Ua hoʻomaka kekahi mau pahu pepa e piha ʻia i nā mea haliʻa aloha o kekahi ʻohana. Aia he ʻelua kānaka, he makua a he ʻōpio kāne, e nanea ana i ka hale kaʻa o ko lāua hale i ka ʻoluʻolu o kekahi ahiahi o Kepakemapa. ʻO kā lāua wae ihola nō ia i nā mea hoʻohaliʻa o ka ʻohana: ʻo nā kiʻi ʻoe, ka lole ʻoe, nā hōʻailona lanakila ʻoe, a me kekahi mau mea ʻē aʻe i hoʻoili ʻia iho e kēlā hānauna a i kēia. ʻElua “waihona” kahi e waiho ʻia ai ia mau mea ʻohana, ʻo ka mua, he pahu pepa hou, ʻo ka lua he ʻeke ʻōpala uliuli. “ʻEiʻa,” i mea mai ai ka makua i ka ʻōpio, me ka hāʻawi ʻana iā ia i paila pepa, lenalena i ke kahiko, no ke kiloi ʻana aku. Iā ia e hoʻokomo ana i nā pepa i loko o ke ʻeke, ʻāiki liʻiliʻi maila kekahi mau huaʻōlelo, a me kekahi mau hua mele kekahi he mele ia. A haka pono ke keikikāne, ʻike ʻo ia i kekahi inoa koʻikoʻi, ʻo Johnny Noble ia. “ʻAʻole kā hoʻi kēia he ʻōpala, he mea makamae ia e peʻe ana i ka puʻe!” He puke ka mea i i ʻoliʻoli ai ka naʻau o ua wahi ʻōpio nei i puni i nā mele Hawaiʻi. ʻO wau iho nō ia ʻōpio, a ʻo Johnny Noble’s Royal Collection of Hawaiian Songs ka inoa o ia puke.
Ma Oʻahu iho nō i ka makahiki 1892 i hānau ʻia ai kēia makeʻe o nā mele Hawaiʻi. I kona wā ʻōpio ma ke kula kiʻekiʻe ʻo ia i aʻo ai i ka pahu kani a i ka piano. Ma o kona launa ʻana me Sonny Cunha, he puʻukani a alakaʻi bāna ia, i aʻo ai ʻo Noble i nā kaila mele ʻo ka jazz, ka ragtime, a me nā blues nō hoʻi. I nā makahiki 1920 i piʻi aʻe ai ka hoihoi o nā malihini i ka mākaʻikaʻi ʻana mai i Hawaiʻi. No ia mea, hoʻomaka nā bāna o Waikīkī e hoʻopili i ko lākou kaila mele i ke ʻano o nā kaila mai ka ʻāina ʻē ua lilo ʻo Noble i meʻe o ia au hou. Ma ko Noble hoʻopili ʻana i kēia kaila mele i ko ka Hawaiʻi, kupu maila he kaila mele hou koʻikoʻi o nā mele Hawaiʻi: ʻo ka hapa-haole nō ia.
Iaʻu e nānā ana i nā mele o loko o ka puke, he hoihoi ka ʻike ʻana i nā mele kamaʻāina iā kākou i kēia mau lā, a me kekahi mau mele i lohe pinepine ʻole ʻia. ʻO “Kāneʻohe,” “ʻEhehene (Henehene) kō ʻAka,” a me “Puʻuwaʻawaʻa” kekahi o nā mele i hoʻonohonoho ʻia e kēia Johnny Noble, a mau nō ko lākou kamaʻāina i kēia au. ʻO ka mea hoihoi loa o ia loaʻa ʻana mai, ʻo ia ka ʻokoʻa o nā inoa, nā leo, a me nā huaʻōlelo hoʻi. ʻO ka hapa nui o nā mea i kākau ʻia iho ma ua wahi puke nei, ua like nō me ka mana i lohe mau ʻia i kēia lā, koe naʻe kekahi mau mea (i hāpai ʻia aʻela ma mua). Eia aʻela kaʻu e ui aku ai iā ʻoe: ʻo ka mana hea ka mea ʻoiaʻiʻo? ʻO ka mana i lohe mau ʻia i kēia mau lā, i kamaʻāina i ka hapa nui o nā kānaka? A i ʻole ʻo ka mana i paʻi ʻia ma kēia puke kahiko, i kākau a hoʻonohonoho ʻia e kekahi loea mele o ia wā?
I ka hui hoʻokani pila o ka Hōtele Moana ka hoʻāʻo o ua wahi haku mele nei (Johny Noble) e hoʻopili i nā mele Hawaiʻi i ke ʻano a me ke kaila haole. Penei i loaʻa ai iā kākou ka inoa o ia kaila hou: ʻo ka hapa-haole. Wahi a ka pepa noiʻi laeʻula a Masakazu Ejiri, he haumana laeʻula no ka polokalamu ʻimi naʻauao o ke Kulanui nei o Mānoa, “from the conservative viewpoint, [hapa-haole] seemed to signify the degradation and commercialization of traditional Hawaiian music” (1996, pg. 196). I ko Johnny Noble wā uʻi, ʻaʻole i makemake ʻia ka hapa-haole e ka poʻe nopaʻa o nā mele Hawaiʻi he mea ia e kālepa ʻia ai ka moʻomeheu o nā Hawaiʻi i nā malihini e huakaʻi mai ana i nā kapakai hinuhinu o kēia ʻāina. I kēia mau lā, ʻoi aku ka mahalo o nā Hawaiʻi i ka hapa-haole, ʻoiai ua lilo ia i māhele nani o nā mele Hawaiʻi.
I ke eʻe ʻana mai o ke kenekulia iwakālua, a i ka manawa hoʻi o ka hoʻokāhuli aupuni Hawaiʻi, ua manaʻo paha nā Hawaiʻi i nā ala hele e ola ai nā loina ʻōiwi o kēia ʻāina ma ke au hou. Mau nō ka hāpai ʻia ʻana o ia manaʻo i kēia au e holo nei. E kuʻu lāhui aloha, ʻaʻohe hiki iā kākou ke noho paʻa ma ka naʻaupō a me ka moloā a e hōʻole i nā liliuewe o kēia manawa. Ma ka makaʻu i ka loli ʻana ka make ʻana o ka Hawaiʻi. Mai hele kākou ā hihia i ka makaʻu. E ola iā kākou nā loina o ko kāua kūpuna i ka hōʻano hou ʻana i nā mele.
He hei ka ʻike kupuna na ke keiki naʻauao. ʻO kēia nō ka manawa o ka naʻauao. E like me kā Noble a me kekahi mau meʻe like ʻole o kēlā au, e hoʻāla aʻe kākou i nā ʻoihana like ʻole, ʻaʻole ma ke mele wale nō. E lawe ʻia ka maʻalea o ka pae ʻāina ʻo Hawaiʻi, a e kūʻonoʻono, e hoʻi hou kēia ʻāina i kona nani a pae ponoʻī ma ke kahua o ka honua.
© ʻElia Akaka 2019
