Aloha and Howdy!

First of all, as you may have noticed, we've got a bit of a new look here at bluegrasshawaii.com. Thanks so much to the awesome EVELYN GREENE, who volunteered to remodel this website! Evelyn's got some mad skillz--she's an aircraft mechanic, and a fiddle player, and as it happens, she does a bit of web design and was willing to donate her time to a remodelling job on this site. Mahalo, Evelyn!

Are you ready to do a little pickin'? Our next free jam session will take place on Sunday, June 28 at Wahiawa Botanical Garden--y'all come!

Everybody is welcome to jam under the pavilions and around the park any time between 11:00 AM and 4:00 PM. At 11:30, the wonderful KILIN REECE, guitarist/vocalist with the Saloon Pilots, will conduct a FREE workshop. Great for beginning and intermediate musicians! Please see below for details.

Remember: you can jam any time you like, between 11:00 AM and 4:00 PM. Don't be shy! There are lots of great places on the garden grounds and under the pavilions! (We do ask that jammers please be careful not to play too close to the workshop, so as not to disturb the hard-workin' students.) Please keep reading for details!

More news...

You can now become a card-carrying member of Bluegrass Hawai`i! Your membership dues will help us promote and publicize bluegrass and traditional music in the Hawaiian Islands! Membership dues are $10 per person per year; please include a note with your name, e-mail address, mailing address and phone number. If your check includes membership dues for two or more people, please include contact info and names for them, too. Checks or money orders should be made payable to Bluegrass Hawai`i, and can be mailed to...

BLUEGRASS HAWAI`I
P.O. Box 861688
Wahiawa, HI 96786

Help Wanted: If you're looking for a worthy non-profit cause that requires just a few hours of your time each month, please consider Bluegrass Hawai`i! We are looking for capable, bluegrass-loving volunteers who are willing to contribute their skills and expertise in the following areas:

• non-profit law
• insurance for non-profits
• planning/steering
• membership planning
• workshops

Just a few hours a month of your time to help promote bluegrass in Hawai`i--that's all it takes! Please contact Caroline at caroline@bluegrasshawaii.com!

Workshops: We love workshops!!! And we've been very lucky to have some awesome workshop instructors, including Lisa Gomes and Kilin Reece most recently. Do YOU have any ideas for bluegrass and traditional music workshops? Anything you'd like to learn more about? Or perhaps you've got an idea for a workshop you'd like to teach? We're looking for ideas for topics, AND we're looking for volunteer workshop instructors who are willing to present an hour on a traditional music topic! Please contact Caroline at caroline@bluegrasshawaii.com!

Happenings: What are YOUR favorite Hawai`i bluegrass bands and artists up to these days? Visit our Bands page at www.bluegrasshawaii.com/bands.html for bios and links to websites, sound samples and schedules! And check out our Events page at www.bluegrasshawaii.com/events.html for recurring events hosted by other traditional music societies in Hawai`i!

Camping Weekend: We're planning our very first camping weekend! Would you like to join us? We're hoping to spend a weekend in mid-September at beautiful Ho`omaluhia Botanical Garden in Kaneohe. Nestled at the base of the Ko`olau Mountains, it's one of the most beautiful locations on the island!

You'll need to bring your own food, drink, and camping gear. The facility has bathrooms, and we'll have exclusive access to a covered pavilion. We will probably ask for a small donation to cover insurance costs for the weekend. We'll also try to schedule a workshop or two, a gospel sing on Sunday morning, and maybe even an instrument petting zoo for the kids! If you're a musician, this is a great opportunity for you to do some serious jamming. If you just love listening to bluegrass, this weekend will make your ears very happy!

Visit Ho`omaluhia's official website at http://www.honolulu.gov/parks/hbg/hmbg.htm and then check out some photos on Google at http://images.google.com/images?client=safari&rls=en-us&q=ho%60omaluhia&oe=UTF-8&um=1&ie=UTF-8&sa=N&hl=en&tab=wi.

If you want to join us for Bluegrass Hawai`i's very first camping weekend, tentatively scheduled for the weekend of September 18 and 19, please email caroline@bluegrasshawaii.com no later than July 5 so we can get a head count. It's hard for a lot of us to get to the Mainland for those awesome bluegrass festivals, but here's a chance to get a little taste of the festival experience. There's nothing quite as wonderful as picking around a campfire on a starry night!

Thanks so much for supporting bluegrass and traditional music in Hawai`i and everywhere!

Warm aloha from Caroline Wright
President and Founder of Bluegrass Hawai`i

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BLUEGRASS HAWAI`I
WORKSHOP & JAM SESSION

Y'all come! We've scheduled our June jam sessions at lovely Wahiawa Botanical Gardens on California Avenue in Wahiawa.

Everybody is welcome to jam under the pavilions and around the park any time between 11:00 AM and 4:00 PM. At 11:30 AM, multi- instrumentalist KILIN REECE, a member of the wonderful Saloon Pilots, will lead a FREE WORKSHOP!

The June session will be the fourth and final workshop in a series. (Don't worry if you missed the first three workshops! You'll still get a ton of information out of this one.) Kilin will once again focus on harmony singing in this final session. Don't miss it!

Not interested in the workshop? There are lots of places to jam in the garden, and you are welcome to find a little corner to jam in ANYTIME between 11AM and 4PM. The garden is filled with benches and stumps to sit on, there are several covered pavilions, and the trees provide a perfect canopy!

Event: Bluegrass Hawai`i MEETING, WORKSHOP and JAM SESSION
Date and Time: Sunday, June 28 from 11AM to 4PM; workshop at 11:30 AM; jamming ANYTIME; garden closes at 4PM.
Location: Wahiawa Botanical Garden
Address: California Avenue in Wahiawa
Directions: Click here for map! Find your way to H2 North, going towards Mililani and Wahiawa. Take exit 8 for Wahiawa, just before the highway ends near Schofield Barracks. At the end of the exit, go right; stay in the right lane. You'll be on KAMEHAMEHA HIGHWAY. At the third light, take a right onto CALIFORNIA AVENUE. Go about a mile or so, past Foodland, Longs, Blockbusters; past a Buddhist Hongwanji on your right and a community park on your left. Look for the Botanical Garden on your left!
Parking: Click here for map! The Garden's small parking lot on California Ave. holds about 20 cars. If you need to park very very close, try to arrive a little early (the Garden opens at 9AM daily!) There's also plenty of parking along the fenceline on California Avenue, but you'll have to turn around in the parking lot at Leilehua High School, just up the hill, and come back down California. There is also a parking lot on Kilani Avenue/Glen Avenue. Kilani runs parallel to California Avenue, and becomes Glen Avenue just before the Botanical Garden. If you park in the Kilani/Glen lot, walk down a moderate hill, and then you'll go left, across a scenic bridge into the main lot/entrance. It's a lovely stroll, but not for those with lots of gear, or who have a tough time walking.
What To Bring: Your instrument, a picnic lunch, and maybe a chair or blanket to sit on if you'd like to pick in the Gardens.
Who's Welcome: EVERYBODY! If you play an unplugged traditional instrument, and like acoustic bluegrass, newgrass, mountain, roots, traditional country, Hawaiian, Americana, folk, Western, Celtic, and Irish music, you are welcome to come and jam along! (Listeners, of course, are welcome, too!) Y'all come!
Bus Riders:You can catch a #62 bus towards Wahiawa Heights and get off across the street from the Wahiawa Botanical Garden on California Avenue. To find out how to connect to a 62 bus, call our wonderful bus system, TheBus, at 848-5555; they're open every day from 8 AM till 10 PM. Their website is www.thebus.org.
Carpoolers: Please CARPOOL if you can! If you need a ride, OR if you're willing to give a ride to another picker who doesn't drive, email caroline@bluegrasshawaii.com.

ALL ISLANDS

DON'T MISS THESE OTHER COOL EVENTS!

• Contradancers Of Hawaii (O`ahu)
• Traditional Music Jam (TradJam)--O`ahu
• Contradancing on the Big Island
• Pickin' In The Park (Kaua`i)
• Folksong Circle on Maui
• Contradancing on Maui

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ON O`AHU:

GORDON FREITAS

Hawaii's beloved folk troubador, the one and only GORDON FREITAS, is one of our favorite singer/songwriters. With years entertaining on cruise ships under his belt, Gordo can find a song for ANY occasion or mood or crowd!

According to his official biography, Gordon Freitas is a world-traveled native Hawaiian from the little coffee-pickin' town of Holualoa, Kona on the Big Island. He is often joined by several of his friends, in a configuration of kama`aina he calls LOCAL FOLK. Gordo has a LOT of friends, and they are, without exception, fabulously talented musicians! If you're able to catch Gordon in any of his shows, you will be very glad you did! Check out his schedule at gordonfreitas.com.

ON O`AHU:

THE SALOON PILOTS

Our favorite crackers! Lesley Kline on fiddle and vocals, Kilin Reece on guitar and vocals, Paul Sato on banjo and vocals, and doghouse bassman Alex Morrison deliver a heapin' helpin' of progressive, traditional, and original bluegrass! Bill Griffin of California's legendary Cache Valley Drifters is now contributing mandolin and vocals! Mmmmm tasty! Check out their blog at www.MySpace.com/SaloonPilots for their appearance schedule, photos, music, tall tales and more! They appear regularly at several venues on O`ahu; try to catch one of their shows!

And don't forget: you, too, can hire the Saloon Pilots for your private (or public) event! They can perform in several different capacities, ranging from good, clean family fun to loud, low-down, and danceable. They can also provide a professional sound system, and even teach your guests how to squaredance! Contact Paul at paulsato@hotmail.com.

ON O`AHU:

THE CELTIC WAVES

The Celtic Waves play a lively blend of traditional jigs and reels with a sprinkling of slow airs and songs that lend an Irish pub feel to the music. Performed on acoustic instruments, their repertoire ranges from rollicking, newly composed tunes to lyrical 17th-century harp compositions. Band members include Clark Ratliffe on Irish flute and whistles; Katie McClellen on harp, mandolin, whistle, and vocals; Lawson Cannon on guitar and vocals; Susan Reinhart on bodhran, African Djembe, acoustic bass and vocals; and Kevin Craven on fiddle and vocals. They are sometimes joined by fiddler Lisa Gomes. The Waves appear regularly at several venues on O`ahu! Visit their website and find out where they're appearing at http://celticwaves.net/. For bookings, contact Clark Ratliffe at clark@celticwaves.net.

ON O`AHU:

LISA GOMES

Her awe-inspiring career as a fiddler for hire has taken her all over the world, but lucky for us, LISA GOMES calls Hawai`i her home! Lisa grew up near Woodstock, New York, playing classical music. After graduating from Vassar College with a degree in psychology, she bought a one-way ticket to Taiwan to learn Chinese. While prepared to learn a new language and culture, she ended up learning something unexpected ? how to play music by ear!

Lisa has successfully played in several genres of folk music, including Irish, Scottish, French, Klezmer, Cajun, blues, and rock. Her performances now include dancing and fiddling for the JigThis School of Irish Dance, Highland Dancers Hawai'i, and The Society of Creative Anacronism (SCA), Barony of the Western Seas. In Honolulu, she has played with The Bones (rock), Irish Hearts, Bon Ton Roule (Cajun/Zydeco), The Swampshakers (Zydeco), The Pleasant Peasant Band (International folkdance music), Sherele (Klezmer), Scott Wallace and The Round-up (country), as well as as a duo with Two Hearts (Irish) with Curtis Vandeloop (opening for Old Blind Dogs in 2004); as Kilts on the Beach (Scottish) with Audrey Knuth (opening for Alasdair Fraser and Natalie Haas in 2007); and with Jo McGarry (Scottish music and Scotch-tasting)!

She has also guested with the Doolin' Rakes, Celtic Waves, The Honolulu Blues Co-op, The Eric Petersen Band, Gordon Freitas and Local Folk, Don Conover's Irish Band, The Southern String Band (Raleigh, N.C.), Wolgemut (Medieval), Dram (Medieval/Swedish), and Switchback (Irish/Scottish). Those of us who know Lisa well are fairly sure she never sleeps! Check out her website and schedule at www.lisagomes.com.

ON KAUAI:

THE HAPPY ENCHALATA

The Happy Enchalata Bluegrass Band is always ready for fun and music on the island of Kaua`i! They also host a PICKIN' IN THE PARK jam session! The band has six members, and they also have several friends who join them when they can. The band plays at various venues around the Garden Island; visit their website for info. Members of the Happy Enchalata band are Marty Sheffer (mandolin, banjo, guitar and vocals), Denice Sheffer (vocals, percussion), Michael Barretto (vocals, guitar, banjo), Bill Dick (violin) and Larry Heller (box bass and electric bass).

Email HappyEnchalata@yahoo.com or visit http://www.TheHappyEnchalata.com or their MySpace at myspace.com/thehappyenchalata. They're also on www.youtube.com; search on "Enchalata" to find 'em! And remember, you gotta be HAPPY to be a Happy Enchalata!

ON KAUAI:

THE MALAMA PONO ALL-STARS

This band has a great time! Personnel includes Paul Crowe on guitar and vocals; Steven Meredith on harp, cajone and washboard; Jimmy Truillo on dobro, harp and vocals, Ya Kaduce on jaw harp, saw, vocals; Doug Gates on mandolin and sound; Mike Cosmann on banjo, mando and vocals. They make regular appearances in Kapa`a, so check out their website (complete with a few very fun tunes!) at http://www.myspace.com/malamaponoallstars.

ON MAUI:

RANDALL ROSPOND
AND THE HAIKU HILLBILLYS

Check out Randall Rospond and the Haiku Hillbillys and catch some of the finest acoustic and trad-roots music on Maui! For more info, please contact Randall at liquidrosetoons@yahoo.com

The brand-new HAIKU HILLBILLY CD will be released this summer and will contain four new studio recordings, two "live in the studio" cuts engineered by Barry Shannon and Don Lopez, some live recordings from shows in 2007, and "perhaps a little secret moonshine magic for good measure." Ask Randall about Haiku Hillbilly t-shirts (sizes are limited) and his solo cd recorded at Walter's Becker's upcountry studio!

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IMPORTANT: As Bluegrass Hawai`i works on becoming a 501(c)(3) non-profit association, we have been advised by the Internal Revenue Service that we have to do a few things differently. Unfortunately, we will no longer be able to accept classified ads for merchandise. Ads for folks that want to find pickin' partners and jam sessions will still be accepted. If you have any questions, please contact caroline@bluegrasshawaii.com.

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Saloon Pilots

Appear on Honolulu TV Program

The fabulous SALOON PILOTS made an appearance on KGMB's Honolulu morning news program in early April, to promote the Alison Brown concert they opened. Their performance was so much fun! Check 'em out at http://kgmb9.com/main/content/view/15744/104/.

For The Truly Curious:

Historical Bluegrass Photos

Here is a link to some unbelievably wonderful photos from one of the first Country Gentlemen festivals held at Indian Ranch in Webster, Massachusetts back in 1972. These are really great quality photos of some bluegrass music's finest artists, including Ralph Stanley, Peter Rowan, J.D. Crowe, Tony Rice, Keith Whitley, Eddie Adcock, and many more! Note from Caroline: I was very happy to see these photos (sent to me by mandolinist Jimmy Gaudreau, an old friend) because my family was at this festival, and I was seven or eight at the time! The back of my brother's head is featured prominently in about nine of these pictures; I can see my parents in the audience in one, and MY head is in one of 'em, too! Check 'em out at http://frobbi.org/slides/cg1972.

GIVE THE GIFT OF
BLUEGRASS HAWAI`I!

Please visit our store for your gift needs. T-shirts, sweatshirts, license plate frames, magnets, childrens' t-shirts and hoodies, cap-sleeve and ladies' shirts, golfers' shirts, messenger bags... we've got it all! You and your pals will be the coolest cats at any pickin' party with great bluegrass bling-bling--tee-shirts, sweatshirts, mousepads, coffee mugs, pet shirts, baby bibs, bumperstickers... everything you need! A small portion of each purchase will help Bluegrass Hawai`i with its mission: to grow and promote bluegrass & traditional music in the Aloha State. Shop with confidence at Café Press!

Join Bluegrass Hawai`i!

Would you like to become a part of one of America's newest bluegrass and traditional music associations? It's easy, it's quick, and it's FREE! Click here to sign up today! It's as simple as that! You'll be added to our mailing list--almost 800 people as of July 2008--and you'll receive periodic email messages about upcoming bluegrass and traditional music events in Hawai`i. (By the way, our mailing list is private; we never sell or trade it with anybody!) Y'all come!

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WE LIKE MIKE!

Our friend Mike Kear in Australia has generously provided us with server space for Bluegrass Hawai`i. Mahalo nui loa, Mike! Mike is the host of a wonderful radio show, heard on the Web by thousands of people all over the world, called Music From Foggy Hollow. It can be heard at http://www.bluegrasscountry.org/. He even interviewed Caroline (that's me!) about Bluegrass Hawai`i, way back in May 2003 when we had our first jam--check it out here.

Mike's Bluegrass Australia pages can be found at http://www.bluegrass.org.au/. Mike hosts this website on his servers and has provided endless encouragement and support for our adventures. On behalf of Bluegrass Hawai`i, THANKS, MIKE!

ALOHA 'OE TO OUR FRIEND ART

It is with sadness that we note the passing of Art Todd, irrepressible tenor banjo player and man-about-town, who died on October 10, 2007 at the grand old age of 93. Art came to many of our jams in the early days, and was known for his astonishing ability to play just about anything, even bluegrass! With his late wife, Dotty, Art had two top-ten hits in the U.S. and UK, but with different songs. In 1953, they scored a #1 hit in England with, "Broken Wings." In America, their "Chanson d'Amour" peaked at #6 on Billboard's Top 40 list, remaining on the charts for 11 weeks in 1958. Art and Dottie appeared several times on The Ed Sullivan Show and on The Dick Clark Saturday Night Beechnut Show, and they also had their own CBS radio show. In their later years, they performed regularly at the Dunes and MGM Grand Hotels in Las Vegas, until their retirement in 1980. Art regularly gave 'ukelele lessons in and around Waikiki, and for many years, he and his buddies Del Courtney and Martin Denny got together for a weekly Wednesday jam session! He was a remarkable musician and he had a great deal of respect for bluegrass music. He will be missed.

IN LOVING MEMORY OF
CARMENCITA CERNA

Carmencita Cerna, the beloved mother of one of our brightest young stars, mandolinist Chris Cerna, passed away on Tuesday, March 27, 2007, after a brave battle with illness for several months.

On behalf of Bluegrass Hawai`i, mahalo to Carmen for her endless friendship and kindness to our community, and especially for producing and raising Chris to be an incredible talent. You will not be forgotten. For those of you who do not know the Cernas... please click here.

MAHALO, MABEL

Mabel Trent, a dear lady in faraway Pennsylvania, was tremendously supportive of our efforts to sow the seeds of bluegrass and traditional music here in Hawai`i.

Sadly, Mabel passed away of a massive heart attack on December 29, 2004. She became a legend in the worldwide bluegrass community--for her kind heart, her unique and original crocheted designs, and her deep and abiding love of music.

For a moving tribute to Mabel by DJ Mike Kear, please visit http://atalkingdog.com/. Mahalo and aloha to you, dear Mabel; may you rest in peace and sweet harmony.

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