HSGA QUARTERLY Published four times a year in Honolulu, Hawai‘i by the Hawaiian Steel Guitar Association Volume 35, Issue 135 Summer 2019 Inside this Issue… “Mark’s Haw’n Fishing 3 Seminar” by Chris Kennison “Constitution Hall Haw’n 4 Show” by F. Della-Penna “Fighting to Save the Haw’n 4 Language” by F. Della-Penna Member Donation 4 Acknowledgements Vintage Guitar Magazine 5 article on Bobby Ingano A mainstay at our Fort Collins festivals and active in all things Hawaiian in the Denver “In the Garden” – Steel Arr. area, Keoni Lagunero singing and playing great, pictured here with one of his daughters. 6 by Troy Brenningmeyer “Mystery Steel Guitarist Fort Collins 2019 Festival Review 8 Revealed” By Mark Kahalekulu hanging over the entire length of the 8 Weekly Steel Guitar Rocky Mountains, the azure sky Hotspots in the Islands My wife Dawn and I were up early brightly outlining the crenulated peaks. “In Memoriam” by Chris in the morning on the first day of the It was an outstanding day even by 9 Kennison Sixth Annual Fort Collins Hawaiian Colorado standards. Music Festival, HSGA’s big mainland We arrived at the Fort Collins Island Festival News – event, which was held this past Sep­ Hilton earlier than we had planned, 10 Event Reviews & Previews tember 19­21. The weather was pre­ owing probably to the lack of construc­ 11 “The Seven-Lever Steel dicted to be a bit cooler than the late tion along the highway. We quickly Guitar” by Lion Kobayashi summer days we had gotten accus­ unloaded our baggage and checked “Bobby Ingano Interview: tomed to, so the air had a crisp feel as into our hotel room, which we found to 11 Touring with Taj Mahal” we loaded up our vehicle for the drive be quite clean and comfortable. up from Denver. The morning rush Making our way to the HSGA festi­ 12 Hawaiian Steel Guitar hour was over, so we set a leisurely val venue, we soon realized that we Events Calendar pace, taking in the gorgeous mountain were not the only folks who were full scenery of Colorado’s Front Range. of anticipation and excitement. We felt We saw just a few puffs of clouds Continued on Page 2 HSGA QUARTERLY FORT COLLINS Continued from Page 1 Making sure that there was a definite Volume 35, Issue 135 Hawaiian presence at this year’s event a definite buzz in the room, with every­ were quite a few Colorado­based ex­ one who greeted us visibly anxious to patriots: Keoni Lagunero and his musical­­ hear the music that would soon ema­ ‘ohana, up­and­coming slack­key guitar nate from the performers’ stage. aficionado Alan Fasick, and veteran OFFICERS We warmly greeted old friends who entertainer and vocalist John “Keoni” Frank Della-Penna (DC), President we have grown close to over the years Coelho. Providing hula were Kumu Hula John Limbach (MT), Vice-President at this festival, as well as newer Susie Park­Kelly of the Keaka O Kalani Tony Fourcroy (CO), Secretary-Treasurer acquaintances—some who we had ha lau and dancers from Kumu Hula DIRECTORS Jack Aldrich, Seattle only just met at last year’s event. But Janna Yoshimoto’s Hula School of Margie Mays, Arizona as soon as the first strains of the steel Northern Colorado. Bob Moore, Colorado guitar could be heard, we all quietly And we were especially honored to Mike Wittmer, Fort Collins took our seats to enjoy the music that have, flying in for this event from the FORMER DIRECTOR EMERITUS Jerry Byrd so many of us travelled so far to see island of Kauaʻi, the Punua ‘Ohana: JAPAN COORDINATOR and hear. steel guitar master and festival Honored [TBA] We were not disappointed! Guest Ed Punua, his beautiful wife QUARTERLY EDITOR Over the course of the next three Van essa, his father Victor and his John Ely <[email protected]> days, we were serenaded by some of daughter Leimomi. WEBMASTER our best “homestate” Hawaiian steel And if this spectacular lineup wasn’t Mike Wittmer <[email protected]> guitarists—Coloradans like Chris Ken­ enough, who else but the one and only SOCIAL MEDIA COORDINATOR John Mumford nison, Joe Stewart, Garry Vanderlind Alan Akaka, fresh off a tour of Japan, and Tony Fourcroy. who dropped by on his own accord to ORIGINAL CLUB FOUNDER Lorene Ruymar (1985) We also had a plethora of visiting add his own spin at this year’s festival, STATEMENT OF PURPOSE musicians such as Captain Ivan Red­ cranking up the excitement meter. The Hawaiian Steel Guitar Association is a dington, Roberto Alaniz, Gerald Ross, As if the music on the performance tax-exempt, nonprofit educational corpora- tion in the State of Hawai‘i under Section Margie Mays (the Queen of the Steel stage was not enough, the chefs for the 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. Our Guitar), and the incomparable Chris big lūʻau held on the final night of the primary purpose is to develop a global net- Ruppenthal, who all tore it up! festival just knocked the ball out of the work of players and lovers of traditional Hawaiian music and to encourage the study, teaching, and performance of the Hawaiian Fort Collins Honored Guest, Ed Punua, giving new member Teri Gorman some technical steel guitar. Our primary financial goal is to pointers as part of his steel guitar seminar on the final day of the festival. Good stuff! provide scholarship assistance through donations to steel guitar students who dem- onstrate the ability and intent to become accomplished performers. MEMBERSHIP Membership is open to all steel guitar play- ers and non-players around the world who support the perpetuation of the Hawaiian steel guitar. Annual dues are US$30. The membership year begins July 1. Members receive the HSGA Quarterly and other group benefits. The Quarterly is mailed four times a year First Class to addresses in the United States and by Air Mail to foreign addresses. Members can obtain an Associate Member- ship for a spouse or family member at a cost of $10, added to the annual dues; an Associ- ate Member is entitled to discounts at certain HSGA functions and can vote in HSGA Board elections. SUBMIT ARTICLES & COMMENTS TO: HSGA Quarterly, 3442 Greystone Ct, Fort Collins, CO 80525 USA. Our e-mail address is [email protected]. Submitted items should also be e-mailed directly to the editor at [email protected]. Letters to the president can be sent to: Frank Della-Penna, P.O. Box 18323, Washington, DC 20036. 2 Mark’s Haw’n Fishing Seminar By Chris Kennison What a wonderful festival we had this year. We had beautiful fall Colorado weather, the performances were wonderful, and the workshops were truly inspirational. One of the highlights for me was the Traditional Hawaiian Fishing seminar presented by Mark Kahalekulu on Thursday afternoon. Mark had given this seminar earlier in the year at the Aurora History Museum in Denver, and I asked him if he would reprise it for us at the festival. Mark provided music on his guitar along with videos of his grandkids swimming among the reefs, all as background to the engaging stories he told about growing up as a kid in Hawaiʻi and fishing with his family. One of his stories was Performing for the Ft. Collins audience on Thursday, Joe Stewart about how they would go out in the evening to set their nets on steel guitar, Mark Kahalekulu on bass, Capt. Ivan Reddington in a secret spot in the reef, and then go out the next morning on rhythm guitar and new member Jeanne Skybrook on ‘ukulele. before dawn to haul in the lobsters they had caught. Lobster and Portuguese sausage for breakfast—ono! park. The kaukau was so ono! The menu included teriyaki There were other stories as well, and the way Mark told chicken, fried rice, kalua pork and braised short ribs. And as them made you feel as though you could feel the chill of the guests, dressed in their finest Hawaiian wear, enjoyed their water, taste the salty spray of the ocean, and hear the lob­ delicious dinner and cocktails, we were all treated to a spec­ sters squeal. Those of you who know Mark know that he is tacular lūʻau show featuring Alan Akaka and Ed Punua on truly a Hawaiian treasure when it comes to Hawaiian cul­ vocals and steel guitars, Keoni Coelho on vocals and rhythm ture, history and music. guitar, Victor Punua on vocals, myself on bass, featured hula Mark is a master storyteller with bookshelves full of dancer Vanessa Punua and the hula dancers of the Hula stories in his head about growing up in the Islands. The next School of Northern Colorado. The traditional Hawaiian melo­ time you see Mark, just ask him a question about growing dies, intertwined with the ritualized body motions of the hula, up in Hawaiʻi, and then sit back and enjoy the show. n transported the enthralled audience to a faraway, tropical idyll, lacking only a warm breeze rustling the coconut palms and the soft sound of the ocean lapping a sandy shore. Changed Email? My sincere mahalo nui loa goes out to Doug and Cindy Please send email changes to both our office ([email protected]) Braden of Fort Collins, who unselfishly opened their home AND to John Ely ([email protected]). Mahalo! on Friday night for an open air barbecue for the entire HSGA ‘Ohana. Their generosity and aloha were much Alan Akaka showing how it’s done at the Fort Collins Friday ses- appreciated by all! sion with Bob Alaniz on bass and Ed Punua on rhythm guitar.