Hawaii’s Back yard
Cheryl Chee Tsutsumi
Isle culture flowers
at Kauai eventFor a full week in September, the Hawaiian culture bursts into full bloom at the Kauai Mokihana Festival.
Named after Kauai's official flower, the festival was launched in 1984 with a single event -- the Kauai Composers Contest and Concert -- which Nathan Kalama, James Panui and Larry Duhaylongsod (members of the Hawaiian musical group Malie) organized with a $300 grant from the Hasegawa Komuten Community Relations Board.
With support from then-Mayor Eduardo Malapit and radio station KUAI, the event was staged at the Kauai Convention Center in Lihue.
"We were lucky if we had 50 people in the audience," recalls Kalama, "but we made a $50 profit!"
COURTESY KAUAI MOKIHANA FESTIVAL
A three-day hula festival is a highlight of the Kauai Mokihana Festival.
If Panui and Duhaylongsod were alive today, they would be thrilled to see that the festival they helped found now attracts more than 7,000 people from all over the world, who come to enjoy hula, music, arts and crafts demonstrations, and workshops.
"I stand up at the events and ask what countries the audience is from," says Kalama, the festival's director. "We've had visitors from Norway, Sweden, Italy, China, Japan, New Zealand and Ghana, to name a few."
Open exclusively to Kauai residents, the Composers Contest and Concert remains one of the festival's highlights. Only original works that have not been released for commercial sale prior to June 30 of the current year are eligible.
A distinguished panel of judges -- which in past years has included popular entertainers such as Karen Keawehawaii and Tony Conjugacion -- pares the entries to no more than three in each of five categories: Hawaiian (lyrics in Hawaiian with translation provided); Contemporary Hawaiian (English lyrics about Hawaii); Open (Jawaiian, blues, gospel, rock 'n' roll, jazz, etc.); Professional (those who have released a recording for sale to the public and/or presently have a steady gig); and Youth (ages 14 through 20).
COURTESY KAUAI MOKIHANA FESTIVAL
Performers prepare by adorning themselves with colorful lei and flowers.
Composers perform their songs before the judges and an enthusiastic crowd at the concert. No choreography, props, sets or other enhancements are allowed, so attention can be focused solely on the music and lyrics.
The Composer's Award recognizes the song judged the best in each category (criteria include the flow/mood of the tune, harmony, instrumentation and lyrical content). The Na Poe (People's Choice) Award goes to the song receiving the most votes from listeners of KUAI, which airs the top entries during the two days prior to the concert.
The songwriter who gives the most memorable performance based on appearance, showmanship and stage presentation garners the Performer's Award.
"Some past winners have hit it big on Kauai, including Eddie Lopez, Ilima Rivera, Lady Ipo Kahaunaele and Cindy Combs, all of whom are still playing professionally at various venues on the island," notes Kalama.
The three-day hula competition began 16 years ago as a kane (male) event only, but has since grown to include dancers of both genders ages 6 and up. According to Kalama, the competition is now the festival's signature event. This year 11 halau from Kauai, Oahu, Maui, Molokai, California and Japan will be competing in 11 solo and group categories.
"Our hula competition is not for every halau in that it is more contemporary in design and purpose," said Kalama. "Chants must have been written no more than 25 years ago. We firmly believe that present-day composers of oli (chants) should have a place to share their creativity. We offer that."
For the 'auana (modern hula) categories, songs earn bonus points if they are no more than 25 years old.
Says Kalama, "We even allow halau to use non-traditional implements and to create new ones. You never know what they'll come up with!"
COURTESY KAUAI MOKIHANA FESTIVAL
The Kauai Mokihana Festival was launched in 1984 to preserve Hawaiian music, dance, arts and cultural traditions.
One year, members of a troupe each held a cage containing a live bird. Another year, a halau carried baskets of flowers on stage. Kalama also recalls implements made of paper, Styrofoam, even Pringle cans!
In addition to providing stellar entertainment, the Kauai Mokihana Festival maintains an important community presence. For example, proceeds fund the Malie Scholarship, which, among other things, provides financial assistance to students attending Punana Leo O Kauai, a Hawaiian-language preschool. The festival also benefits the Kauai Food Bank and Kauai Community College's Performing Arts Center. Each year, its Malie Awards salute individuals, groups and businesses that have demonstrated a high standard of excellence in the promotion, preservation and perpetuation of Hawaiian music on Kauai.
For Kalama, spearheading the festival takes a lot of hard work, but "it is a way of honoring my kumu hula, Aunty Nona Beamer, and my friends Larry Kelii Duhaylongsod and James Ekolu Panui, with whom I played music on Kauai for 10 years. Although I was born on Oahu, it is Kauai and its people who have embraced me over the years, and the festival is my way of giving something back to the island."
Where: Various times and venues Kauai Mokihana Festival
When: Today through Saturday
Call: 822-2166
Web site: www.kauai.net/mokihana
The schedule
Today
>> 10 a.m.: Hawaiian church service at Kapaa First Hawaiian Church
>> 6 p.m.: Hawaiian instrumental competition at Poipu Bay Grill & Bar; $10.
Monday
>> 7 p.m.: Kauai Composers Contest and Concert at Kauai Community College Performing Arts Center; $10.
Tuesday
>> 9 a.m.: "Eo, E Liliu" children's/youth music competition at KCC Performing Arts Center; $3.
>> 6:30 to 8:30 p.m.: Hanalei Hula Night at Hanalei Bay Resort; no cover.
>> 6 p.m.:Talk/Sing Story with Bill Kaiwa; "Mau A Mau," a Hawaiian documentary film; and Niihau shell lei-making demonstration, at Kauai Community College Performing Arts Center; free.
Wednesday
>> 8 a.m.: Canoe paddling/navigational workshop, Wailua River; free.
>> 6 p.m.: Genealogy Seminar at Princeville Resort; free.
Thursday
>> 6 p.m.: Solo/Group Kahiko Nei Hula Competition at Hyatt Regency Kauai Grand Ballroom; $10
Friday
>> 6 p.m.: Group Auana Hula Competition at Hyatt Regency Kauai Grand Ballroom; $10
Saturday
>> 8 a.m. to noon: Family activities at Kekaha Neighborhood Center; free.
>> Noon to 6 p.m.: Hoolaulea with entertainment, food and craft booths, at Kekaha Neighborhood Center; free.
>> 6 p.m.: Solo Auana Hula Competition at Kekaha Neighborhood Center; free.
Cheryl Chee Tsutsumi is a Honolulu-based free-lance writer
and Society of American Travel Writers award winner.
