Raymond Kāne

Raymond Kāne
Kane in 1987
Kane in 1987
Background information
Birth nameRaymond Kaleoalohapoinaʻoleohelemanu Kāne
Born(1925-10-02)October 2, 1925
Koloa, Kauaʻi
DiedFebruary 27, 2008(2008-02-27) (aged 82)
Honolulu
OccupationMusician
InstrumentSlack-key guitar

Raymond Kaleoalohapoinaʻoleohelemanu[a] Kāne[1] (/ˈkɑːneɪ/, Hawaiian: [ˈkaːne]; October 2, 1925 – February 27, 2008),[2] was one of Hawaii's acknowledged masters of the slack-key guitar. Born in Koloa, Kauaʻi, he grew up in Nanakuli on Oʻahu's Waiʻanae Coast where his stepfather worked as a fisherman.[3]

Kāne's style was distinctive and deceptively simple. He played in a number of ki ho'alu tunings always plucking or brushing the strings with only the thumb and index finger of his right hand. He also played hammer-ons and pull-offs in a unique way; his finger moving up and out, instead of down and in, after striking a string. He emphasized that one must play and sing "from the heart".[citation needed] He was never flashy or fast. In Hawaiian, his sound is described as nahenahe (sweet sounding).

He was a recipient of a 1987 National Heritage Fellowship awarded by the National Endowment for the Arts, which is the United States government's highest honor in the folk and traditional arts.[4]

Discography

  • Slack Key [the "Black and White Album"] (1958)
  • Party Songs, Hawaiian Style, Vol. 2 (1959)
  • Nanakuli's Raymond Kane (1974)
  • Master of the Slack Key Guitar (1988)
  • Punahele (1994)
  • Hawaiʻi Aloha (1996)
  • Waʻahila (1998)
  • Hawaiian Sunset Music, Vol. 1 (1998)
  • Cherish the Mele of our Elders (with Elodia Kāne) (1998)
  • Maikaʻi No Blues (1999)
  • Tribute to Lena Machado (with Elodia Kāne) (1999)
  • Holoholo Slack Key (2000)
  • He Leo ʻOhana (with Elodia Kāne) (2000)

Notes

  1. ^ His middle name is pronounced [kəˈlɛjowəˈlohəpoˈwinəˈʔolejoˈhɛlɛˈmɐnu] in Hawaiian, and means "the voice of love that comes and goes like a bird and will never be forgotten".

References

  1. ^ Raymond Kane (1925-2008) on YouTube
  2. ^ Fox, Margalit (March 5, 2008). "Ray Kane, Master of Slack-Key Guitar, Dies at 82". The New York Times. Retrieved October 19, 2018.
  3. ^ "Raymond Kane: Hawaiian Slack Key Guitarist/Singer". www.arts.gov. National Endowment for the Arts. n.d. Retrieved December 4, 2020.
  4. ^ "NEA National Heritage Fellowships 1987". www.arts.gov. National Endowment for the Arts. Archived from the original on May 19, 2020. Retrieved December 4, 2020.