Oregon & Washington Late Oct 2019

I’m really looking forward to playing a couple of concerts in Portland, Oregon and Kirkand, Washington. These will be with my hanai son, Jeff Peterson and my sweet wife, Moanalani.

If you have a chance, come by and say ALOHA!

Keola Beamer & Jeff Peterson with Moanalani Beamer
Mon, Oct 14, 2019, Alberta Rose Theatre, Portland OR
7:30 PM

Thurs, Oct 17, 2019, Kirkland Performing Arts Center, Kirkland WA
7:00 PM

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For Paul Simon, August 2019

On August 13 & 14, I played for the sold out Paul Simon shows at the Maui Arts And Cultural Center. Paul was so gracious, welcoming and kind. It was a wonderful experience that I will never forget. Towards the end of the night, Michael McDonald and I stood quietly backstage in total admiration of Pauls’ great work and amazing, multi-talented band. 

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News Update August 5, 2019

Paul Simon is doing shows here on Maui at the Maui Arts and Cultural Center, August 13 & 14. He’s asked me to play a song or two. What a wonderful honor to be on the same stage with such a great songwriter. Both his shows at the MACC sold out in the first six hours, so unfortunately there are no tickets left.

Paul Simon has requested that net proceeds from both shows be donated to the Auwahi Forest Restoration Project and Kua‘āina Ulu ‘Auamo (KUA). These are two excellent non-profits.

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News Update June 24, 2019

Aloha Music Camp is presented every year by myself and The Mohala Hou Foundation. Registration for Aloha Music Camp 2020 on Kaua’i will open tomorrow June 25th, 2019. (12:00pm HST, 3:00pm Pacific, 6:00pm Eastern, or 11:00pm GMT) Space is limited so these registrations sell out quickly. I encourage my Haumana (Students) to please register early by clicking here.

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Paul Simon Visits June 2019

Paul Simon came over to my house for dinner. It was a beautiful Maui evening with some nice wines, lots of talk story and aloha shared. Paul wrote “The Sound of Silence” when he was only 19 years old. Amazing! I am so grateful for his incredible body of work and the warmth of his friendship.

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Hawaiian Music Hall of Fame May 2019

Inducted into The Hawaiian Music Hall Of Fame

Last Saturday night I received the great honor of being inducted into the Hawaiian Music Hall Of Fame, along with my mother – Nona Beamer (deceased) and my brother Kapono. It was a special evening filled with Aloha supported by family and friends and attended by many incredible artists and mentors of Hawai’i.

To celebrate this achievement, my brother Kaliko uploaded my arrangement of Sweet Lei Mamo to our Advanced Realm. This is a sweetly melodic Charles Hopkins song written at the end of the 19th Century. I learned this from my dear mom.

The mamo is the safflower or false saffron from Asia. The yellow feather-like flowers were highly prized and loved by Hawaii’s people. This is in triple meter with its distinctive waltz feel and contains a modulation (change of key) element within the form

Triple meter is rare in Hawaiian Music, so if you are looking for a refreshing rhythmical change of pace (plus a modulation!) check out ADV-21: Sweet Lei Mamo. 

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With Nawang Khechog April 2019

It was a great honor to perform last night on Maui with Nawang Khechog, the master flute player from Tibet. This was truly an evening to remember with Nawang at the height of his craft as he exhibited a  beautiful and masterful performance. In a piece we did together, the aloha and spirituality of both of our cultures felt like it was shimmering with light. It was a superlative evening of ethereal music on the most beautiful Island on the planet.

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Aloha Music Camp March 2019

We had such a fabulous time at Aloha Music Camp! Our programs worked exceptionally well. I had an awesome Advanced Slack Key Guitar Class with so many great players, all of them playing with both sensitivity and aloha. Together, we learned a lot and had a great deal of fun. The week absolutely flew by. I’m going to miss these Haumana.

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Thoughts of Camp February 2019

I am so looking forward to our upcoming Aloha Music Camp – March 3 – 9 on the beautiful Island of Kaua’i at the Mariott Coconut Beach Resort.  This is our 18th year of operation. (I’ve lost track of how many camps we’ve actually conducted over that period of time!) Recently I’ve been designing lesson plans and speaking with our Kumu. It’s fun checking in with ‘Ohana and getting up to speed with our operations. I am so grateful for the efforts of our Staff and Board Of Directors who somehow excel in their duties year after year. It just keeps getting better!

Me Ke Aloha, Keola Beamer