The Famed Guitarists Of Hawai’i
Tuesday, May 12th, 2009The most famous among Hawaiian guitarists did more than just play the guitar well. They also made notable contributions to the art and craft of guitar-playing, or popularized their music throughout the world as no one had done before. Some of those whose contributions are indeed exceptional are:
The Tau Moe Family
Tau Moe, a Samoan who arrived at Hawaii at the age of 11, was an exponent of the steel guitar(a variety of Hawaiian guitar). His wife, Rose, also played the same instrument, and the couple performed at a traveling show through which they exposed an international audience to Hawaiian music. Their two children, Dorian and Lani, joined their parents once they grew up to form the “Aloha Four”, playing an important part in spreading hapa haole music across the world.
Charles Philip Pahinui, best known as “Gabby Pahinui”, shook the dust off the slack key type of Hawaiian guitar, and brought it forth into the limelight. He had absolutely no musical education formally, and learned mostly by the ear and by practice. His greatest achievement would probably be the blending of Hawaiian folk music(whose resurgence he single-handedly caused) with American jazz.
Eddie Kamae played the third kind of Hawaiian guitar, the ukulele. He performed the great feat of promoting the “Hawaiian Cultural Renaissance”, and founded the Sons of Hawaii – a famed quartet – with Gabby Pahinui. Before that, he had played with stalwarts like Ray Kinney’s Orchestra or the Ukulele Rascals. Eddie Kamae also produced several films about Hawaii, its culture and music.


