News from Nā Hōkū O Hawaiʻi Music Festival

More than 75 workshops will be offered as part of the first annual Nā Hōkū Hawaiʻi Music Festival scheduled May 27 – 30 at the Hawaiʻi Convention Center. Experts in their respective fields present workshops ranging from Digidesign with Pro Tools to Manufacturers by Taylor Guitars and Hula & Music with Kealiʻi Reichel to Making a CD with Kenneth Makuakāne. Notable out-of-town presenters including David Pack, Cas Haley, Yuna Ito, Taylor Guitars, Roland Keyboards, and Digidesign complement sessions by Hawaiʻi’s top artists, slack key masters, kumu hula, and music industry experts.

“The workshops provide an extraordinary opportunity for the music industry and fans locally, nationally and internationally,” said Dawn Kaniaupio. “Artists will have access to the latest information to expand and improve their careers while music fans meet artists and music industry leaders in an up close-and-personal-setting.”

Out-of-town presenters as of April 5th include:

• Composition: David Pack - Solo Performer, former Front man for Ambrosia, and Grammy-winning Producer David Pack has won international acclaim both for his solo work - with his current CD: "The Secret Of Movin' On"- and his stellar turn as front man for progressive rock/pop group Ambrosia. He is also renowned as a Grammy winning producer for superstars including Wynonna, Phil Collins, Aretha Franklin and Kenny Loggins, and as a music director/producer of global stage events including both of President Clinton's inaugurals. His collected works as a performer and producer have sold over 40 million units worldwide.

• Reggae: Cas Haley - In 2007 Cas Haley was a contestant on the U.S. reality television show Americans Got Talent. Cas amazed the audience in his first performance singing Stingʻs Walking on the Moon, a capella. AGT wasn't his first 'gig', but it did introduce us to Cas. He seems humble, gracious, and talented. Cas released his first album in February 2008. Available through iTunes download, the album became #1 on the iTunes Reggae Charts! Released a month later as a Best Buy exclusive, the album reached #5 in total sales ... and in its first week! Come here how Cas is collaborating with Hawaiʻi artists and how Reggae is just one of many genres he has been described as having fans from.

• Vocal Trainer: Robert Lunte - 
Singing isn't all in your head, it is an athletic endeavor that requires the preparation and coordination of your entire body. And while the ha'i (vocal break) in Hawaiian falsetto singing is a beautiful vocal device, there is a beautiful and powerful part of your voice behind it that you can also learn to use. You will learn how to warm-up and train as a vocal athlete, and connect your singing voice from its lowest range to its highest for all styles of singing.

• Yuna Ito: Born September 20, 1983. Born in LA, raised in Hawaiʻi, graduate of McKinley High School. In 2005, she starred as "Reila" in the film "NANA" which is based on this really popular manga(comic) and debuted with the song called "Endless Story" which was a theme song to this movie. This song became a record hit, and in the same year, she received multiple awards. In May 2006, she released a song called "Precious" which was a theme song to another movie called "Limit of Love" and this became another huge hit. In December 2006, she starred in the movie "Nana 2" which was a sequel to "Nana" and sang a theme song again. In January 2007, she released her debut full length album called "Heart" which went on number one on Oricon Chart (which is equivalent of Billboard Chart in Japan) and in spring 2007, she did the first solo concert which was sold out everywhere. Shortly after, she released collaboration tracks with artists such as "Micro" who is a former Def Tech, Kotaro Oshio, a famous acoustic guitarist and Celine Dion. Her second album came out on February 20th called "Wish" and she did the guest appearance for Celine Dion's Japan tour in March. She also was a campaign model for Gap 2009 Winter campaign along with Mira Jovovich, Ashanti and she is about to release another album soon.

• Manufacturer Workshop: Taylor Guitars - The Taylor Guitars line covers a broad spectrum of guitar styles and tonal flavors. Their performance-ready acoustic/electrics, traditional acoustics and nylon-string models offer many different combinations of body shapes, tonewoods and appointments. Their electric models range from the Taylor SolidBody to the incredibly versatile hybrid T5. And if your dream guitar is a beautiful custom Taylor, the Build to Order program won¹t let you down. Come hear from National rep David Kaye what’s in store from Taylor Guitars. Also available in the Manufacturers room throughout the festival will be a Taylor Refresh & Restring Clinic.

• Digidesign: From the largest recording facilities to the smallest bedroom studios, Pro Tools® is the most popular sound creation and production system in the world. Featuring professional hardware and award-winning software that work together with your computer, Pro Tools lets you easily accomplish everything from composing music and recording to editing and mixing sound for broadcast and post production, all within a single environment.

The Pro Tools 101: Introduction to Pro Tools covers basic Pro Tools principles, giving you everything you need to complete a Pro Tools project, from initial set up to final mix down. This course focuses on Pro Tools 8 software and covers a multitude of new functions and feature enhancements. Whether your project involves recording of live instruments, MIDI sequencing of software synthesizers, or audio editing or region looping, this course will give you the basic skills to succeed. Sessions will be conducted by National Rep Andy Cook and will cover 15 hours during the festival a session will be conducting every hour.



The Workshop Schedule and registration are available at: www.nahokufestival.com/subpage.php?page=workshop

The four-day Nā Hōkū O Hawaiʻi Music Festival Schedule of Events: www.nahokufestival.com/subpage.php?page=workshops


Join the Nā Hōkū O Hawaiʻi Music Festival Community and get up-to-the-minute updates on artistsʻ participation, travel packages and registration for the workshops at http://www.nahokufestival.com/