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	The Garden Island Arts Council another sky’s-the-limit season of one of the most amazing programs on the planet. For two Sunday concerts and 12 Monday presentations from January 20 through April 13, EKK represents ki ho‘alu and musicianship of the highest caliber. It’s culture. I Bill Tapia "As delightful as it is surprising... Tapia's 86-year career includes jams with long-gone pioneers of American musidc, including Louis Armstrong, Billie Holiday and Fats Waller. ...Tapia takes his rightful place alongside these greats. He retains a sharp To you Sweetheart a documentary about ‘ukulele pioneer Bill Tapia.

Picture this:  A natty 100-year-young fashion plate who outshines any young bruddah -- bright plaid golf cap perched sassily on this full head of snow white hair, red & white mini-checkered dress shirt peeking out from a smart gray sports coat, bright scarlet pants, sassy two-tone ankle high boots with a seam of bright metal shoelace rivets, mauve socks with red stripes complete the attention to details, leis piled up high against his white beard -- that’s Uncle Bill Tapia. 

Picture this: A beautiful classy tita with effervescence to spare -- bright red lips (her official signature on CD’s) and freckles peeking out from under a wide brim hat, fashionable short muu topped with flower and shell leis, exuding an aura that filled the room and drew everyone in -- that’s Mihana Souza.


If you’ve ever been to a Hawaiian party where everyone is singing, playing instruments, laughing, joking, talking, and just having a great time, you would know what it was like at EKK this past Monday.

Pat Enos of California took over the ukulele group as we had last minute changes while Mihana and Uncle Bill formed a little guitar circle outside that kept growing and growing. There is something about this odd couple that just attracts everyone. 

When the program started, Mihana and Bill were joined on stage by Mike on upright bass and Kekai Chock who showed up with his fabulous guitar.  Mihana was delighted, “Oh great, I don’t play lead guitar!” Pat Enos joined them with his ukulele.

Mihana shared stories about her famous mom, Aunty Irmgard Aluli Farden, who came to EKK during our first season, and stories that went along with her family songs -- Puamana, the family home, “Boy from Laupahoehoe” and how her mom composed it because the song kept coming to her when she was cleaning her house with the vacuum. “E Maliu Mai”, beautiful love song, which she wrote without really knowing Hawaiian words, but when it was later translated, the words were perfect and said what she wanted to say.  Mihana’s cousin Randy Farden wrote the song “Beautiful Kauai” when he was on Kaua’i, so she was very excited to sing it on Kaua’i, something that even her Mom never did.  She sang it with such joy and gusto...it was quite wonderful.  Bill joined in with his pa’ani.

Mihana shared her story of when she first met Uncle Bill and found out that he was her Mom’s guitar teacher when Mom was 27 years old.  She saw a photo of her mom, one of the first KGU jingles girls, in Bill’s photo gallery.  Her mom had just passed away so it brought tears to her eyes to see the photo ... thus began the friendship.  She sang her Dad’s favorite song, “Little Coquette” which Bill knew because he played it in 1932 down in Waikiki; that was the first song they played together.

Before her Mom passed away, Mihana asked her Mom what she should keep in mind to compose songs.  Irmgard told her, “Write what you see and sing what you feel”

Following her Mom’s advice, she wrote a song about her fireman husband that celebrates all men who cook and all the great food of the islands -- “Chucky’s in the Kitchen Cooking Teriyaki chicken”.  Mihana’s style is jazzy with a beat that had everyone tapping their toes and swaying to the beat. When Uncle Bill shared his ukulele favorites, Mihana swayed gracefully on the side with her silent hula movements; her beaming smile just lighting up the whole room.

Pat Enos led the kanikapila song “Hanalei Moon”; everyone joined in with singing, ukuleles, guitars, hula dancers, and Bill doing his jazzy pa’ani. “E Ku’u Morning Dew” was another favorite song that Bill jazzed up with his amazing picking skills; Mihana sang it slow, easy and full of nostalgia, sometimes speaking the words, singing, dancing...she is really the ultimate performer that probably comes from over 30 years of performing with a trouper of a Mom.  She kept remarking how her Mom and Uncle Bill both can get by on so little sleep....going, going, going all the time.  He puts the energizer bunny to shame.  Pat and Nancy Enos, Bill’s housemates, get up each morning wondering, “What’s going to happen next?”

Uncle Bill traveled the world over his entire life playing with musical greats the world over -- Louis Armstrong, Elvis Presley, and the list goes on and on. Uncle Bill often just sits quietly until someone goes up and asks a question and out pours a story...he can remember stories that go back decades and tells it with such quick wit and sense of humor.  One has to spend a couple of months shadowing Bill to hear even a small portion of his life of stories.

Determined to buy an ukulele at the tender age of seven so he could get free lessons from his neighbor, he shared a hilarious story of how he got his first ukulele for a sneeze from the very grouchy ukulele maker. 

He recalls that the last time he came to Kauai was in 1933 when he and Sol Bright came to do a statewide hapa-haole music tour.  He recalls that “at that time you could buy a piece of it for $27.  I offered them $30!” 

Concerned about his appearance at performances, it bothered him that he was weighing 162 pounds at one time.  “I’m a short guy and I was too fat!” so to remedy the situation he followed his friend’s advice to wear a corset.  On his way to a gig at the Palace Hotel dressed up in a tuxedo and tuxedo shirt over his snug corset, he was driving on the San Francisco Bay Bridge but could not breathe with the tight undergarment poking him, so he wanted to take it off but in order to do that he had to take off all his clothes to get at the corset.  He got out of the car and started peeling off all his clothes while passers by yelled four-letter words at him, he ripped off the corset and flung it over the Bay bridge.

Pat Enos tells the story about the time Bill fell down and broke his hand.  Bill indignantly pipes in, “You pushed me!” (Audience roars) Anyway, the doctor puts his hand in a cast so he had to cancel his performance in the concert, but Bill takes matters into his own hands and cut off his cast and showed up to perform in the concert.  He went back to a different hospital after the concert because he was afraid the doctor would get mad at him.

Bill says to Pat, “They going think I’m a deadbeat if you keep telling these stories about me.”  But the stories were too good....

About a year ago, at age 99, he made a musical comeback and was performing a lot in Hawaii so he decided to buy a condo in Makaha to have a home base in Hawaii.   During the purchase discussion, the mortgage guy offered him a five year variable mortgage, telling him it would most likely NOT go up in the first five years. Bill told the man, “What do you mean a five year variable mortgage? Hell no! I want a 30-year fixed rate mortgage!”  I asked him later at Hamura Saimin, “So...what kind of mortgage did you end up with?”  “I paid cash!”

Hula dancers abound when favorite hula numbers were sung and played by Kekai Chock -- Sabra Kauka, Fran Nestel, Po’ai Galindo, and Verne Kauanui joined Mihana and danced “Nani Kauai” and “Nawiliwili”. Mihana introduced Po’ai’s 92-year-old mother.  She added, “We going try set you up with Uncle!” Too funny!

Someone asked Bill during the break, “I hear a little bit of blues in your ukulele.”  Mihana asks, “Uncle, do you play the blues?”  “Yeah!  When I get the blues, I always sing the blues,” and went right into a bluesy version of “Little Grass Shack.”  Then to spice it up, he raises the ukulele behind his head and played it backward, still keeping the blues beat.  And if that wasn’t enough, he raises his leg high in the air, stuck his ukulele under his leg and kept playing the blues without missing a beat.  He might have even bent over and played with his teeth at one point...what a showman! 

“Manuwela Boy”, sang and played as only Uncle Bill can sing it paints a hilarious picture of all the wonderful local family members in the old time favorite -- Mama, Papa, sister, Haunani Ho -- with everyone joining in the sing-along.

“Hukilau”, which is often considered a bit touristy for EKK, takes on new flair when Uncle Bill and Mihana sing a duet. Fran can’t resist getting up to dance the old favorite.

Bill closes with his favorite “Everytime I look at you.......” Everyone screams “Hana Hou!” so he obliges with “Young at Heart” ... and he is the living example of his words.

What a party!

Upcoming in February, March and April:  

February 25 will be another special evening of Hawaiian chants and kala’au (stick hula) with Kumu Hula Keala Ching and Rolinda Bean of BI, along with a whole cadre of his students from BI and Japan.

March 3 - Napua Greig of Maui, together with Sean Naleimaile and Kamakoa Lindsey-Asing of BI; March 10 - Kauai’s wonderful old-timers “The Kama’ainas”.

March 17 - CHANGE IN TALENT! We will have Stephen Inglis and Makana instead of the Taro Patch Band.

March 24 - Ozzie Kotani and Danny Carvalho; March 31 - Paul Togioka, Dolly Kanekuni and Brent Eynon.

April 7 - Aaron Sala, known as The New Traditionalist, will be our last Monday EKK presenter.

April 13 - EKK ends with a Finale Concert at KCC PAC featuring Aaron Mahi, Dennis and David Kamakahi, Natalie A’i Kamau’u with Iolani Kamau’u and Chad A’i, and the Ladies of Kapu Kinimaka’s Na Hula O Kaohikukapulani.

(s) Carol Kouchi Yotsuda, www.gardenislandarts.org -- “Celebrating 31 years of bringing ARTS to the people and people to the ARTS”

E Kanikapila Kakou 2008 -- EKK Silver Anniversary -- Hawaiian Music Program is funded in part by the Hawai’i Tourism Authority, the County of Kaua’i Office of Economic Development, and Garden Island Arts Council supporters.  Space made available by Island School.

Garden Island Arts Council programs are supported in part by the State Foundation on Culture and the Arts through appropriations from the Legislature of Hawai’i and grants from the National Endowment for the Arts.

2/25/2008