Legendary Kauai guitarist and teacher, Hal Kinnaman, who first heard slack key guitar played on a California beach as he emerged from the surf, moved to Kauai
to learn the craft – and to surf, of course. Kinnaman believed that by teaching anyone who wanted to learn slack key, this distinctly Hawaiian musical tradition would live on.

“I love teaching for the joy of sharing and seeing people play when they didn’t think they could do it,” Kinnaman says. “I had one student who was so shy, she couldn’t even look up at me when she first started her lessons. Now she comes in and says, ‘Hi,’ sings and plays slack key.”

One of Kinnaman’s students, Paul Togioka, a shy Japanese man who grew up on the sleepy west side town of Kekaha on Kauai, is recognized as one of Hawaii’s most accomplished slack key artists, having won numerous Na Hoku Hanohano, Grammy and Hawaii Music awards in the past 16 years.

Blending what Kinnaman teaches him with his love for all kinds of music, including rock and roll and banjo playing, both of which he became adept at during his high school and college years, Togioka has taken slack key guitar music to new heights.

“When I perform slack key, I am able to connect with people from all over the world,” Togioka says. “Visitors will come right up to me and say things like, ‘This is the best part of my vacation.’ It’s a wonderful thing. Music shares aloha.”

While it is important to recognize certain arts as traditions of specific cultures, it is important to share them, so they remain alive for all of us to enjoy. Through Kinnaman’s and Togioka’s talent for Hawaiian slack key guitar and their love of sharing it with us, we all get to enjoy this lovely Hawaiian music and live aloha.

Read more about Hal Kinnaman, Paul Togioka and the music of Kauai in “Kauai Stories: Life on the Garden Island told by Kauai’s People.”  Kauai Stories

Pamela Varma Brown is the author of “Kauai Stories: Life on the Garden Island told by Kauai’s People,” a collection of more than 50 touching, humorous and inspiring personal stories about life on Kauai. She has lived on Kauai for 24 years. For more stories about Kauai, please visit Kauai Stories. To see Hal Kinnaman play Flamenco on a ukulele, visit the Voices page.

When I wrote my book, “Kauai Stories: Life on the Garden Island told by Kauai’s People,” a collection of more than 50 touching, humorous and inspiring personal stories about life on Kauai, I was able to capture what makes the island and Kauai people so special. I’ll share some examples.

When my partner, Lincoln, cut down a stalk of nearly 200 bananas from one of the trees in our yard, he placed small bunches in a box in front of our home with a sign that said, “FREE!” All afternoon, neighbors drove by and took what they needed. When darkness fell, Lincoln said, “I’m going to leave the box out there for anyone coming home after working the night shift.”

The next morning, Lincoln reached his hand into our daily newspaper receptacle and found, along with our paper, six small freshly-baked loaves of banana bread with a note that said, “This is in appreciation for the bananas which you shared last night. Enjoy!” It was from our newspaper carriers, whom we had never met before! And, oh yes, the banana bread was delicious.

One of the many things I love about Kauai is how everyone is so good to one another. When immigrants came to Kauai 150 years ago to work for the sugar plantations, people came from China, Japan, Philippines, Portugal, Spain, Korea and Germany and created a beautiful mosaic of cultures as they settled into their new home. They learned Hawaiian words and traditions and shared their own.

In “Kauai Stories,” people share delightful stories of living and working alongside various cultures, growing up “plantation-style” knowing your neighbors; of children making toys with whatever they had, such as Frisbees made from car-flatted, sun-dried toads; and of the trust that existed everywhere, like letting the owners of the local mom-and-pop store come into your kitchen on “Tofu Day” to deliver freshly-made tofu while you were at work.

Kauai people are still like this: trusting, sharing and always willing to help.

There are adventurous souls among Kauai people, as well. In one segment of “Kauai Stories,” two men and a woman share their stories of sailing on Hokulea, a handsome 62-foot long double-hulled, twin-masted canoe built as a working replica of ancient Polynesian sailing vessels. Hokulea is navigated by using the same tools that were available to early Polynesians when they discovered Hawaii 1,500 years ago: the stars, moon, sun and ocean currents. Our sailors tell of visiting Tahiti, Japan, Palmyra and other countries thousands of miles away from home, spreading the aloha spirit everywhere they go.

There’s so much to learn about Kauai! Get to know our special people before, during or after your vacation. To read more stories, visit Kauai Stories.

Aloha!

Pamela Varma Brown

For more information and to purchase visit Kauai Stories.

3-3229 Kuhio HWY  (2,950 square feet)  Active Lion Real Estate 808-652-4112

This deluxe home has two custom offices with lovely built-in cabinets more than you can imagine! When you need a break, enjoy the views of the Makaleha Mountain range, Mount Waialeale and the Wailua River Valley below from oversized windows in every room. More photos at 6865 Leimomi Street.