The Music of the Native Hawaiians

Hawaii.

What comes to mind? Vacation, the beach, coconuts...

Hawaii is a group of volcanic islands in the Pacific Ocean that makes up 1/3 of the Polynesian Triangle - Hawaii, New Zealand and Easter Island. The islands were settled by Polynesians from Tahiti and the Marquesas Islands as early as the 7th century. The original Hawaiians lived under a caste system, and developed a land tenure system akin to European feudalism. Eventually, a monarchy emerged in the 17th century and was put to an end by the annexation of the islands by the United States.

Mele hula & Mele oli

The US Census Bureau reported in 2022 that the Hawaiian population is 10.5% Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander. The immigration of different ethnic groups to Hawaii affected the music of Native Hawaiians as with any other culture, but Native traditions are still around. The music of the Native Hawaiians was closely linked to poetry - their word Mele meaning both poetry and music. Mele is a chant, and there are two kinds - Mele oli, and Mele hula. The word hula probably sounds familiar. Mele hula is a chant that is traditionally accompanied by drum, shaker, and dancing. The drum is called the pahu, and its roots are traced to other Polynesian islands. The pahu is made from the stump of a coconut tree and shark skin is stretched over it to make the drum head. It is played with the hands and is used for religious ceremonies and hula exclusively. Often the dancers will hold what's called and 'uli'uli. This is a gourd rattle - yet again, gourds prove themselves great instruments!

Hula takes discipline, strength and mastery comparable to that of ballet. In this video from the Merrie Monarch Festival, the biggest hula competition in Hawaii, you can see the women in the back, playing the pahu and singing, while a group dances. Notice how small the range of the Mele is. It is sung in Hawaiian.

Mele oli is an unaccompanied chant, sung solo. It is sung on ritual occasions, such as weddings and funerals, and often tells historical stories of Hawaii - kind of like the griot songs. Depending on the purpose or occasion, the oli is sung differently. It can be rhythmically rapid or soft and melismatic for prayer or songs of love, respectively. Listen to this welcoming chant, one of love and affection.

Slack-key guitar

The guitar yet again makes its way to another culture!

Hispanic or Latino people make up 11.1% of Hawaii's population according to the US Census Bureau in 2022. Hispanic immigration to Hawaii started as the agricultural industry grew. Hispanic people were contracted to harvest pineapples and sugarcane as well as take care of cattle on ranches. With this growing Hispanic population came the slack-key guitar, or kī hōʻalu, a style of guitar where the strings are slackened to where the open string play a chord. This style is unique to Hawaii and lends itself to the use of the chromatic scale.

Colonization & Music

In the 18th century, white people did it again. Hawaii was "discovered" by British explorer James Cook, and thus became a stopping point for ships coming from Asia to the US and vice versa, bringing trade, Mormon missionaries and colonization. This of course brought other religions to Hawaii, and thus the syncretism of hymnody and Hawaiian music created what's called himeni. 

In the midst of this period of extreme change for Hawaii, the instrument probably most associated with the sounds of Hawaii was invented by a high schooler: the steel guitar. Joseph Kekuku invented the instrument in his boarding school dorm room after his converted Mormon parents moved to Utah and he decided to stay behind. The steel guitar has higher action (how far the strings are from the fretboard) and is played on the lap with a metallic cylinder. Think of any of the music from Spongebob. It probably has steel guitar in it. Its popularity spread quickly throughout the US, and is also highly associated with the rural American South.

Names you might know...

I'm sure the little ukulele version of "Over the Rainbow" is familiar to you. It's sung by Israel Kamakawiwo'ole, the most popular contemporary Hawaiian singer. The ukulele actually came from Portuguese immigrants in the 19th century, who brought their four-stringed instrument called the bragha. The name "ukulele" comes from a nickname for a small, energetic army officer, meaning "jumping flea." Ukulele is often included in hula, as well since then.

Israel Kamakawiwo'ole redefined "Over the Rainbow" and became a legend for it. By all accounts he was a joy to be around. He died in 1997 due to complications with obesity, which many members of his family had suffered from already. He speaks of it briefly in this video, how when his time comes, not to cry - to plant a tree.

If you'd like a quick cry, here you go.

The music of the Native Hawaiians is rich in beauty and spirituality. Hawaii is much more than vacations, coconuts and the beach, right?

Works Cited

Conde, Arturo. 2014. "Hispanic Heritage: How Did We End Up In These 4 Places?" NBC News, October 6, 2014. https://www.nbcnews.com/storyline/hispanic-heritage-month/hispanic-heritage-how-did-we-end-these-4-places-n214161

History.com. 2022. "Hawaii." Last modified December 13, 2022. https://www.history.com/topics/us-states/hawaii

Morning Edition. 2011. "Israel Kamakawiwo'ole: The Voice of Hawai." NPR, March 9, 2011. https://www.npr.org/2010/12/06/131812500/israel-kamakawiwo-ole-the-voice-of-hawaii

Shah, Haleema. 2019. "How the Hawaiian Steel Guitar Changed American Music." Smithsonian Magazine, April 25, 2019. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smithsonian-institution/how-hawaiian-steel-guitar-changed-american-music-180972028/

Smith, Barbara B. 1959. "Folk Music in Hawaii." Journal of the International Folk Music Council, no. 11: 50-55. Cambridge University Press. https://doi.org/10.2307/834858 

Smithsonian. n.d. "Na Leo Hawai'i: Musics of Hawai'i." Smithsonian Folkways Recordings, accessed January 24, 2023. https://folkways.si.edu/na-leo-hawaii/music/article/smithsonian

Music & Family

Let me introduce my Auntie Jeanne. She opened up our FaceTime call with Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young playing on her Alexa in the background. "I'm sure you know that, Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young?" she says. David Crosby died on January 18th. "81 years old, he lived a good life. He partied hard. But, it's sad. That's who I grew up with, you know?" She dives into questions about my college life, and I tell her I'm going to the winter formal tonight and her first question is about the music. "I wanna see pictures later! And I'm sure there's music. Do you all play?" I tell her no, they hired a band, and that I think the live music is better than a DJ, and she responds, "You don't have to tell me that, I know."

Auntie Jeanne is my Sittoo's (a Lebanese word for "grandma") sister. Suffice to say, Lebanese households are musical. "Look at Middle Eastern music, too, I mean, come on," she responds. "Nobody has a beat like we do."

In Fall River, Massachusetts, Jeanne had a restaurant and club for over 20 years. She's working on selling the building in the coming weeks, but can't let it go without a final goodbye. "We planned a big party, a musical reunion...you know, bands that played there all the time, that were a part of Water Street...these people were my musical life for 20-plus years." She tells me about how music brought people together at Water Street. She saw couples meet and fall in love there, all because the music brought them to the same place. They had bands all weekend, and eventually, Jeanne and my uncle Jim decided to host the Sunday Jams themselves. "It was my release. Like, I used to live for Sunday, because that was when I would heal my soul."

She continues to tell me about the Sunday Jams. She talks about how she felt standing between all the musicians, how she's regretful she didn't pick up an instrument, how it's the best feeling to be on stage. "Standing in between the music...the drums behind me, and the bass beside me, and the guitar, and the saxophones, I mean, that's, like, the best feeling in the world...it brings out every emotion. It defines us and it unites us. It's everything."

Jeanne stresses the idea of playing music for music's sake. "With Water Street, the room is about music. It's not a bar, that has music, it's music, and we have a bar." With the musical reunion, she tells me about how it to work with other musicians again. "I'm not starting a band at this juncture," she says. "Maybe someday, once we hit the islands...I've said this for years. Put me on an island, put me in a moo moo, give me a joint, play the music, I'm happy...just sing and have music in my life everyday. Not that I need the joint..."

I ask about the music in her home growing up. "Well you know Giddoo, his voice, of an angel, I mean, I know I sing because of my father. I have his soul. I feel him when I sing." She is talking about my great grandfather, Giddoo (a Lebanese word for "grandpa") Joe. "He loved Ella Fitzgerald. He loved jazz...I remember him playing this music alongside the Lebanese music. Our house was always popping." Being the youngest, Jeanne learned the 60s pop music her older sisters loved. "All of those oldies before rock and roll really took over, I loved all that, too."

"Joni." The answer to my question about the most important music in her life. "Joni. She's my go to...'Case Of You.' I'll be cleaning and cooking...'god, what do I wanna listen to, oh, Alexa, play Joni Mitchell!'"

One of my burning questions is about the concerts she went to. "I mean, so many. When we were kids, we went to concerts 3, 4, 5 times a month because they were so cheap!...Memorable? Greg Allman. Laid Back. You know the song 'These Days?' Listen to it." She tells me to listen to the album. "Sly and the Family Stone, Earth, Wind & Fire...Pink Floyd, Arizona - I love you, I'm not gonna give you all the details, but it was amazing." She actually met Pink Floyd at a truck stop the day after. If you hadn't noticed, my Auntie Jeanne is pretty damn cool.

Auntie Jeanne ends our discussion by asking me to send her videos when I write music. Her spirituality surrounding music inspires me. "You are music," she tells me. "I don't know what I would do without music." I wholeheartedly agree.

What in the world is Rockabilly???

What is rockabilly?

Rockabilly is a musical style that arose after World War II and really found its footing in the 1950s. It traces back to the styles of the American South, such as country, bluegrass, honky-tonk and Western swing. These styles combine to make what was called "hillbilly" music, at the time, and eventually the fusion of rhythm & blues with hillbilly became known as "rockabilly" (the earliest rock & roll came from rhythm & blues, hence the "rock" in "rockabilly").

American country music has roots specifically in the blues, as do the amalgamation of styles that create hillbilly. They all stem from the music of the American South. Rhythm & blues grew out of musical styles that Black Americans took with them as they migrated from the rural south to more urban communities between World War I and World War II. Places like Chicago, Memphis, New York and Detroit were hubs for this development. Sam Philips, a radio engineer in Memphis, Tennessee, had been recording rhythm & blues artists for three years with his company Sun Records when a teenager by the name of Elvis Presley came to record - "That's Alright," written by Arthur "Big Boy" Crudup, a blues musician from Mississippi, has an early rockabilly sound, with slapped bass, upbeat blues progressions and country-style guitar playing.

What does rockabilly sound like?

Early Elvis recordings had deep, echoing vocals. The use of echo is distinct - in an era where recording, mixing and mastering is all done digitally, it's hard to imagine how echo would be added. One type of echo, reverb, would be produced by the room they recorded in. Philips had his own echo he dubbed "Sun echo," which is referred to as slap-back, a type of delay. This can be heard clearly in Elvis's "Blue Moon of Kentucky" (which was originally written and recorded by Bill Monroe & the Bluegrass Boys), the other side of "That's Alright."

Songwriter and guitarist Carl Perkins headed straight for Sam Philips at Sun Records after hearing Elvis's "That's Alright." His "Blue Suede Shoes" became a well-known rockabilly classic, later warranting a recording by Elvis. Perkins and his brothers, Jay and Clayton, recorded with upright bass, electric and acoustic guitar, and used the drum kit sparingly. The instrumentation of the rockabilly genre is scant and to the point - there is no use of cymbals, there is no loud snare drum - the slapping of the bass usually serves as the main percussive element. "Blue Suede Shoes" is has a chugging tempo and also implements stop-time breaks, a feature of a lot of jazz music - another link back to blues and its roots.

Going a little later into rockabilly, the sounds of Wanda Jackson appear in Oklahoma. Jackson was a hot-headed, strong-willed teenage girl who broke first into country music signed to Decca Records (who later signed Buddy Holly), then found her style in rockabilly while wearing go-go dresses signed to Capitol. The classic rockabilly instrumentation and vocal delay can be heard in her music, but what's unique about Jackson is not only her gender and verve, but the use of her voice. Throughout her career she's developed a belt that women tend to stay away from. In this recording of "I Gotta Know," her cannonball into rockabilly, the country elements are still very present in the change to triple meter and steel guitar, making her music a kind of country-rockabilly fusion.

Where did rockabilly go?

Sun Records recorded many other famous rockers such as Sonny Burgess, Jerry Lee Lewis and Roy Orbison with the rockabilly sound. As these artists toured and played on prime-time television, the popularity of the genre increased. Musicians such as Buddy Holly were inspired to make the switch from country music. This is where rockabilly starts to dilute itself a little bit - the introduction of cymbals and backing vocals denote a more evolved sound than the more classic tunes.

As the genre progressed, more and more instruments were added - in Sonny Burgess's "We Wanna Boogie" muted trumpet is showcased. Jerry Lee Lewis famously rocked with his piano. Drums gained more and more presence in the rhythm section. These changes and additions contributed to the evolution of individual artists, pushing them into rock. Rockabilly lived a short life, only about a decade, but propelled artists into other areas of the new and improving rock & roll.

The genre is survived by bands that took interest in it mainly in the 1970s, after Elvis's death, such as Stray Cats, Matchbox and the Flat Duo Jets. Instrumentation and recording have definitely changed since the 50s, as some of these bands use a rock setup (electric guitar, electric bass, full drum kit), but the swing feel and blues chord progressions definitive of the style are pervasive. The Flat Duo Jets play with a classic rockabilly band and sound, and have influenced the likes of Jack White of The White Stripes.

The sound of the original rockabilly comes from a whole range of genres, tracing all of their roots back to the blues, and coming together to form a short-lived tradition. It isn't iconic of any one artist, even as it links back to Elvis, who went on to record other genres more famously. It mostly served as a transitional style to get artists from country music to rock & roll, which led them to more success than rockabilly initially gave them. There is little that is more American than combining different cultures and watching them evolve - rockabilly was a small portion of that evolution that has its own little place in rock history.

Works Cited

George-Warren, Holly. n.d. "Wanda Jackson." Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. Accessed January 18, 2023. https://www.rockhall.com/inductees/wanda-jackson

Hill, Micheal. n.d. "Carl Perkins." Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. Accessed January 18, 2023. https://www.rockhall.com/inductees/carl-perkins

Library of Congress. n.d. "Rockabilly." Accessed January 18, 2023. https://www.loc.gov/collections/songs-of-america/about-this-collection/

MasterClass. 2021. "Rockabilly Music: History of Rockabilly and Notable Artists." MasterClass Articles. Last updated June 9, 2021. https://www.masterclass.com/articles/rockabilly-music-guide

Puryear, Mark. 2016. "Tell It Like It Is: A History of Rhythm and Blues." Folklife Magazine, September 20, 2016. https://folklife.si.edu/magazine/freedom-sounds-tell-it-like-it-is-a-history-of-rhythm-and-blues

Music & Gender

Taylor Swift is one of the most successful musicians in the world. Her songwriting prowess and business savvy make her a powerful figure in pop music. She is also a good case study on the intersection of music and gender. 

Swift's impact on my life goes back to when I was about 10 years old. I have loved and connected to her music for a long time, and the significance of her gender has never been lost on me. I remember being in middle school and feeling embarrassed by the emotional connection I had to her music. To my classmates, she was annoying, and her music even more so. As young girls, we feel judged for the things we're interested in. Taylor Swift's music and pop persona spoke to me. She was unabashedly feminine, unapologetically dramatic, and a clever songwriter. She used the misogyny she experienced to create the song "Blank Space" off of 1989. I adore this performance of this song. Even if you don't like her music, at least hear her out in the beginning.

Swift is no stranger to the obstacles women in particular face in the public eye. As a young adult she was praised for knowing her place as an entertainer, staying out of politics, not expressing concrete opinions. Female artists are often expected to uphold their "good girl" image. And when they can't, as is expected of a growing, changing human, it is judged by the whole world. She is certainly not the first to have these experiences, but she has in recent years used her music to express her frustrations explicitly. Here she is talking about the writing process of "mad woman" off of Folklore.

From a personal standpoint, Swift's music wouldn't be as important to me if she weren't a woman. From a business standpoint, her femininity makes her music what it is. But I think most importantly, she has inspired a generation of young women to write their own shamelessly emotional music. Even now, as I write, I often use the excuse, "you don't wanna hear it, it's so dramatic" to avoid sharing music. I am afraid I will not be taken seriously. But if we are to exist in the music world as non-male musicians, then we need to be ourselves and learn not to apologize for it. We need to take up space. We need to express ourselves without reservation. Taylor Swift's music will always inspire me to write authentically as a woman.

Music & Rituals

Graduations, of any kind, are something all kids in America experience. As someone who grew up in the public school system, there was always the obligatory song at the end of any educational journey. There's the traditional Pomp and Circumstance, (which has always been boring and kinda dirge-y to me) but I've always been more interested in the selection of a song that really means something to someone moving up and moving on. If you want to start way at the beginning, there's definitely a video somewhere of a 5-year-old Fay singing the "Tiny Tots" preschool song in an adorable little cap and gown. 11-year-old Fay sang Bruno Mars's "Count On Me" in an elementary school cafeteria/gym/auditorium with 50 other 5th graders and it felt like the biggest moment in the world to her. Music is incorporated into moving up everywhere.

I normally wouldn't say literally anything about middle school was special because that is the lowest point of grade school. But moving up from the 8th grade was special to me, because I was moving districts. I'm embarrassing myself because this is one of the formative moments of songwriting for me, and it was immigrated with graduating. This song is called "Voice," and the faculty invited me to be the singer at the ceremony, and sing that song. 

This is a performance from a talent show.

Then we move on to high school. High school graduation obviously holds a lot more significance in terms of where your teenage life is headed than middle school does. At the school I went to, the junior class usually picked songs to send the seniors off to because our junior and senior arts classes were integrated. But with Covid, we didn't get to do so - and as a result, the teacher let us pick our own songs as seniors to dedicate to our class. Some of the music majors picked the song "Rise Up," by Andra Day. There seems to be a theme of overcoming hardship (or in this case distance learning) in these moving-up songs.

I spent a long time trying to come up with something non-traditional, something that people don't usually do at graduations. However I fell back onto a classic I couldn't go wrong with - "Vienna" by Billy Joel. This song embodies an idea I find very important when it comes to pursuing the arts, or any career for that matter: if you don't slow down and appreciate the things around you, you get caught up in all the stress and drama of life. You don't have to know the answers to everything yet. And the line that chokes me up the most (quite cynically, honestly): Dream on, but don't imagine they'll all come true.

Music and Me!

 Hi! I'm Fay. I'm a Contemporary Music major here at Converse, but I've been passionate about the performing arts from the time I was very little. I made sidewalks and Stop & Shop aisles my stage until about middle school, when I started taking voice and guitar lessons and wrote songs a la Taylor Swift. I have three siblings who share my love of music and play enough instruments to make up our own "Partridge Family" band but never will because I think we would rip each other's heads off. Besides music, I participated in community theater for years and love to bake. The most important things in life to me are my family, my friends, and writing music. 

                         

1. Something I like to just put on when I hop in the car recently is Troglodyte by Viagra Boys. They're an alternative band that I like to say specializes in nasty-sounding music. They're my recent indulgence into post-punk. My older brother Liam introduced them to me, and I look up to him because he's an older punk, with his piercings and cool Dr. Martens and anti-capitalism. A lot of my punk/alternative music comes from his Spotify. The thing I admire about Viagra Boys is their disregard for conventional appearances that is reminiscent of Devo to me.

2. A piece of music that resonates with me and has become even more important to me with time is the song Circle Game by Joni Mitchell. Joni's writing always sticks with me. As someone who wants to write music for the rest of my life, I hope to reach someone's heart the way she reaches mine. This song was first shown to me by my Auntie Jeanne, who leaves every family gathering by saying "happy happy, joy joy, peace, love." She has been one of the biggest supporters of my music since I started writing, and she will never let me forget Joni's magic. And as I grow up, I never want to.

Growing up and going to college has given me more than I've ever had to think about. This song reminds me that we're at the mercy of the Earth's rotations and though we can't control that, we are not alone.

3. While I like to keep an open mind, there is some music I don't enjoy. In terms of popular music, I cannot get behind the boy-band-fashionista-pop-star-hunk Harry Styles. One of my very best friends melts when she hears him sing, but whenever I listen to his music, I feel like something is missing and I can't put my finger on what it is. I was never a fan of One Direction. I didn't get the appeal of a pretty boy singing directly to me. So maybe a lot of his current fans grew up with him, but I just don't get him. An example of a song I just don't really enjoy:

4. There is some music I would like to share! I write a lot of music. I am obsessed with expressing emotions with unexpected words. I love composing melodies and lyrics that interact with each other. I think a song that both touches your heart and gets stuck in your head is a great song. Here's one of mine! You can hear it on Spotify, Apple Music, and YouTube. This song is very important me. It is an expression of some of the hardest emotions I've had to grapple with in terms of relationships. And bonus, I am very proud of the vocal arrangement. :)