With just four strings and two octaves, he can skillfully perform rock, jazz, blues, funk, classical, bluegrass and more. Thanks to his heady technical command, inviting musicality and broad artistic vision, Shimabukuro has helped transform the sound and image of his instrument. The same holds true for this boyish-looking ukulele phenom, who plays two shows Saturday at downtown’s all-ages Anthology. No one can do what Chris does on the mandolin, but there are a lot of people who can’t even do what he does on any instrument.”

“We did a 20-minute improvisational piece, and it was one of the highlights of all my music experiences. “A few years ago, I got to do an impromptu jam with Chris and (banjo great) Béla Fleck,” Shimabukuro recalled. Thile, who leads the genre-leaping band Punch Brothers, has a new album out with a quartet featuring cellist Yo-Yo Ma. “Chris Thile is one of my absolute favorite musicians on the planet,” said Shimabukuro of the former Nickel Creek member. Yet, while this Hawaiian-born virtuoso draws key inspiration from the largely unsung ukulele pioneers who paved the way for him, he also is a big fan of a San Diego-bred mandolin master whose work doesn’t even hint at anything tropical. Credit for this goes to his remarkable online success on YouTube and his ability to enthrall audiences with solo instrumental versions of everything from The Beatles’ “While My Guitar Gently Weeps” and Queen’s “Bohemian Rhapsody” to jazz great Chick Corea’s flamenco-inspired opus, “Spain.”

Jake Shimabukuro has been the world’s most popular and commercially successful ukulele player for the past five years. Where: Anthology, 1337 India St., downtown

Ukelele while my guitar gently weeps