KEOLA & MOANA BEAMER with special guest Raiatea Helm
Traditional & contemporary Hawaiian song, dance, and slack-key guitar
Saturday, April 18 at 7:30 pm
48th St. and Baltimore Ave. in West Philadelphia (Calvary Church)
http://www.crossroadsconcerts.org or 215-729-1028
Born in 1951, Keolamaikalani Breckenridge Beamer was raised in
Kamuela, on the Big Island of Hawai'i, surrounded by members of one of
Hawaii’s most illustrious and beloved musical families. Keola’s
legendary great-grandmother, Helen Desha Beamer (1882-1952), was one
of Hawai'i's most prolific and accomplished singer-songwriters, while
his mother, Winona Kapuailohia Beamer, is also a noted chanter,
composer, and author who has spent a lifetime researching and teaching
"Hawaiiana." The Beamers trace their roots to the 15th century; among
their ancestors are the Queen Ahiakumai Ki’eki’e and Ho’olulu, a child
of the favored wife of Kamehameha I.
Keola established himself early on as the family’s youngest standard-
bearer. A child of the rock and roll era, he has always been on the
vanguard of the Hawaiian contemporary sound. However, he also helped
drive what has come to be known as the Hawaiian Cultural Renaissance:
he has recorded many of the songs written by his ancestors, from the
lively Keawaiki to the lullaby Pupu Hinuhinu. He has recorded and
produced more than a dozen albums, winning numerous Hoku Awards,
Hawai'i's equivalent of the Grammies, and has even appeared on Sesame
Street and on NBC's "Today Show."
Keola was one of Hawai'i's first recording artists to integrate
Hawaiian chants and instruments, like the tiny gourd whistle and the
nose flute, with contemporary forms of music. "A lot of musicians in
the past treated the nose flute as a frame," he says. "They played it
at the beginning and the end of a piece. Through experimentation, I
managed to integrate it into the piece. It has a gorgeous sound, a
gorgeous texture."
Keola’s career as a musician began in his mother’s Honolulu hula
studio, where he played guitar as an accompaniament for the dancers.
In high school and college, he studied classical guitar, and later
published a method book, Hawaiian Slack Key Guitar, using a tablature
system for 16th-century lutes as his starting point. In 1972, he
recorded his first landmark solo album, "Hawaiian Slack Key Guitar in
the Real Old Style," filled with the nahenahe (soft and sweet) sound
of this Hawaiian tradition. This album continues to influence many
guitarists.
"In my family, music was taken seriously," Beamer says. “It was an
integral part of our lives, almost like a religion. But Hawaiians are
up against a shallow stereotype, often demeaning to the native
culture. That hurts." It has been the life passion of Keola Beamer to
counter such images.
Moanalani Beamer began her hula training at the early age of four with
Kumu Hula (Hula Master) Johnny Hokoana. In her early years, she
continued training extensively with several different Kumu in Hawaii.
Her primary source of inspiration was the famed Kumu Hula, Robert
Kalani. After making her professional debut, Moanalani starred in the
main revues of several prestigious hotels and resorts on the island of
Maui. Her professional experience includes tenures with the shows of
George Paoa, Jessie Nakooka, The Ohana Revue, and Nephi Hanneman.
Moana is also a teacher, sharing her knowledge with some of the young
people of her home town of Lahaina, Hawai'i. Her sensitive nature
combines her understanding of the technique with the spiritual and
philosophical currents expressed in the Hula. Moana remains firmly
committed to sharing her cultural knowledge worldwide. For the past
three years, she has traveled to Europe to co-teach several workshops
on Movement and Hawaiian Dance with renown German movement teacher
Dorothea Jollenbeck. She also travels annually to Japan to teach hula
workshops.
Much of Moana’s year is spent dancing, chanting, talking story, and
providing percussive interludes on tour with her husband Keola.
Together they present a complete sensory experience of Hawaiian music
and dance.
RAIATEA HELM's recent appearance onto the national music scene with a
2006 Grammy nomination was a natural progression of her growth within
the Hawaiian music community. Her debut recording, "Far Away Heaven,"
captured the prestigious Female Vocalist of the Year and Most
Promising Artist Awards from the 2003 Hawai'i Academy of Recording
Artists (HARA). Raiatea Helm continued her award-winning tradition two
years later with the release of her second CD "Sweet and Lovely." At
the 2005 HARA Awards ceremony, she was recognized again as Female
Vocalist of the Year and also received the coveted Favorite
Entertainer of the Year Award. According to the New York Times, Helm
"sings in the high-voiced throwback leo ki'eki'e style without a hint
of kitsch. Her second album, "Sweet and Lovely" is poised and utterly
elegant."
More information, sound samples, and ticketing at:
http://www.crossroadsconcerts.org
TICKETS ARE $10-20 AND AVAILABLE AT:
Brown Paper Tickets via our website or 800-838-3006 - there is a
service charge)
At the door from 6:30 until we sell out. (If you show up by 7:15, you
should be fine).
Please note that House of Our Own Books no longer sells concert
tickets. We will have a replacement soon.
BECOME OUR FRIEND:
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MySpace: http://www.myspace.com/crossroadsconcerts
UPCOMING EVENTS
Sat 4/25 - Lissa Schneckenburger - New England fiddle
Sat 5/9 - Spruce Hill May Fair - artists to be announced
