Yesterday I indicated that I would provide a Part 2 to my personal encounter with potential dementia, which can be read by scrolling down to the next article. However, as the title will be something like My Final Journey, I thought a more appropriate day for this posting would be Sunday.
The other day when I published IMUA KAMEHAMEHA, I noticed that the author was Charles E. King. I only barely remembered his name, so went to Wikipedia. Wow, was he prolific. He is like the Hawaiian music equivalent of Irving Berlin and Cole Porter. He was born as Charles Edward King in 1874.
He was in the first graduating class of the Kamehameha School for Boys (standing, second from right) in 1891, nearly 120 year ago. He was 1/4 Hawaiian and lived on the lands of Queen Emma in Nuuanu Valley. He was christened by her at St. Andrew's Cathedral and was a protege of Queen Liliuokalani. Charles Reed Bishop (husband of Bernice Pauahi Bishop) paid King's tuition to a teachers' college in New York. He returned to teach music on the Big Island.
To the left, his photo in 1916. He successfully ran as a Republican in 1918 for a seat in the Territory of Hawaii Senate. He introduced Senate Bill 76 in 1919 to establish the University of Hawaii at Manoa.
At the age of 42 he began to write music. Kamehameha Waltz was his paen to his alma mater and Bernice Pauahi Bishop, who created the trust fund to establish the school. It is sung at every annual Kam School song contest (both Imua Kamehameha and Kamehameha Waltz).
He also wrote Ke Kali Nei Au, better known as the Hawaiian Wedding Song, first recorded in 1928. Actually the English translation is Waiting For Thee, and has nothing to do with weddings.
He went on to serve two terms as conductor of the Royal Hawaiian Band, 1932-1934 and 1939-1941. He moved to New York in 1941 and passed away in 1950.
Among his other compositions are:
- Aloha Oe E Kuu Lei
- Elue
- Hawaii
- Hawaii Nei
- Hawaiian Mother's Lullaby
- Imua Kamehameha
- Kaala
- Kaimana Hila
- Kamehameha March
- Kuu Lei Pikake
- Lehua
- Lei Ilima, Leilani
- Leilehua
- Mauna Loa
- Mau Day is Lei Day Too
- Na Lei O Hawaii (Song of the Islands)
- Palolo
- Pidgin English Hula
- Pua Roselani
- and many more.
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