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kawai
Explore "kawai" with insightful episodes like "Miyabi Kawai, wann haben Sie gelernt, Ihre Körper zu lieben?", "Shooting David Ortiz Was A Bad Idea; So Was Playing KD.", "Jay Z The Billionaire", "TCF Ep. 357 - Kawai Matthews" and "Anita, Anand and Jenny from Kawai Purapura talk about the Voices of Sacred Earth Eco Festival" from podcasts like ""FAZ Am Tresen - Der Gesprächspodcast", "Stat Lines Matter", "Stat Lines Matter", "The Candid Frame: Conversations on Photography" and "GreenplanetFM Podcast"" and more!
Episodes (7)
Shooting David Ortiz Was A Bad Idea; So Was Playing KD.
Mark Stewart and Rob Hunter discuss the death of Bushwick Bill, David Ortiz getting shot and Kevin Durant's untimely injury.
Phone/Text 404-500-9017
Instagram:
@StatLinesMatter
@mesredzone
@RobHunterSLM
YouTube:
Stat Lines Matter
Jay Z The Billionaire
Mark Stewart and Rob Hunter are back with an all new episode. They cover everything from Jay Z becoming a Billionaire to Kawai Leonard's Free Agency and Odell Beckham Jr missing OTA's
Phone/Text 404-500-9017
Instagram:
@StatLinesMatter
@mesredzone
@RobHunterSLM
YouTube:
Stat Lines Matter
TCF Ep. 357 - Kawai Matthews
Anita, Anand and Jenny from Kawai Purapura talk about the Voices of Sacred Earth Eco Festival
We live on a planet of majestic proportions, teaming with life within a biosphere of mega-trillions of beings.
From the microscopic and invisible to the macro-captivating mega fauna, from viruses and bacteria to the great blue whales and kauri and redwoods. To the council of all beings - all breathing in concert and growing and surviving within the seasonal cycles of a fecund yet increasingly stressed mother planet.
However - what of the future, where are we going as a human species? What is the destiny of our planet in these rapidly changing of times? And who best can speak to these challenges, other than the races and cultures who have held onto the old ways - the indigenous, the first nations - the ones who keep the soles of their feet firmly planted on the surface of the great mother, Gaia, Papatuanuku, our profound sustainer.
Listen to an inspiring introduction to what this weekend will share. This engaging discussion with representatives of this forthcoming event is persuasive and captivating. Knowing that there are devoted people, 'being the change we want to see in the world' is heartening. Let's support them by furthering this notion as we mobilise to care for our individual and collective future - for all biota.
Hawaiian-Style Piano
Hawai’i musician Halehaku Seabury-Akaka and I were recently discussing the fine and rare art of Hawaiian-style piano. And we concur that one of the best today is Iwalani Ho’omanawanui Apo. (You can just call her “Ho’o.”) When asked who she felt was the greatest on the piano in Hawai’i, Ho’o cited the late, great Leila Hohu Kiaha.
A recipient of the Na Hoku Hanohano Lifetime Achievement Award in 2006 - which she knew she had been granted but regrettably passed away before receiving the honor - Auntie Leila’s unique piano playing is heard on too few recordings. Most of these were in association with singers Kawai Cockett and Tony Conjugacion, but sadly most of the sides with Cockett have been out of print for decades.
Here is one such example of the great “Hawaiian swing” style of piano playing from Auntie Leila. Because there are so few practitioners of this piano style remaining today - Ho’o Apo, Aaron Sala, and C. Lanihuli Lee come to mind - we rarely have the opportunity to hear the piano played in the Hawaiian band. But when there is no lead guitarist - such as a steel guitar or slack key player - present, the piano takes the lead - becoming responsible for the vamps that transition one verse of the hula ku’i song form to the next. As no singing occurs through the two-bar vamps, this is the best opportunity to sneak a listen at the real talents of the pianist. You will hear that the style - as offered here by Auntie Leila - is characterized by arpeggiating (or rolling the notes) in a chord for rhythmic effect as well as block chords that mimic the strumming of the guitar or ‘ukulele, often in syncopation (or slightly off the beat from) the other rhythmic elements in the band. This aspect of the style may be rooted in ragtime piano playing. At the same time, she might play single note “fills” in those gaps of each verse where no singing takes place so that a song maintains its momentum - particular if there is hula to go with the song. But she is also ever careful to remain tasteful and respectful to the singer and not “overplay.”
This song - “Ha’aheo ‘Oe Maui” - is from Kawai Cockett’s LP simply entitled “Kawai.” I enjoy this more every time I hear it since it not only features the sounds of the Hawaiian-style piano played as it should be by Auntie Leila Hohu Kiaha, but also the ‘ukulele strummed like nobody else could - or ever will again - by Kawai Cockett. Uncle Kawai’s contributions to the history of Hawaiian music cannot be underestimated, so you will no doubt hear from him again here soon.
Released in 1981 on the Lohe Records label, it has been more than 30 years since this recording has been available in any format.
This post is dedicated to my friends Kamala Lovena Aina-Cockett and Ha’aheo Cockett.