la_belle_laide (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
la_belle_laide) wrote2011-05-26 06:42 pm
la_belle_laide) wrote2011-05-26 06:42 pm
Entry tags:
Ke Alaula
Here's the entry that I wanted to make earlier, before I had my day rocked by a really nice agent who said some very heartening words to me.
So as I have mentioned, my Hula class is a go for this summer. I know I've only posted about this in passing. I have this thing about not talking too much about something important to me unless it's solid. I feel like I'm going to jinx things, which I know is ridiculous.
As of now, I have 4 students. They all signed up within hours of the press release, so hopefully there will be more before July. But even if it's just the four, that's also great. They are all between 60 and 70 from what I understand. I love, love, love teaching this age group. They get it. But, I also hope for a wider range, too. From keikis to Tutus, wahine and kane, I want to teach them all.
This morning, my baby bird woke me up for a feeding, and after that I lay in bed thinking about my first year doing Hula. It was a big game-changer for me, Hula was. I mean huge. It made me see myself in a different way, and actually it made me understand this ridiculous affection I feel for my land, my 'aina. Sometimes I still feel like most people don't get that. But Hula people do.
I was thinking that I want to tell the class, "I hope you'll always remember this as the amazing, adventurous summer when you learned Hula. And I hope some of you stick with it. Or if you can't, then you'll at least take it with you when you go."
A big part of my first Hula year was the music I discovered when I started. It was 1999. This was a whole new world to me. My first teacher had a tape of side B of Makaha Sons of Ni'ihau's album Ho'oluana. I listened to the tape constantly, just six songs. I played them for everyone. My Dad actually fell in love with their music immediately, and it sort of became our thing. Any time we were in the car together, that's the music we would have to play.
Eventually, I got the full CD and then I was hooked, buying up every Makaha Sons CD I could find.
The summer after that, I was obsessed with their album Kuikawa. I was playing Final Fantasy VII for the first time that summer, and I was raising a ton of birds; I think I had upwards of about 90 of them that year. Somehow, weirdly, those three things merged in my mind. Kuikawa, FFVII, and tons of baby birds.
After Makaha Sons came Keali'i Reichel, Sonny Ching, Kekuhi Kanahele, Mark Keali'i Ho'omalu, and just and endless stream of Hawaiian artists, doing old songs, hapa songs, new, upbeat ones, techno ones, everything. A world of music over the years.
So I realized that when I teach my class, obviously I'm going to need mele. Especially for the early warm-ups, when I have to show the moves as well as explain them, and do them along with the class. So, for the beginning, I won't be able to pa'i while I'm leading warmups, and I'll just have to play some music. I could get regular recorded pa'i beats of course. But why waste the opportunity to show people new to Hula as much music as possible?
When I was about 3 years into Hula, I started dancing with Auntie Kau'i and her group down in Florida. Down there, Makaha Sons are also really popular.
One group in Orlando, led by the awesome Kumu Kawehi, had choreographed a Makaha Sons song called "Ke Alaula." That means "Sunrise." I remember one older woman in the audience telling me that she started Hula late in life, when she was searching for something to fill the void left by her dead husband, who had committed suicide. She said she felt that the song Ke Alaula had come along and offered her this new path, and for the first time, she thought there could still be some happiness in her life. She said that the song felt like good luck for her.
So, I kind of took on Ke Alaula as a "good luck song" as well. I try to send it to people who need some change, something happy to break an old rut or something. Most people don't get it, I know. But it still feels like good luck.
Now that I'm thinking of it, I need to listen to this song again too.
The thing is, I haven't listened to Makaha Sons since I lost Dad. It's almost like when he died, it wasn't just him, but all of these other things that I had to do without because of it. Everything that reminds me too much of him, etc. The entire state of Florida, for chrissakes. Dad's music. Certain other songs on the radio that he liked, or sang. And, most of all, the Makaha Sons. I was able to listen to everything else (even Keali'i Reichel, who Dad also loved,) but not them.
But now I pretty much just have to. Because I can't deprive my new students of this beautiful music, and I shouldn't go this long without hearing it, either. There's really only one song of theirs that I can't listen to, which is "White Sandy Beach / Mehameha" because that was his absolute favorite out of all of them. And the lyrics are way too sad anyway. It's a gorgeous song and all, but I don't think I can get past that.
Well anyway. So today for the first time I'm putting Makaha Sons back on my iPod, with a really good feeling about it. So, in more ways than one, I'm so glad to be teaching again.
Now, I just hope I can remember how to teach. I know I can dance, but doing and teaching are two different things. And it's been forever since I've taught.
Guess we will find out in about a month and a half! That gives me time to start preparing, anyway. :)
So as I have mentioned, my Hula class is a go for this summer. I know I've only posted about this in passing. I have this thing about not talking too much about something important to me unless it's solid. I feel like I'm going to jinx things, which I know is ridiculous.
As of now, I have 4 students. They all signed up within hours of the press release, so hopefully there will be more before July. But even if it's just the four, that's also great. They are all between 60 and 70 from what I understand. I love, love, love teaching this age group. They get it. But, I also hope for a wider range, too. From keikis to Tutus, wahine and kane, I want to teach them all.
This morning, my baby bird woke me up for a feeding, and after that I lay in bed thinking about my first year doing Hula. It was a big game-changer for me, Hula was. I mean huge. It made me see myself in a different way, and actually it made me understand this ridiculous affection I feel for my land, my 'aina. Sometimes I still feel like most people don't get that. But Hula people do.
I was thinking that I want to tell the class, "I hope you'll always remember this as the amazing, adventurous summer when you learned Hula. And I hope some of you stick with it. Or if you can't, then you'll at least take it with you when you go."
A big part of my first Hula year was the music I discovered when I started. It was 1999. This was a whole new world to me. My first teacher had a tape of side B of Makaha Sons of Ni'ihau's album Ho'oluana. I listened to the tape constantly, just six songs. I played them for everyone. My Dad actually fell in love with their music immediately, and it sort of became our thing. Any time we were in the car together, that's the music we would have to play.
Eventually, I got the full CD and then I was hooked, buying up every Makaha Sons CD I could find.
The summer after that, I was obsessed with their album Kuikawa. I was playing Final Fantasy VII for the first time that summer, and I was raising a ton of birds; I think I had upwards of about 90 of them that year. Somehow, weirdly, those three things merged in my mind. Kuikawa, FFVII, and tons of baby birds.
After Makaha Sons came Keali'i Reichel, Sonny Ching, Kekuhi Kanahele, Mark Keali'i Ho'omalu, and just and endless stream of Hawaiian artists, doing old songs, hapa songs, new, upbeat ones, techno ones, everything. A world of music over the years.
So I realized that when I teach my class, obviously I'm going to need mele. Especially for the early warm-ups, when I have to show the moves as well as explain them, and do them along with the class. So, for the beginning, I won't be able to pa'i while I'm leading warmups, and I'll just have to play some music. I could get regular recorded pa'i beats of course. But why waste the opportunity to show people new to Hula as much music as possible?
When I was about 3 years into Hula, I started dancing with Auntie Kau'i and her group down in Florida. Down there, Makaha Sons are also really popular.
One group in Orlando, led by the awesome Kumu Kawehi, had choreographed a Makaha Sons song called "Ke Alaula." That means "Sunrise." I remember one older woman in the audience telling me that she started Hula late in life, when she was searching for something to fill the void left by her dead husband, who had committed suicide. She said she felt that the song Ke Alaula had come along and offered her this new path, and for the first time, she thought there could still be some happiness in her life. She said that the song felt like good luck for her.
So, I kind of took on Ke Alaula as a "good luck song" as well. I try to send it to people who need some change, something happy to break an old rut or something. Most people don't get it, I know. But it still feels like good luck.
Now that I'm thinking of it, I need to listen to this song again too.
The thing is, I haven't listened to Makaha Sons since I lost Dad. It's almost like when he died, it wasn't just him, but all of these other things that I had to do without because of it. Everything that reminds me too much of him, etc. The entire state of Florida, for chrissakes. Dad's music. Certain other songs on the radio that he liked, or sang. And, most of all, the Makaha Sons. I was able to listen to everything else (even Keali'i Reichel, who Dad also loved,) but not them.
But now I pretty much just have to. Because I can't deprive my new students of this beautiful music, and I shouldn't go this long without hearing it, either. There's really only one song of theirs that I can't listen to, which is "White Sandy Beach / Mehameha" because that was his absolute favorite out of all of them. And the lyrics are way too sad anyway. It's a gorgeous song and all, but I don't think I can get past that.
Well anyway. So today for the first time I'm putting Makaha Sons back on my iPod, with a really good feeling about it. So, in more ways than one, I'm so glad to be teaching again.
Now, I just hope I can remember how to teach. I know I can dance, but doing and teaching are two different things. And it's been forever since I've taught.
Guess we will find out in about a month and a half! That gives me time to start preparing, anyway. :)
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yes, exactly what you said, about that placeness. It's strange to say it, but you feel connected with your land. Oh, you're between the mountains and the ocean, that is so wonderful. :D
no subject
Yeah! I'm near Vancouver, Canada -- right between salt water and the Rockies. I just took the ferry over the Strait of Juan de Fuca this week, and that's just such a beautiful trip. I think you'd really appreciate it.
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neomeruru, where do you live? I moved from Vashon Island in the south of the olympic peninsula last year. Mistake to say the least. Anyway, yes, I'll be back there one day because that is where I feel that love for the ground I stand on and the sea & mountains around me. Love.
no subject
Neomeruru stated her location ^_^ (*points up*).
Are you really thinking about going out west again? I know you were happy there for quite a time. :)