The Music Comes First

One year after taking over the Royal Hawaiian Band, Michael Nakasone is earning rave reviews from musicians

Friday - February 17, 2006
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Michael Nakasone leads the band during its
weekly concert at Ala Moana Center

talist and was the youngest member of the band at the time.

Since then, more young musicians have joined the band. Among them are clarinetists Steven Asaga, a University of Hawaii music graduate, and Denby Dung, Miss Hawaii 2001. Applicants go through a competitive interview and audition process to get the rare openings that occur in the RHB.

They know that full-time music jobs in this town are rare. Those opportunities exist at only two places: the Royal Hawaiian Band and Honolulu Symphony orchestra.

So band members are grateful for their jobs and realize the serious mission they have to perform the music of Hawaii with passion and professionalism. As French horn player Dennis Nagamine says, “We have to make sure the product is good in return for the responsibility we have.”

Fellow French horn player Eric Kop adds, “The band is part of history. We all play a role in that history and take that very seriously.”

Agasa says enthusiastically, “I love my job; I can do this every day. It’s demanding, but the music is there. The music in the band is stronger, and players are producing more.”

Okimoto agrees. “The band’s been under the radar. Now we’re accessible,” he says.

“It’s reflective in the programming, and it comes from a lot of input from the band members. It’s great to play for events now and feel relevant.”

Under Nakasone, the band took its first tour outside of Hawaii since 1988. Last September, the band went on a six-day goodwill tour of Japan, playing at Kamakura, Tokyo and Yokohama. The band performed with Japan’s hula halaus, reinforcing the ties between Japan and Hawaiian music and dance.

It’s something being incorporated into more concerts at home, too.

Expect to see more guest appearances by local hula groups, such as Halau Ohana O Ke Anuenue. That should delight local dancers as well as tourists who choose Hawaii as a travel destination to experience Island culture.

It’s also meaningful for artists who are dedicated to perpetuating Hawaiian culture. Singers such as Nalani Olds, Gary Keawe Aiko, Misty Kelai, Malia Kaai, Penny Silva and Ihilani Miller have found a “home” at the Royal Hawaiian Band.

Singer Olds was hired in1981 by Aaron Mahi, whom she calls a “musical genius.” She gushes, “I cannot tell you what it is like to stand up and sing with this magnificent band. Our young musicians and performers (contemporary artists) need to set their foundation by listening to classical Hawaiian music. This is what the Royal Hawaiian Band is all about.”

Indeed there are those who believe that a community’s musical history is an indicator of its cultural, social and economic health.

As Mayor Hannemann puts it: “The Royal Hawaiian Band holds a unique place in Hawaii and our nation. The band helps define our Honolulu, and its members, as they have through the past 170 years, serve as ambassadors of aloha every time they perform. The band adds immeasurably to the quality of life here. In that sense, you can’t put a price tag on its value to the community.”

So let the music play on under the baton of bandmaster Nakasone. Let the talented musicians and singers interpret the best music written in Hawaii.

But the audience plays an important part too. It must respond and become involved.

After all, it’s all about the music.

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