2011 Sheraton Hawaii Bowl Half-Time Show By Kumu Hula Tammy Ipolani Silva

On Saturday, December 24, 2011, Southern Mississippi played against the Nevada Wolf Pack at the Sheraton Hawaii Bowl in front of a crowd of about 19,500. It rained in the early morning hours, but at game time it was nice and sunny. Perfect weather for those in attendance. Many people in the stadium were talking about the low attendance and commented that if the University of Hawaii were playing, there would have been a better turn out. The winner of this year's Sheraton Hawaii Bowl was Southern Mississippi who came from behind to take the game 23-17.

At half-time, the mood of the crowd changed amid cheers, and excitement filled the air as 17 halaus filled the stadium field for their performance. I was invited to this event by Kumu Hula Tammy Ipolani Silva (photo above), who is a native Hawaiian, born and raised on O'ahu. She is a life-long student of polynesian dance. At age 4, she studied under Kumu Hula, Ku'ulei Clark of Honolulu. Ipolani studied under her primary Kumu Hula Darrell Ihi'ihilauakea Lupenui for 7 years until his passing in 1987. She then continued her studies under Chinky Mahoe until she relocated to Las Vegas in 1992. Her professional career as a dancer, lead performer, and choreographer included work with the Polynesian Entertainment Productions, Inc., in Las Vegas, Germaine's Luau in Honolulu as cast director, lead dancer, and Hawaiian Hut at the Ala Moana Hotel. She is also the founder and President of Ke'ala Productions, Inc. where she produces a polynesian revue she calls "Polynesia Alive."

This awesome half-time performance took many months of preparation, practice and coordination among all 17 halaus. Ipolani has choreographed and produced this large scale production of 500 plus dancers for the past few years. I was fortunate to have witnessed first hand the work involved, from sewing the outfits to creating the beautiful flowers for the dancers. The State of Hawaii, the Hawaii Visitors Bureau and the Aloha Stadium and its employees should be proud of the love, pride and dedication of these halaus. Thanks to Kumu Hulu, Tammy Ipolani Silva, Wayne & Evelyn Fernandez and the 17 halaus, it was an honor to witness their outstanding performance as a result of all their hard work. The designer for the headpiece (Moanikeala Fia Silva) was created by Mark Magallanes and took 5 hours to assemble. Click here to see candid photos of the rehearsal & half-time show and highlight video clips. "Happy Holiday to all."

EDDIE AKIO WAIMAKANUI TANAKA JR. “MYSTICAL MOLOKA’I”

On Wednesday, December 21, 2011, I ran into Edward Akio Tanaka Jr. (photo above) here in Honolulu who just completed his first CD release and is from the island of Moloka’i, musical artist, signature sound creates a blend of Moloka’i’s mystical soul, culture, people and aloha for the island. The reposeful music of the album transcends the mind to a musical haven in the same way that mystical forces of nature inspire a sense of fascination.

In his debut album “Mystical Moloka’i”, seven of the eleven songs are written and composed by Eddie himself. “You know how a song reminds you of the past or some where that you’ve been. That’s what music is about to me - reminding you what you felt, or saw at that exact moment when you hear a song. My intent is that the music and songs will touch people’s na’au (one’s heart and mind) and mark times in their lives like they do for me. While writing and playing these songs while I was away in my travels, this is what I have to share about my stories about the past, present and even future of Moloka’i.” says Tanaka

A personal song favorite of Eddie’s family is “ ‘Ama ‘Ama” that tells of a fun time in their home valley and bay when the mullet, an indigenous fish, runs in schools and swims between the reefs creating quite a show. (And then dinner after catching it!) Eddie says he “used the ukulele’s distinct picking in this song to express the fluidity of the fish as they dart back and forth with the ocean’s currents.” It is personal moments like these that filter through Eddie’s songs and paint pictures of exactly what you hear.

The album definitely reflects a diverse sound with each song having been influenced by not only Eddie, but by the mana’o (thoughts) of many musical talents from Hawai’i and the mainstream music scene. Easily gaining fan popularity, “Maui Rainbows” catchy tune was written in 1995 with the help of family friend, Eddie Brigati (The Rascals). “This song pushed me to really write more. We wrote this song just by looking through my home’s picture window staring across at Maui, the afternoon rainbows and the natural beauty that Moloka’i provided for us.” says Tanaka.

With Eddie’s therapeutic voice, soothing guitar rifts, lyrical plays in Hawaiian and English and even some jazz and rock, listeners can expect to hear a musical, mystical rainbow shine through the album, “Mystical Moloka’i”.

Thank you Eddie for the story and especially for your first CD. Your kindness and "Aloha" will put you over the rainbow. The above story by Edward Akio Tanaka Jr., and his press release that came out 2 weeks ago in their home paper Molokai Dispatch.

Las Vegas Super Bowl of Rodeo - National Finals Rodeo "Ye-Ha!"

For the past 26 years, "The Super Bowl of Rodeo," also know as the National Finals Rodeo was held in Las Vegas at the Thomas & Mack Arena which is located on the campus of the University of Nevada. Throughout the Vegas strip, all you could see were cowboys and their 10 gallon hats. The 10 day National Finals Rodeo is held each year in Las Vegas usually the first week in December at the Thomas & Mack Center and is organized by the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association. This year's title sponsor is Wrangler Jeans. The Thomas & Mack Center facility was first opened on September 16, 1983 and is named after E. Parry Thomas and Jerome Mack, two prominent Nevada bankers. Besides the National Finals Rodeo, it also hosts the PBR World Finals and hosts the Los Angeles Lakers pre-season games annually in October.

The facility is "awesome" and the seating is well spaced. Also, the setup is great no matter where you sit, and the staff is very friendly and helpful. To give you an idea on the size of this facility, the capacity for basketball is about 18,800 and arena football is about 17,000. Too bad the facility couldn't hold a football game there instead of at the Sam Boyd stadium, which is so small. The food court prices are like most facilities, kind of pricey. The outside weather was in the low 35-45 degrees. I'm still wondering why they have the finals in December instead of during a warmer time of year. As for this local boy, I think they should move it to Hawaii. To read more about the NFR, National Finials Rodeo and photos, "click here."