The Adventures of LitBoy: Bill Brent's Blog

RIDE THE HAWAIIAN RAINBOW

Aloha, y'all. I just wanted to let you know about this lovely Internet station that plays a lot of what I call "smooth" Hawaiian music during the daytime hours here in Hawaii. (Most likely, that would mean afternoons and early evenings in the Continental USA.)

So what is it about HawaiianRainbow.com that rocks my world? Think tasty, 1940s-style instrumental combos, doing Hawaiian rather than jazz or pop in the classic sense of pop music (Cole Porter, Irving Berlin, etc.) Does that make sense? All done with Hawaiian instruments, but in that small-orchestral style of elegant, complex chording, precisely harmonized vocals, all with a healthy seasoning of chromaticism. (My inner music geek is showing, heh ... my inner chef, too.)

Anyway, I was introduced recently to this station by a kind soul who has granted me a window seat overlooking some elegant bits of Hawaiian culture. So to him, I say "mahalo nui" (thank you much) and dedicate this post.

HAWAIIAN RAINBOW also plays more traditional Hawaiian music, in what I would call a folk or indigenous style. I've heard that sound on the station late in the evening, which would be early morning for most of you in the Continental USA.

Enjoy, and if y'all have any comments or feedback to share, perhaps your own music stations and particular shows online that YOU enjoy, then shout it out by clicking on "POST A COMMENT" below, and share the joy.

Note: My photo here is from the series I took at the April 11 ho'ike (in essence, a show or exhibition) from the 44th annual Merrie Monarch Festival in Hilo, April 8 to April 14, 2007. This is an image of 'auana, as performed by the Japanese ensemble, Halau O Mehanaokala. 'Auana is a modern, song-accompanied hula, so I thought it was a good visual fit for the smooth, elegant music at Hawaiian Rainbow.

(By the way, I have many more lovely pictures here for you to enjoy — to see them all, just click the "hula" category tab in the sidebar to the left.)

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Wishing you a beautiful day,

Bill Brent

[this page last updated: 2008.08.17, 9:30 a.m. Hawaii time]

LitBoy.com is a culture-oriented site, focusing mainly on literary art and current events. If you enjoy this blog, and you wish to support its continued existence, please email a reply to this post. Indicate your desired contribution amount. The moderator will then reply with an invoice you can use to contribute via PayPal. Your name and contribution amount are confidential and NOT posted to the blog. Your three-dollar minimum donation helps keep this banner-free site alive. It's quick and easy!

20.00 / $200.00 (10.0%)

This meter displays this year's contributions to date in U.S. dollars and the annual goal of $200. Make a donation, watch the meter rise! Usually LitBoy posts your contribution on the very next blog post.

Unless otherwise indicated, all original materials here on LitBoy.com (writing, photos, drawings, graphics, etc.) belong to Bill Brent. If you want to re-use something here, please ask. Higher resolution images are available.

2008.04.06, Picture of the Day, Big Island of Hawaii

MERRIE MONARCH HULA FESTIVAL, 2008

ALOHA! These are pictures of the April 2 ho'ike (in essence, a show or exhibition) from the 45th annual Merrie Monarch Festival in Hilo, March 30 to April 7, 2008. I have many lovely ho'ike pictures here for you to enjoy, from both 2008 and 2007 — to see them all, just click the "hula" category tab in the sidebar to the left.

This is my second set of photos of the evening's events. Here are more pictures of the traditional hula kahiko, performed by Halau O Kekuhi:

The kahiko is the ancient hula with mele, or chant, which are records of cultural information. By contrast, the 'auana (not pictured here) is the modern, song-accompanied hula. Kahiko portrays the raw life force. Highly primordial, kahiko conveys power, sensuality, sexual prowess, and a deep reverence for natural balance. It is a worship of the gods.

Above and below, we see the 'olapa, who execute the dance movements. They are accompanied by the ho'opa'a, who chant the text and provide the percussive accompaniment for the dancers.

This group is Halau O Kekuhi, who also opened the ho'ike at the 2007 Merrie Monarch Festival; my pictures of that ceremony (with better lighting!) are HERE.

The kumu hula (source, origin, teacher of hula) of Halau O Kekuhi are Pualani Kanaka’ole Kanahele and Nalani Kanaka’ole. You can learn more by clicking HERE — it's a lovely site.

I have also found a summary of the evening's show, which you can read HERE. (You may have to register to view the summary. But the pictures are right here!)

This continues my series of photos from this year's Merrie Monarch Festival. If you enjoy this blog, please check back, or sign up for email updates (using the sidebar element beneath my picture and bio) to see what's new.

[PLEASE NOTE: I respect the cultural traditions of indigenous dance forms and strive to provide accurate information and context regarding those traditions whenever possible. If you feel I have made any errors of fact, or wish to supplement my posts with additional information, feel free to leave a comment with any suggestions, corrections, or enhancements. MAHALO NUI LOA!]

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Wishing you a beautiful day,

Bill Brent

[this page last updated: 2008.04.05, 3:35 p.m. Hawaii time]

LitBoy.com is a professional blog. Keeping it online costs me $200 per year. That's before paying me for my writing, photography, or anything else I do here. If you enjoy this blog, please use the Tip Jar at the top of this page. Your two-dollar minimum donation helps keep this banner-free site alive. It's quick and easy!

20.00 / $199.90 (10.0%)

This meter displays this year's contributions to date in U.S. dollars (after the funds processor takes its cut). Make a donation, watch the meter rise! Usually I post your contribution on my next blog post.

All original materials here on LitBoy.com (writing, photos, drawings, graphics, etc.) belong to Bill Brent. If you want to re-use something here, please ask. Higher resolution images are available.

2008.04.05, Picture of the Day, Big Island of Hawaii

MERRIE MONARCH HULA FESTIVAL, 2008

ALOHA! These are pictures of the April 2 ho'ike (in essence, a show or exhibition) from the 45th annual Merrie Monarch Festival in Hilo, March 30 to April 7, 2008. I have many lovely ho'ike pictures here for you to enjoy, from both 2008 and 2007 — to see them all, just click the "hula" category tab in the sidebar to the left.

This is my first set of photos of the evening's events. Here is a traditional hula kahiko, performed by Halau O Kekuhi:

The kumu hula (source, origin, teacher of hula) of Halau O Kekuhi are Pualani Kanaka’ole Kanahele and Nalani Kanaka’ole. You can learn more by clicking HERE — it's a lovely site.

I also found a summary of the evening's show, which you can read HERE. (You may have to register to view the summary. But the pictures are right here!)

This begins my series of photos from this year's Merrie Monarch Festival. If you enjoy this blog, please check back, or sign up for email updates (using the sidebar element beneath my picture and bio) to see what's new.

[NOTE: I respect the cultural traditions of indigenous dance forms and strive to provide accurate information and context regarding those traditions whenever possible. If you feel I have made any errors in fact, or wish to supplement my posts with additional information, feel free to leave a comment with any suggestions, corrections, or enhancements. MAHALO NUI LOA!]

---

Wishing you a beautiful day,

Bill Brent

[this page last updated: 2008.04.04, 8:30 p.m. Hawaii time]

LitBoy.com is a professional blog. Keeping it online costs me $200 per year. That's before paying me for my writing, photography, or anything else I do here. If you enjoy this blog, please use the Tip Jar at the top of this page. Your two-dollar minimum donation helps keep this banner-free site alive. It's quick and easy!

20.00 / $199.90 (10.0%)

This meter displays this year's contributions to date in U.S. dollars (after the funds processor takes its cut). Make a donation, watch the meter rise! Usually I post your contribution on my next blog post.

All original materials here on LitBoy.com (writing, photos, drawings, graphics, etc.) belong to Bill Brent. If you want to re-use something here, please ask. Higher resolution images are available.

2007.04.18, Picture of the Day, Big Island of Hawaii

MERRIE MONARCH HULA FESTIVAL, 2007

ALOHA! These are pictures of the April 11 ho'ike (in essence, a show or exhibition) from the 44th annual Merrie Monarch Festival in Hilo, April 8 to April 14, 2007. I have many lovely pictures here for you to enjoy — to see them all, just click the "hula" category tab in the sidebar to the left.

This is my last set of photos of the evening's events. Here is a traditional hula kahiko, performed by Halau Na Mamo O Pu'uanahulu:

This is one of Hawaii's largest schools of hula. Its kumu (source, origin, teacher) is Kumu Sonny Ching. You can read and watch more by clicking HERE — it's a lovely site.

I also found a review of the evening's show, which you can read HERE. (But the pictures are right here, heh! I am posting photos of Halau Na Mamo O Pu'uanahulu here in two consecutive blog posts; you are now viewing post #1 of 2.)

This concludes my series of photos from this year's Merrie Monarch Festival. If you enjoy this blog, please check back, or sign up for email updates (using the sidebar element beneath my picture and bio) to see what's new.

[last updated: 2008.04.04, 6:45 p.m. Hawaii time]

[NOTE: This week I have been learning on the fly about the cultural context of the various Polynesian dance forms, using a combination of online articles, the Hawaii Island Journal dated 4/7 to 4/20/2007, the Hawaiian Dictionary (Pukui / Elbert), and the advice and information of a friend who is a long-time Hawaii resident. I strive to provide accurate information and context regarding cultural traditions whenever possible. If you feel I have made any errors in fact, feel free to leave a comment with any suggestions or corrections.]

---

Wishing you a beautiful day,

Bill Brent

LitBoy.com is a professional blog. Keeping it online costs me $179 per year. That's before paying me for my writing, photography, or anything else I do. If you enjoy this blog, please use the Tip Jar at the top of this page. Your two-dollar minimum donation helps keep this banner-free site alive. It's quick and easy!

31 / 179 (17.2%)

This meter displays this year's contributions to date in U.S. dollars (after the funds processor takes its cut). Make a donation, watch the meter rise! Usually I post your contribution within 24 hours.

All original materials here on LitBoy.com (writing, photos, drawings, graphics, etc.) belong to Bill Brent. If you want to re-use something here, please ask. Higher resolution images are available.

2005.04.17, Picture of the Day, Big Island of Hawaii

MERRIE MONARCH HULA FESTIVAL, 2007

ALOHA! These are pictures of the April 11 ho'ike (in essence, a show or exhibition) from the 44th annual Merrie Monarch Festival in Hilo, April 8 to April 14, 2007. I have many lovely pictures here for you to enjoy — to see them all, just click the "hula" category tab in the sidebar to the left.

This is my first set of photos of the evening's final hula event, a traditional hula kahiko, performed by Halau Na Mamo O Pu'uanahulu:

This is one of Hawaii's largest schools of hula. Its kumu (source, origin, teacher) is Kumu Sonny Ching. You can read and watch more by clicking HERE — it's a lovely site.

I also found a review of the evening's show, which you can read HERE. (But the pictures are right here, heh! I am posting photos of Halau Na Mamo O Pu'uanahulu here in two consecutive blog posts; you are now viewing post #1 of 2.)

I will continue to post my photos from this year's Merrie Monarch Festival, so please check back, or sign up for email updates (using the sidebar element beneath my picture and bio) to see what's new.

[last updated: 2007.04.19, 9:35 p.m. Hawaii time]

[NOTE: This week I have been learning on the fly about the cultural context of the various Polynesian dance forms, using a combination of online articles, the Hawaii Island Journal dated 4/7 to 4/20/2007, the Hawaiian Dictionary (Pukui / Elbert), and the advice and information of a friend who is a long-time Hawaii resident. I strive to provide accurate information and context regarding cultural traditions whenever possible. If you feel I have made any errors in fact, feel free to leave a comment with any suggestions or corrections.]

---

Wishing you a beautiful day,

Bill Brent

LitBoy.com is a professional blog. Keeping it online costs me $179 per year. That's before paying me for my writing, photography, or anything else I do. If you enjoy this blog, please use the Tip Jar at the top of this page. Your two-dollar minimum donation helps keep this banner-free site alive. It's quick and easy!

31 / 179 (17.2%)

This meter displays this year's contributions to date in U.S. dollars (after the funds processor takes its cut). Make a donation, watch the meter rise! Usually I post your contribution within 24 hours.

All original materials here on LitBoy.com (writing, photos, drawings, graphics, etc.) belong to Bill Brent. If you want to re-use something here, please ask. Higher resolution images are available.