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RWD
`Olu`olu
USA
850 Posts |
 Posted - 12/30/2006 : 6:14:25 PM
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I just heard a CD from Mark Hanson introduce the song "Moe 'Uhane" as "Mo Uhanay" (spelled phonetically). It surprised me because I thought for sure it would be pronounced "Moay Uhanay".
Which one is correct?
Bob
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Sarah
`Olu`olu
571 Posts |
Posted - 12/31/2006 : 06:16:08 AM
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It would be mo-eh 'uhaneh. Not too much "y" at the end or it would imply the words ended in "i" (moei 'uhanei).
aloha,
Sarah |
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RWD
`Olu`olu
USA
850 Posts |
Posted - 12/31/2006 : 08:19:04 AM
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| Ok, thanks Sarah. |
Bob |
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javeiro
Lokahi
USA
459 Posts |
Posted - 01/03/2007 : 12:48:36 PM
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| It's also a very beautiful melody and I love Sonny's story of how it came to him in a dream; hence it's name! And it is one of the first slack key tunes that I learned. However, someone taught it to me.....I did not learn it from Mark's book, which I have a copy of. It would be interesting to compare the arrangements sometime. |
Aloha,
John A. |
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cpatch
Ahonui
USA
2187 Posts |
Posted - 01/03/2007 : 1:16:40 PM
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| You might also want to look into the Stropes transcription, which is slightly different than Mark's and (at least in some places) a little more intuitive for the fingering. |
Craig
My goal is to be able to play as well as people think I can. |
Edited by - cpatch on 01/03/2007 10:41:36 PM |
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javeiro
Lokahi
USA
459 Posts |
Posted - 01/03/2007 : 6:35:05 PM
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| Thanks for the info, Craig.....I'll have to go and check it out on Stropes. The version I learned sounds fairly close to the original, though there are some slight differences in a couple of passages. |
Aloha,
John A. |
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Russell Letson
`Olu`olu
USA
504 Posts |
Posted - 01/04/2007 : 06:28:43 AM
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| Acoustic Guitar magazine ran an "Off the Record" piece on "Moe `Uhane" back in May 2000--music editor Andrew DuBrock did the transcription and I wrote the how-to copy (with Ozzie supplying important details about Sonny's own technique). From what I can tell, the Stropes remains the most accurate transcription available, but I like to think that some of my advice might be of some use, though it was aimed at players not necessarily familiar with slack key. |
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javeiro
Lokahi
USA
459 Posts |
Posted - 01/04/2007 : 08:21:16 AM
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| Mahalo, Russell. I went to the Acoustic Guitar magazine web site and see that the back issue is still available. Since this is one of my own favorites, I may have to order it and maybe the Stropes too. Do you recall how different the Stropes version is from this one? |
Aloha,
John A. |
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Reid
Ha`aha`a
Andorra
1526 Posts |
Posted - 01/04/2007 : 09:24:06 AM
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Sarah and I have the Stropes edition as well as the Hanson one. As brief examples, the Stropes fingering has, for instance, the G played at the 1st string, 5th fret, except for one variation, while, Hanson has them all played at the 2nd string, 8th fret. While, on the surface, not very important, Stropes gives you a clearer notion of how Sonny played. Ozzie also told me that the Stropes was how Sonny played, and, moreover, it is easier. The variations, and intro, are also different in detail, and, well, more various :-) in Stropes. Basically, it is a repetitive, and fairly simple piece, EXCEPT for the fact that Sonny's variations are "small" and, therefore, you can easily get confused about which one goes where. It has the same very nice 3-3-2 breakup of 4/4 time as Ho`omalu Slack Key, but the latter is *supremely* logical and, so, easier to remember. Moe `Uhane and Ho`omalu Slack Key are best when done with a real feel for the timing and expressiveness of the music, most particularly a smooth, unbroken nahenahe groove. And, we like both pieces played considerably slower than Sonny played them on the CD. They sound more lyrically hypnotic that way, we think. Moreover, there is a sequence of parallel 6ths on 2nd and 4th string that are gorgeous played slowly and Sonny mostly throws that away by burning through them.
OK, a cat can look at a King...
...Reid |
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javeiro
Lokahi
USA
459 Posts |
Posted - 01/04/2007 : 09:57:08 AM
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Reid, I know exactly what you mean by that 1st string/5th fret and 2nd string/8th fret variation. The person who first taught me the song used the 1st string/5th fret and I then saw someone else play the 2nd string/8th fret variation. It’s a subtle difference but I guess that’s one of the things that really makes it Sonny’s. And that sequence of parallel 6ths on the 2nd and 4th strings that you mention took me forever to learn well enough so it sounds decent. The timing and the touch both have to be just right and even now I seem to be able to play them to my satisfaction only on those rare days when my fingers are extra “loose” and I can do it by feeling and not thinking.
It’s funny that you should mention Ho’omalu Slack Key, which is another of my favorites. In a couple of the verses, there is a series of five notes played very quickly between measures that also took me a very long time to learn so that all the notes sounded clear and the timing was right.
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Aloha,
John A. |
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RWD
`Olu`olu
USA
850 Posts |
Posted - 01/04/2007 : 11:08:58 AM
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Mark does mis-pronounce the name on his CD,
And thanks to everyone for the extra input.
I will have to look at the other versions too, although I have been making small changes listening to Sonny's recording.
I also feel that the song will benefit from a slower tempo and I am going to slow it down. Thanks for mentioning it Reid.
The song is a little monotonous but the monotony sets up the par 6th runs so beautifully that it gives me chicken skin when I get there. I love it.
The song is easy, but I initially had a very difficult time maintaining the reapeating elements. It is getting easier for me now but I have to stay focused...so, it must be "e-hard".
Bob
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Reid
Ha`aha`a
Andorra
1526 Posts |
Posted - 01/04/2007 : 11:51:21 AM
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John, are you talking about the bass run hammers that then jump up to the 2nd string in HSK? If so, they are hard at first, but they are doable after some practice. They are very neat, because they echo the hammers done earlier on the first and second strings. Worth working for.
Also, the 2 Gs do have a slightly different timbre and are interesting if you listen closely. Sonny, on Stropes, uses it once - as a change-up, I guess.
I have often thought that those parallel 6ths (they actually use 2 other open strings, too) in M`U could be made into a theme for an original composition, or, at least, an intro. I have tried it a couple of times but I get stumped.
Bob, I don't think of it as monotony, but as the dreamy meditation that I think Sonny meant, if I can be allowed to peek into his mind.
...Reid |
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javeiro
Lokahi
USA
459 Posts |
Posted - 01/04/2007 : 12:06:38 PM
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| You got it, Reid! It's absolutely beautiful when I manage to get it right. Then to fit it in again between those triplets in the following verse was even more challenging! I don't know if "triplets" is really a musical term but I call them that because they are each three notes (an open note, a hammer-on, and a pull-off) played quickly. I learned it by painstakingly playing it very slowly at first and then gradually building up the tempo as I practiced it. |
Aloha,
John A. |
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cpatch
Ahonui
USA
2187 Posts |
Posted - 01/04/2007 : 12:20:02 PM
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| "Triplet" is indeed a musical term and refers to three notes played in the time two would normally take (technically they should appear in the notation with a bracket over the top of all three and a "3" above the bracket). In slack key a pluck/hammer/pulloff combo is usually played this way. |
Craig
My goal is to be able to play as well as people think I can. |
Edited by - cpatch on 01/04/2007 12:26:14 PM |
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javeiro
Lokahi
USA
459 Posts |
Posted - 01/04/2007 : 3:05:00 PM
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| Mahalo yet again, Craig! It's nice to have helpful people out there who are much more knowledgeable than I about these things. |
Aloha,
John A. |
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RWD
`Olu`olu
USA
850 Posts |
Posted - 01/04/2007 : 5:46:39 PM
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Reid
I guess I could have chosen a better word than monotonous.
In Sonnys recording the song is dream like and it's his delicate touch that does it. I have a tough time playing that lightly so in order to keep from being wrong, it's probably monotonous when I play it (haha).
Some of the notes he plays in the recording are barely audible.
He must have been very relaxed in the studio that day.
Bob |
Bob |
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