QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS

Got a question about Hawaiian music? K&C? Hula? Hawaiian language?
Ask K&C. If they don't know the answer, they probably know where to look. We have received a few questions via email at hakumele@aol.com and here are the responses:

 Q. I heard Eddie Sherman interviewing you on KHNR Radio and he mentioned that you have written more than 200 songs. Is that true? Does that make you the most prolific Hawaiian songwriter? How many have been published? How many have been recorded? LR of Honolulu

A. Keith responds: I've been collecting all of my songs and putting together a plan to market them. Yes, I have written more than 200. Not all have been copyrighted yet, but we're working on that. More than 30 of them have been recorded and published, by K&C and a number of other artists, including John Rowles, Lanakila Rittenband, Butch O`Sullivan, Diana Aki, Rhonda, Ohta-san, Leo Marchildon, Stephen McDonough, Ledward Ka`apana, the Sugar Cane Express, Sounds of Aloha, Agnes Kimura, Pierre Grill, U.S. Senator Daniel K. Inouye, Bob Nelson. About 75 of them are in Hawaiian; the rest in English.  There are many more prolific songwriters than I--both past and present. I'm told that Irmgard Aluli has written more than 400; ditto, Dennis Kamakahi. I'm sure that many others have surpassed the 200 mark and some have many more of their songs recorded than I. Keith

Q. Is Brook Lee, the Hawaiian girl who became Miss Universe, the same one who danced for K&C at the Royal Hawaiian Hotel? PK of Minneapolis

A. Yes. She became Miss Hawai`i USA and quit dancing at the Royal. She went on to become Miss USA and then Miss Universe. Another of our dancers, Kanoe Aberegg, also became Miss Hawai`i and quit her gig with us at the Royal. She has since married and is Kanoe Naone, wife, mother, and teacher. K&C

Q. Will Carmen ever resume teaching hula? We know a few former students who are most anxious to return to classes. LE of `Aiea

A. Yes, she is going to start again. We've not had a place to teach since the Meeting Place Café closed nearly two years ago (she taught in one of their meeting rooms). We have reached an agreement to use Keith's classroom at the Star of the Sea School in Wai`alae, and will be making an announcement soon. -- K&C

Q. I keep hearing rumors that Keith is working on a non-Hawaiian album. Is that true? What kind of music will he record and when will it be released?

JT of HNL

A. Yes. Keith is working on a country album. It should be out early in 2000, under the name CORDELL (his legal first name). He has been selecting the songs and is already working with some pretty fantastic country musicians who will back him on that CD. FYI, he will include some of the songs suggested by fans and friends over the years and some of his own favorites. It will be very traditional country, with only a few "new" country songs. K&C

Q. Do either of you play slack-key and do either of you sing falsetto? I
understand both are very Hawaiian and in the very traditional mode. SN of LA.

A. No. Sorry. Keith learned some slack-key (called ki ho`alu in
Hawaiian) from Aunty Alice Namakelua during a time when she lived with us
briefly, but he never became good enough to play it in public.or private for
that matter. And neither of us ever developed a falsetto (leo ki`eki`e in
Hawaiian) voice. Carmen sings in a high soprano voice and Keith in a
baritone to second tenor range. He can do some bass parts, but only slips
into a falsetto range for an occasional note on one or two songs. K&C/9/4/99

Q. I heard your "Music of Hawai`i" program on Hawai`i Public Radio and
noticed that you don't play much of the new recordings from the many fine new
artists who record Hawaiian music. Is it just not traditional enough for
your taste, or not Hawaiian enough? AKC of HNL.

A. Both. Most of the new local recordings that come out just do not fit
in the program format. Our program is definitely more "traditional" and we
play absolutely no reggae, Jamaican or Jawaiian that you hear on other local
radio shows. "Music of Hawai`i" is on from 9-11 a.m. every Sunday on KIPO,
FM 89.3 and KIFO AM 1380, and is followed by "Island Music by Island People"
with host Peter Apo. Peter's format is very different in that he plays a lot
of very contemporary sounds and songs, many of the cuts from local groups
that would not otherwise get any airplay. It is a nice mix and the two shows
compliment each other nicely. FYI, Peter is also a composer, musician,
entertainer, producer of recordings, and more. K&C/9/4/99

Q. We know K&C perform at the Royal Hawaiian Hotel, because we've heard
you there, but where else have you performed? Have you ever toured Europe?
GH of Germany

A. No, we've never been to Europe. Keith performed in England once many
years ago, in the early; 70s. And Carmen danced for the Queen of Thailand on
her 45th birthday in the palace in Bangkok in 1977. Other than that our
performances have been limited to Japan, Korea, New Zealand, Australia,
Canada, Guam, Christmas Island, and a number of places on the US Mainland
(New York City, Chicago, Miami, Dallas, Los Angeles, the Mall of America in
Minneapolis, and a few other venues). We've performed on the Royal Viking
Lines and on the American-Hawai`i Cruises SS Independence, and at many venues
on most of the Islands in Hawai`i nei. In Waikiki, we've performed as
regulars in the Kuhio Hotel (now the Miramar Hawai`i), the Hawaiian Regent,
The Blue Dolphin Room of the Waikiki Outrigger Hotel, the Hale Koa Hotel,
and, since 1986, at the Royal Hawaiian Hotel. Once, we left Waikiki for six
months to perform with Eddie Kamae and the Sons of Hawai`i at the Palm Garden
in the Blaisdell Hotel in Downtown Honolulu, but then went right back to
Waikiki.
In addition, we have done hundreds of private parties, weddings, lu`aus,
concerts, etc. -- even a bar mitzpah.
We've sung in so many places we probably can't name them all, and there
was something special about every one. K&C/9/4/99.

Q. What ever happened to Melveen Leed? And have you ever sung with her?
LLG of HNL

A. Mel has been a good friend of ours since the 60s when she was
starring on the SS Lurline inter-island. She is back in Hawai`i and busy as
can be. She is performing here and there--lounges, concerts, radio,
television, and more. She is better than ever, still the most complete
entertainer in Hawai`i nei. Pick up almost any newspaper in Hawai`i and you
will read about Mel and some upcoming engagement. She will be featured Sept.
14 in a concert with Kenny Rogers and it will be on the internet. Check it
out at http://www.wl.net. K&C/9/4/99

Q. Did you go to the Bankoh Slack-Key Guitar Festival and was it as good
as those in past years? MM of MA.

A. No we did not, but we listened to it on radio and later saw the
edited version on television. Friends who went said it was not as well
attended as in past years and that much of the music was not slack-key. Hapa
performed and Barry Flanagan, who is sort of a rock guitarist flat-picked his
way through some Hawaiian songs but they didn't sound terribly Hawaiian. And
our favorites, the Makaha Sons, performed and although they didn't do
slack-key, the crowd loved them too. It sounds like the concept is changing
from the original all ki ho`alu concept that honored Gabby Pahinui, Atta
Isaacs, and Sonny Chillingworth.

Q. I noticed that you recorded an a cappella cut with a Barbershop
Quartet and I wondered if you are going to do any more a cappella recordings
or any more work with that kind of harmony? JJ of OK

A. Rob Hartley, who teaches music at Punahou and who is a longtime
Honolulu barbershop singer/arranger, did the arrangement for us on "Merry
Christmas One & All," which we released on our Christmas EP single in 1988
(five new Keith Haugen Christmas songs on that one), and he also arranged the
harmony for our "We Still Care" recording. Rob and the Sugar Cane Express
sang with us on the Christmas song, and a dozen members of the Sounds of
Aloha Barbershop Chorus sang with us on the Pearl Harbor Commemorative Song.
We get a lot of comments from those two recordings and yes, we may someday do
more a cappella and/or with the barbershop harmony. We like it too.
K&C/9/4/99

P.S. Those five Christmas originals were re-released on "The Village
Where I Went To School," which is still in print.

Q. Do you have anything to do with the Hoku Awards? Or have you ever won? -- JC, Boston, MA.

A. No. And Yes. We are members of the Hawai`i Academy of Recording Arts which awards the Hoku awards each year, but are not currently active in the organization.

Keith was a member of the HARA Board of Governors when the Academy was in its infancy.

Other involvement by K&C are as follows:

1980 - Keith accepted, on behalf of Dennis Kamakahi, Dennis' New Hawaiian Song of the Year Hoku for "E Hihiwai." That same year, Keith's composition, "Carmen's Song," was nominated for Instrumental of the Year.

1981 - Keith was co-producer of the Single of the Year "Na Wahine O Ke Kai" and "O Ke Kai" by Na Kaholokula.

1983 - Keith was a presenter--along with Rene Paulo--of the Sidney Grayson Award to the late Bill Murata, Keith's mentor in the recording industry.

1984 - Keith was co-producer of "The Best of Bill Murata, THE PRODUCER," an anthology which honored Bill for all his work. That LP won the Hoku for "Anthology of the Year."

1985 - Keith was co-producer of "The Best of Mama (Tina Ka`apana)" which won the "Anthology of the Year" category. He presented his Hoku that year to one of her famous sons, Ledward.

1989 - Carmen was a finalist in the Female Vocalist of the Year category for her "Lullaby" recording.

1992 - Keith accepted on behalf of Eddie Kamae, Eddie's Lifetime Achievement Award (Eddie was unable to attend).

1997 - Keith was a Hawaiian language/music judge on the committee that selected "Lihau" by Kihei deSilva and Moe Keale for the Hakumele Award.

1998 - Keith was a finalist in the Liner Notes of the Year category, for notes he wrote on the Ho`opi`i Brothers CD (Tropical Music).

Click on this hyperlink to read about all the recipients from two decades of awards. Na Hoku Hanohano HAWAIIAN MUSIC: Na Hoku Hanohano Awards - 1999

Q. Do you perform any music other than Hawaiian? -- WJW, San Diego.

A. At the Royal Hawaiian Hotel and in most of our performances, we do ONLY Hawaiian music--about half in Hawaiian and half in English (hapa haole songs). However, we love all kinds of music and Keith has written non-Hawaiian as well as Hawaiian. And one of our recordings, "The Village Where I Went To School" was a non-Hawaiian recording, released on the Mainland in 1996. It includes some folk, some country, and a potpourri of Keith's compositions that had been released on singles but had never been included on an album.

Q. How can we reach Keali`i Reichel to ask him for lyrics to one of his songs and maybe even his translation. -- GH, Los Angeles

A. Try the following hyperlink. Tell him Keith & Carmen sent you. FYI, he was in the same 1980 graduating class from Lahainaluna High as our son, Michael Rivera, (known as "Midnight" at LHS) who boarded there for four years. Keali'i Reichel's Home Page

Keith & Carmen

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