Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 25, Number 10, 1 October 2008 — Hapa Haole Hula sways at Waikīkī event [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

Hapa Haole Hula sways at Waikīkī event

By Liza Simon Public Affairs Specialist

With signature eellophane skirts and tacky tongue-twister titles, such as "How She Could Yacki Haeki Wieki Waeki Woo," hapa haole hula music may seem way too old-fashioned to have a plaee alongside today's purist fonns of kahiko and 'auana. But not so, says Vicky Holt Takamine, a cutting edge kumu, who learned her hapa haole numbers when she was haumana to the legendary Maiki Aiu Lake. "We were searching for our roots - even though our language had been taken away, so as young people, hapa haole hula was part of the culture that we loved," she said. In addition to being cultural, it's just plain catchy, as evi-

denced by the crowds that turn out every year for the annual Hapa Haole Competition and Concert in Waiklkl, organized by Holt Takamine and the PA'I Foundation.

t At this year's event, 19 groups, finalists chosen during an Aloha Week competition, will vie for prizes while they showcase their mastery of mele and movement that sprang from the pens of both Hawai'i and U.S.-continent eomposers during the hapa haole heyday that ran roughly from the I 1920s through the 1950s. I The all-English lyrics and relentI lessly swaying rhythm painted the I Hawaiian Islands as a Shangri-la I of ultimate romance - definitely I an outsider's view - but one that I caught on fast. Tin Pan Alley songI writers and ieonie crooners like I Bing Crosby plumbed the hapa I haole genre for its rich imagery; I Hollywood during this era seemed I to translate lyrics straight into I scripts about Hawai'i-as-paradise. I The results were mesmerizing to I an international audience, whieh I contributed to the first wave of jetI age Hawai'i tourism. I But hapa haole hula - as "hapa," I or half, infers - also meant that I Hawaiian and non-Hawaiian musiI cians met halfway and cross-fertil- ' ized one another's muses, according to Holt Takamine.

She said loeal lyricists picked up some newly minted jazz hannonics of the time from their eounterparts across the Pacific Oeean and infused a jazzy sophistication into crafting lush hapa haole hits of their own. Perhaps it's an apt analogy to say their works were to their era what so-called world beat is to today's music scene - a bridge of cultural exchange built by art. Holt Takamine names some favorite sons of the Islands whose 78 rpm's found their way hand-cranked Victrolas on the U.S. continent: Andy Cuimnings noted for his "Waikīkf ' or Johnny Nohle and his parade of hits such as "Hula Blues." Such vintage chestnuts have been re-recorded and revived by the likes of the Brothers Cazimero and the Peter Moon Band. Hapa Haole music was also a main staple of the widely syndicated Hawai'i Calls radio show from the 1930s to the 1970s and the vintage-tinged Territorial Airwaves program first hosted by Harry B. Soria Sr. Holt Takamine said hapa haole numbers have proved to be an inspiration for hula choreography because the limerick-like lines offer so mueh text, "an essential ingredient that dictates the motions of hula," she said. Most of all, hapa haole hula has disproven the modern adage that "what is hip today will tomorrow be passē." While limerick-like lyrics and relentlessly sunny rhythm reflect an old-fashioned optimism, Holt Takamine has seen how the musical genre catches modern audiences pleasantly off-guard: "Hapa haole is appealing to all kinds of fans today, because it's very eomieal, and it gives us all a ehanee to laugh together at this old-fashioned vision of Hawai'i," said Holt Takamine. At the upcoming festival, the new-fashioned renditions of hapa haole genre ean also be touchstones for future career moves. Winners in various categories will receive cash prizes. The top winner garners a ehanee to record with Hula Records - one more loeal institution that grew up with hapa haole music and has lived to download its legacy to a new generation. S

PA'I Foundation presents: Hapa Haole Competition and Concert Fri„ Oct, 10, 5:30 p.m. at Hale Koa Lū'au Garden, Special guest appearances by Nina Keali'iwahamana and Mahi Beamer, Tickets $20 in advance, $25 at door; discounts tor young children and military lntormation: 375-0847 or hapahaoletest.org \\V \\1\\

NĀ HANANA - EVENTS

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The kaikamahine of Leimomi Ma ldonado's Ka Hale I o Kahala peiform at the 200/ Hapa Haole Hula & Solo Vocalist Competition. - Photo: Courtesy ofkmes Ēum