Hawaiian music

Hawaiian music is a popular tradition combining Hawaiian-language songs, local styles, and influences from other musical cultures. Its forms include chant, slack-key guitar, steel guitar, and contemporary genres.

Hawaiian language: The Polynesian language indigenous to the Hawaiian Islands. Lyrics in Hawaiian carry stories, place names, and poetic conventions across the tradition.
Hawaiian Kingdom: An independent Polynesian kingdom that united the Hawaiian Islands in the nineteenth century. Court patronage and royal composers helped sustain Hawaiian-language song before annexation.
Hawaiian slack-key guitar: A Hawaiian guitar tradition characterized by altered tunings, fingerpicking, and melodic bass lines. It demonstrates how guitar playing became a distinct local art form.
Polynesian music: The diverse musical traditions of the Polynesian peoples of the Pacific Ocean. Hawaiian music shares regional roots while developing its own island-specific forms.
Queen Liliʻuokalani: The last monarch of the Hawaiian Kingdom and a prolific Hawaiian composer. Her songs preserve a major royal-era contribution to the repertoire.
Oli: A Hawaiian form of chant performed without hula accompaniment. Oli connects modern songs with older Hawaiian vocal practice.
Hawaiian Renaissance: A late-twentieth-century revival of Hawaiian language, cultural practice, and political identity. The movement renewed interest in Hawaiian-language music and traditional forms.
Jawaiian music: A Hawaiian popular style blending reggae rhythms with local songwriting and performance. It shows the tradition’s continuing exchange with global popular music.
Reggae: A Jamaican popular music genre built around offbeat rhythms and bass-centered arrangements. Reggae provides the rhythmic foundation for the local hybrid style Jawaiian.
Israel Kamakawiwoʻole: A Hawaiian singer and ukulele player known for blending traditional and contemporary styles. His recordings brought Hawaiian-language and local music to a wide international audience.

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