One of the best things to see if you are on Oahu on May 1st is the Cazimero Lei Day concert. It wasn’t held last year, maybe the year before too because Roland was sick. This year Robert was convinced to do it again, and I hear it was another very special night of Hawaiian Music and Hula. Most of the entertainers in this line up share a common bond, the Kamehameha Schools. It’s founders also created the Bishop Museum where the original campus was. Many either went to the school, or have children that went there. The school was created for Hawaiian children, and my kids are the 5th generation of graduates in my family.
I am blessed to know and be friends with many of the people in this year’s concert. I’ve even seen some of the younger kids grow from kindergartners to the wonderful, talented adults they’ve become.
Owen if you are seeing this, Kawaika Trask is the guy I stopped my car to say hi to when we were driving around.
Surprised you all forgot about Keola Beamer. Keola and kapono came out around the same time as sunday manoa and olomana
They all graduated Kamehameha Schools around the same time part of the second great hawaiian renaissance after the hokulea voyage to tahiti
They say the first was during King Kalakaua’s reign which the “merry monarch” was created for
The son’s of hawaii and palani vaughn was another part of that musical period. Personally I like the the harmonies of the makaha sons of niihau with versus Iz all by himself
Kiho’alu is the ultimate apres surf/ski/dinner skill set, Sadly we were the last part of the generation that didn’t want anything to do with our culture, just surf, drugs and rocknroll like many other aboriginals of our time. Never “discovered” the value and importance of what was sitting in front of me for free at Kamehameha until i left for college. And it was there that I learn the guitar. ukulele and hula playing and dancing for a hawaii club dance troupe while in school. Its kind of sad to think about it these days because all the teachers we had like aunty nona beamer (my dad’s classmate) are all passed along with most of their students.
As a surfer if you can play a guitar especially in the slack key. bossa nova or jazz genres then you will be come your own best friend as well as all those you hang around with. Surfing and music go hand and hand. There’s a book on surfing by a french guy I love that talks about surfing as a form of dance.
As far as slack key, my classmate the reverend Dennis Kamakahi will always be the CD I turn to his Koke’e. Wahine Ilikea, Pua Hone and Ipo Lei Manu from his album Pua’ena (glow brightly) make me smile and tear up everytime. Simple but deeply meaningful songs. Palani Vaughn’s version of Ipo Lei Manu is the most moving and heart wrenching song I heard from that generation. It is the story of Hawaii all rolled up into a single song. Keola’s has written any english slack key songs that sit in my heart like old man pueo, The beauty of maunakea (kapono), real old style, island born, sweet river (hanalei), and true hawaiian way.
But Dennis is my all time favorite
Very nice thread.
I have always enjoyed a kanakapili session. In my younger days, my wife, son, and myself shared a home with her Father and Step Mother on Front Street in Lahaina. The house was one of old teacher dorm houses, across the street from King Kamehameha III school. “Poppa” worked construction on the West Side, but would play music on various sunset cruises out of the Harbor. Following a weekend session at Lahaina Harbor or Breakwall, it was pure fun to be walking into the back yard to put away my board and hear music being played. Pretty much a revolving cast of Hawaiian musicians taking part in sessions back there;. Poppa was a proud Alumni of Kamehameha Schools, and his classmates when on Maui, always made it a point to drop by for one of these weekend sessions. Pretty much a whose who of Hawaiian music from Maui and Oahu passed through that yard. Being younger, I enjoyed all those sessions, but as I look back, I realize how special those sessions were and how lucky I was to be there.
I think most of us Hawaiians living in the 60s witnessed family gatherings that always had singing and some dancing. We grew up seeing this weekly. After dinner, the uncles would bust out their guitars and maybe an ukulele or 2 and the singing began. Lots of love went into the singing. Same when my dad’s family got together, always had music, singing, and some dancing. I think it is in our DNA.
2 of my dad’s uncles were well known entertainers. Here’s a shot of uncle Sam with the guitar at dad’s 50th birthday luau. The guy on bass is Papa Aila, a well respected elder from Waianae where uncle Sam lived. Uncle Sam played with the Hawaii Calls radio show for many years. Uncle Harold played with Lani McIntyre in the Lexington Hotel’s Hawaiian Room in NYC. He was hired to do Disney World’s Hawaiian show.
I am just beginning to explore the artist’s work named in the last few posts, thank you. Very much enjoying the vibe.
While listening to some Ledward Kaapana, I noticed some similarities to Palm Wine Guitar music of Western Africa which is not well known, and which some of you might also enjoy.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o7FXFzpAwpA
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-gyN6w0k274
Hope this tangent does not offend anyone.
