[3] He is well known in Hawaii for creating the Roy Sakuma Method, an alphabet-based ukulele instructional course that simplified how students read--and play--music.
[8] In the early 1970s, Sakuma began work for the City and County of Honolulu as a groundskeeper at Kapiolani Park where he got the idea to launch the first annual Ukulele Festival in 1971.
Notable ukulele artists that have participated are Eddie Kamae, Ohta San, Lyle Ritz, Israel Kamakawiwoʻole, Troy Fernandez, Paula Fuga, and Jake Shimabukuro.
National celebrities include singer-songwriter James Ingram, Jack Johnson (musician), and jazz guitarist, Howard Roberts.
Since then, Roy and his wife, Kathy, have kept Hawaii's cultural mainstay alive by expanding their teaching studios to four locations with their staff of instructors of former students.
Under the direction of Sakuma, the company produced and recorded a number of Na Hoku Hanohano Award-winning albums and songs.