Big Blog II: One Last Music Culture

Music of Hawaii 

Geography      

    For this blog, I decided to explore the music culture of Hawaii. I first want to talk a little about the geography of Hawaii. Hawaii is a state in the Western United States. It is located in the Pacific Ocean about 2,000 miles from the mainland of the United States. Hawaii is the only state outside of North America and the only tropical state. The Hawaiian islands were formed by undersea volcanic activity. 

Traditional Music of Hawaii 

    Traditional Hawaiian Music generally has a simple structure. It consists of percussion instruments, chants and vocal styles. The roots of Hawaiian music go back thousands of years. In early Hawaii, Mele, which is a chant was the most important means of remembering myths of gods and deeds of powerful people. A Mele chant is a poetic form of song that tells a story. Hawaiian music is celebrated in music festivals. Theses festivals are to celebrate the uniqueness of the Hawaii instruments, musicians, and songs. The Ukulele Festival, which is held at Kapiolani Park Bandstand in Waikiki. This festival honors what many visitors to be passed on from ancient Hawaii, but in reality the Ukulele was brought by the Portuguese immigrants at the end of the 19th century. The Ukulele is still a huge part of Hawaiian music today, not just on stage but also at family events or on the beach. The Slack Key Festival, which pays tribute to a uniquely local way of playing the guitar. Slack key is the loosened tuning or technique that reflects the breezy, flowing quality of both local climate and culture. Another part other of traditional Hawaiian music is falsetto singing. Hawaiian music really emphasizes the voice. There are many songs in the Hawaiian culture that features falsetto, such as leo ki'eki'e. Falsetto singing is mostly used by men, it extends the singer's range to notes above their normal vocal range. The voice makes a characteristic break during the transition from the ordinary vocal register to the falsetto range. In the Hawaiian-style falsetto, the singer emphasizes the break between registers. 

Immigrant Influence

    Hawaii has developed a plantation-based economy, which has brought other cultural groups who brought their own musical forms. This includes immigrants from Puerto Rico, Portugal, China, Okinawa, Korea, Japan, and the Philippines. Each of these immigrant traditions has contributed to the cultural life of the islands. 

Instruments

Ipu- a large gourd drum that is used to provide the rhythm and tempo for Hawaiian chants and dances. They are made from two gourds.

'Uli 'Uli-Made from the gourd, it is a type of rattle. It has small pebbles or seeds put in a dried calabash. It is topped with colorful feathers and used in the hula kahiko, the ancient style of dance. 

Ukeke- known as the indigenous stringked instrument of Hawaii. It is made from a thin bent piece of wood with three stings of coconut fiber. The strings are strummed by hand while the other hand holds the Ukeke at its mouth. It was traditionally used by Hawaiians to accompany chants. They were also used for personal entertainment and often the instrument of choice for lovers serenating each other. 

Ohe Hanu Ihu- also known as the "nose flute". Used for chants and tp bless an event or area. 

Pahu- Predominant percussion instrument in traditional Hawaiian music. It is carved from a length of coconut tree with a dried sharkskin stretched over one end.  

Pu- The shell of a large conch that is used as a ceremonial trumpet. 

Pu'ili- a type of bamboo rattle. A traditional instrument used during hula performances. 

Kala'au- Stick made of koa wood that are traditionally used during hula performances. 

Traditional Hawaiian Dances

    The traditional dance in Hawaii is the hula. It is a beloved and very cherished tradition on the islands. The two most well known types of hula dances are Hula Kahiko and Hula 'Auana. The Hula Kahiko is known as the ancient hula. This dance goes along with chants, which combine with the movements to tell stories of the different islands and their beauty, the exploits of royalty, people of those islands, major events, and travelers. The Hula 'Auana is the modern hula. It is less formal and more interactive with the audience. It encompasses the sensibilities of those who were not native. It also tell stories through the movement and song, but is contemporary in nature and is what most people think is the generic hula dancing. It is performed with a variety of musical instruments, such as the ukulele and steel guitar. 

Citations:

Briney, A. (2019, April 22). Geography of hawaii facts & information. ThoughtCo. Retrieved May 13, 2022, from https://www.thoughtco.com/geography-of-hawaii-1435728

Adrea Gibbs Adrea Gibbs Adrea has been a working professional dancer for over 30 years, appearing in shows like C. (n.d.). Hula dances of hawaii. LoveToKnow. Retrieved May 13, 2022, from https://dance.lovetoknow.com/types-dance/traditional-hawaiian-dances

Cassun, D. (2020, May 21). Traditional hawaiian musical instruments. Hawaii Luaus™. Retrieved May 13, 2022, from https://luaus.org/traditional-hawaiian-musical-instruments/

Na Leo Hawai'i: Musics of hawai'i. Smithsonian Folkways Recordings. (n.d.). Retrieved May 13, 2022, from https://folkways.si.edu/na-leo-hawaii/music/article/smithsonian

Hawaiian music. Go Hawaii. (2022, March 16). Retrieved May 13, 2022, from https://www.gohawaii.com/hawaiian-culture/music