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“Queen Lili‘uokalani”
Mana Music Quartet
Mana Music Hawaii
Queen Lili‘uokalani was almost certainly the most prolific Hawaiian songwriter of the 19th century. She was also the first known to have had her songs officially published outside Hawaii (“Nani Na Pua” was published by the Oliver Ditson Co. in Boston in 1869). The queen died in 1917 but her melodies are timeless. The Mana Music Quartet — Eric Silberger (violin), Mann-Wen Lo (violin), Duane Padilla (viola) and Joshua Nakazawa (cello) — prove that here.
The violin was more prominent in Hawaiian music in the 19th and early 20th centuries than it is now. The quartet plays 15 of the queen’s compositions as she might have heard them in the days of the monarchy. Several will be instantly recognized, while others will be less familiar to 21st-century audiences. It is a beautiful program throughout.
Ukulele virtuoso Jake Shimabukuro and steel guitarist Greg Sardinha sit in as guests for one song each. Bassist Benny Rietveld joins in on two.
Visit manamusichawaii.com.
“Muse”
Jesse Snyder
Mana Music Studio
Smooth male vocalists are rare on the local jazz scene. Multi-talented Bruce Hamada is one. This new album by Big Island-based vocalist/musician Jesse Snyder shows that there is at least one more. It is a welcome and impressive calling card.
Snyder opens the album with an engaging pop-friendly arrangement of “Popsicle Toes,” the 1976 Michael Franks hit that crossed over to pop radio playlists here as well as on the mainland.
The “stop the presses” number comes several songs later when Snyder reworks “She Blinded Me With Science,” new-wave artist Thomas Dolby’s Top Five claim-to-pop-chart fame in 1982, as smooth cocktail lounge jazz. It is a masterful makeover.
Other elections show that Snyder’s musical interests stretch from 1930s standards to the contemporary work of Norah Jones. “Do Nothin’ Till You Hear From Me” and “It Had to Be You” show Snyder’s command of the classics. Mose Allison’s 1968 creation, “Your Molecular Structure,” is a lyrically erudite change of pace. Who but Allison would praise a loved one’s molecules?
Snyder adds a pair of local classics with “Nightbird,” a Mackey Feary tune that works well as jazz, and Andy Cummings’ musical signature, “Waikiki.” Does steel guitarist Dwight Tokumoto, sitting in on “Waikiki,” reference “Sleepwalk” with his final notes?
Take note that Snyder brings more than his smooth voice to the project; he plays sax, clarinet, flute, drums and percussion as well. Curt Warren (guitar) and Matt Spencer (bass/guitar) are the core of his studio musicians. Kimo Cornwell sits in on Rhodes keyboard for “Popsicle Toes,” and multiple Hoku Award-winner Maggie Herron is his guest pianist on two others.
Visit jessejsnyder.com.
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