Kanikapila in Kaleponi

Welcome to Kaleponi Records, my musical home on the web. My name is Fran Guidry, and I play kika ki hoʻalu or Hawaiian slack key guitar.

Kaleponi is the Hawaiian word for California, where I live. Ki hoʻalu, or slack key, has a direct link to California history. The guitar was carried to the Big Island of Hawaiʻi by vaqueros from California. You can read more about the history of slack key guitar on the Dancing Cat Records web site.

Slack key guitar is named for the retuning that characterizes the style. Most of these new tunings feature loosened, or slackened, strings which give a deep rich sound.

My personal slack key history goes back to 1999 and my first visit to Hawaiʻi. When we turned on the TV in our Waikiki hotel room I was captivated by the playing of Keola Beamer. I knew in an instant that I had to learn to play this beautiful music. Over the years I've learned from great players and teachers like Ozzie Kotani, Keola himself, Patrick Landeza, Kevin Brown, Cyril Pahinui, Kawika Kahiapo, Raymond Kane, Dennis Kamakahi, and Ledward Kaapana.

Monday, July 2nd, 2012

Playing along with Ledward Kaapana while sitting on the deck is a major treat – one of the high points of my musical life. And I was really happy to be able to share a bit of video from one session: http://www.kaleponi.com/2012/06/24/backyard-jam-in-kaleponi/ But the next level in fun is the classic kanikapila, a party dedicated to playing music, singing, dancing, sharing food, and talking story.

We have musicians and dancers over nearly every week, but several times a year we have a bigger session, often when we have guests visiting from Hawai`i. With Ledward in town we knew the party would be something special. We filled the cooler, baked some cookies and some teri chicken, and counted on our guests to fill out the menu – which they did in fine fashion.

Did I mention the dancers?

It really adds something very special to a party when the ladies hula.

More dancers at the June 2012 kanikapila

I set up several cameras and managed to capture a few of the dozens of songs we played. As we got underway, Ledward pulled out a classic by request – Hula O Makee – with me and Ikaika Lancaster joining in.

Rodney Johnson brought along a couple of buddies, Dick Jones on bass and Brian Price on fiddle. Brian didn’t realize that the fiddle was one of the first European instruments adopted by the Hawiians. Ledward kicked off Hi`ilawe written by the legendary Hawaiian fiddler, Tutu Sam Li`a.

Ledward has been working out on a tune by Phil and Ken Emerson, Kai Hanupanupa, and his groove got the crowd and the band going.

So there’s a glimpse at our kanikapila. Days like that, a glorious spring afternoon filled with music and dance and food and friends, I feel like I’m fortunate beyond measure.

This entry was posted on Monday, July 2nd, 2012 at 5:52 am and is filed under Videos. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.