly like I have been doing today.”
 
Cahill writes concert, choir and string orchestra music. He brought some new ways of teaching, and some new music with him.
 
“I’m hoping that the style that I teach with, and the resources and the ideas that I teach music with, especially the ukulele will be something that is of interest to teachers here," Cahill said. "I’ve had great success with teachers all over the county in Australia,”
 
Cahill will be going to the Nebraska Educators Conference next week, and then to Iowa for their state conference.
 
Then, Cahill will do the most Nebraskan thing he can do; watch a Husker football game.
 
“I’ve got my Huskers jacket already," Cahill said. "That’s one of the first things I bought.”
 
Cahill plans to return to the United States sometime to continue teaching and explains a few other goals, like spreading his music to more people.  

“I would love to have a little bit more Nathan Cahill music in America,” he said.