Hot Performances And Cool Books

Melissa Moniz
By .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)
Friday - April 07, 2010
| Del.icio.us
Katchafire headlines Mayjah Rayjah

Look out, Waikiki Shell, ‘cause Island Fire Productions, Ray Jr. and KCCN FM100 are comin’ atcha with the Mayjah Rayjah next week Saturday (April 17).

Don’t miss the only chance to skank with concert headliner Katchafire in the group’s exclusive 2010 Hawaii performance.

“This is our first show of what we hope will become an annual concert, so we wanted to do it big with the only performance that Katchafire will do this year in Hawaii,” says Ryan Chang, president and CEO of Island Fire Productions.

But before the hot reggae group from New Zealand take the stage, some of Hawaii’s heavy hitters will show their skills.


Doors open at 4 p.m. and the show starts at 5 with Straight Up followed by All Natro. The island reggae party continues with Cease Fyah, Nesian N.I.N.E., Kolohe Kai and The Green.

The Waitiki 7

Then make way for Rebel Souljahz as the group blasts out all the hits from its recently released album Bring Back The Days and its debut release Nothing To Hide. “All the bands we picked are who’s hot right now and getting a lot of radio play,” says Chang. “It’s a lot of our personal favorites.”

Lawn tickets cost $20 presale (first 2,500) and $30. Also, take advantage of the group rate (10 or more tickets for $15 each). Reserved seats cost $35 and $40.

Grab your tickets at the Blaisdell Box Office, Macy’s or http://www.ticketmaster.com ...

Accomplished musicians from here and far collide as The Waitiki 7 takes over Fresh Cafe Friday, showcasing its exotic beats unlike anything you’ve experienced.

From 9:30 p.m. to 1 a.m., band members Tim Mayer from Boston (soprano/tenor saxophones, alto flute), Helen Lui from Boston (violin), Zaccai Curtis from New York City (piano), Jim Benoit from Boston (vibes), and our Hawaii guys Abe Lagrimas Jr. (drums), Lopaka Colon (percussion) and Randy Wong (upright bass) will heat up the stage with special guest DJ Don Bongo.

The Waitiki 7 will perform songs from its debut album, Adventures in Paradise, released last August. The album is a modern look into the classic exotica sound introduced to Hawaii by Martin Denny.

One of Daniel Ho’s five book releases

Tickets are available online at http://www.honoluluboxoffice.com . Cost is $15 advance and $7 for college students and military. Tickets at the door cost $20 general, $10 for students and military. Free valet parking is available ...

Daniel Ho has five reasons to celebrate, and we’re not talking about the five Grammy Awards for Best Hawaiian Music Album that he’s received.

Ho recently channeled his passion for music into books - five, to be exact.

“It was a welcome change of pace to take a break from recording,” says Ho. “I don’t really have much of an agenda. I try to work on what inspires me and release it when it’s ready. I felt a momentum and just went with it.”

Just released are Colorful Sounds, na ‘ikena and Open String Fingerstyle for Guitar. To-be released this month are Polani and Got It!

My renewed interest in publishing music books began last summer,” says Ho. “Cindy Tseng, the pianist for the Ars Nova Sinfonia orchestra, was performing a toccata I wrote called Oceandance. I described to her how Oceandance was composed using a unique harmony system and how I had wanted to write a book about it for over 20 years. She mentioned she had a master’s degree in pedagogy. I asked her, ‘What is pedagogy?‘She said, ‘I’ll tell you what ... you teach me this harmony method, and I’ll help you organize and edit your book.’ And so Colorful Sounds was born.”


In it, Ho shares his unique perspective on creating music using a method that focuses on modules (groups of notes).

Got It! teaches music theory with an unique style where students aurally experience the concepts first and then immediately apply the theory to easy compositional and improvisational exercises.

For na ‘ikena, Ho teamed up with longtime friend and musical colleague Amy Ku’uleialoha Stillman to create a collection of all of the songs on the Grammy Award-winning album ‘ikena and its Grammy-nominated follow-up, He Nani.

Na ‘ikena is definitely not your typical songbook,” says Stillman. “We set out to document what these songs are musically, and to talk story about the creative processes in writing and recording these songs.”

The books are available at Borders, Dan’s Guitars and at http://www.danielho.com.

And for those who are wondering, also in the works this year for Ho is another CD with Tia Carrere, Masters of Hawaiian Slack Key Guitar, vol. 3, a chant CD with Kawaikapuokalani Hewett, a Lili’uokalani kahiko CD with Kulia I Ka Punawai, and an ukulele surf CD with Herb Ohta Jr. and the Parc Hotel. And maybe he’ll sneak in a solo album to the mix ...

E-mail this story | Print this page | Comments (0) | Archive | RSS Comments (0) |

Most Recent Comment(s):

Posting a comment on MidWeek.com requires a free registration.

Username

Password

Auto Login

Forgot Password

Sign Up for MidWeek newsletter Times Supermarket
Foodland

 

 



Hawaii Luxury
Magazine


Tiare Asia and Alex Bing
were spotted at the Sugar Ray's Bar Lounge