I love Hawaiian slack key guitar because it’s such a beautiful melding of musical traditions. Songs about a favorite horse who falls into a lava tube, or much more universal experiences of wistfulness, sound amazing in this style. Here’s a slow sample from legend Led Kaapana:
August is one of the best months for aficionados of the form, with the Aloha Festival in San Francisco and the annual Hawaii Slack Key Guitar Festival in Honolulu. I posted a couple of examples from this month’s events below.
From the Honolulu Festival, here’s a few samples of the range:
Fran Guidry was a highlight at the San Francisco event. Here’s him performing a piece he did there:
One of the best intros to the form is the Dancing Cat album Hawaiian Slack Key Guitar Masters, Vol. 1
