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Peter Medeiros
`Olu`olu
546 Posts |
 Posted - 10/29/2009 : 08:42:06 AM
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Welina,
I would like to invite you to my new online store where you will find my new textbook Hawaiian Slack Key: A Lifetime of Study Volume 1 Methodology available for purchase. The URL is http://www.slackkeybypetermed.com.
This is the first in a series of texts on slack key that my publishing company will be releasing. This text is a serious study and encompasses the music of slack key as I have studied and taught it for the last 40 years.
The second textbook Hawaiian Slack Key: A Lifetime of Study Volume 2 Anthology will be released early next year. It is a general anthology and focuses upon slack key music as a performance style through the end of the Hawaiian Cultural Renaissance.
The views expressed in these books reflect what I have learned about slack key in my lifetime. As end products they represent a serious ethnomusicological study of Hawaiian slack key guitar as a performance style. My goal is to preserve slack key in the written forms of music – musical nomenclature and guitar tablature.
There will be several reviews posted in the coming weeks by members of the taropatch.net community who through correspondence have maintained in close contact with me on this project and have the first book. It will be interesting to see what they have to say, since they are not my usual captive audience of university music students who either know how to read music or are learning how to sight read music.
At the present moment, this study does not include any recordings. Instead, citations of existing samples of slack key songs that have been transcribed are used. Some of these examples are available as downloads or on CDs. Keep in mind that Volume 1 is the methodology so it shows you how to play. Volume 2 is a broader study of how a number of different artists over time have played slack key, volumes 3, 4 and 5 focus upon the performance styles of specific artists.
If you have any questions I can be contacted at peter @ slackkeybypetermed.com.
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Edited by - Peter Medeiros on 10/29/2009 08:46:58 AM |
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cpatch
Ahonui
USA
2187 Posts |
Posted - 10/29/2009 : 09:29:08 AM
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| Congratulations! I just placed my order. |
Craig
My goal is to be able to play as well as people think I can. |
Edited by - cpatch on 10/29/2009 09:33:32 AM |
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Ben
Lokahi
USA
122 Posts |
Posted - 10/29/2009 : 10:10:54 AM
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| Fabulous news, Peter! Just place my order, too, and can't wait to get my copy. |
Mālama pono
Ben |
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Sarah
`Olu`olu
571 Posts |
Posted - 10/29/2009 : 10:18:38 AM
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Mahalo Peter, I just put in my order -- wouldn't miss this one!!
-Sarah |
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Peter Medeiros
`Olu`olu
546 Posts |
Posted - 10/29/2009 : 12:02:28 PM
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Az da resident moke ovahea I would like to tank you all.
Mahalos |
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Admin
Pupule
USA
4551 Posts |
Posted - 10/29/2009 : 5:13:49 PM
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Dear Resident Moke, nah, nah,
Congrats on the completion of this project. Holy cow, Vols. 3, 4, 5...?!?! Moke?!?! Only "da professor" can write that much!
BTW, I will post your image here too. |
Andy |
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Mark
Ha`aha`a
USA
1628 Posts |
Posted - 10/30/2009 : 08:11:40 AM
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That is wonderful news.
This is certainly a great day for Hawaiian music, and musicology in general. I've ordered my copy, and I'll be waiting for volumes 2 on.
cheers,
Mark |
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Menpachi Man
Lokahi
274 Posts |
Posted - 10/30/2009 : 7:11:04 PM
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Hawaiian Slack Key: A Life Time of Study -- Methodology
As indicated on his web site and post, this is the first of a series of textbooks on traditional Hawaiian slack key. This is a comprehensive treatise encompassing historical developments, cultural references, Hawaiian language descriptions of the music, guitar techniques, and basic music theory and common tunings circumscribing the art of Ki ho'alu or Hawaiian slack key. For serious students of Ki ho'alu this is the first of the most encyclopedic series of books ever written on the subject. There are delightful anecdotes interspersed throughout the book reflecting his love for the art form which I and many of you with the same love for the art form can relate to.
This book was written as a college textbook on the subject matter and is not intended as an introduction to Ki ho'alu or beginning guitar lessons. Musical notations are provided along with the tabs as well as lyrics for compositions with words. It is not necessary to read music in the strict sense where you play the music using only the musical notations. Tabs are provided for finger positions on the fret board. The musical notations are references for pitch and rhythm or duration of the notes. It would be advantageous to learn basic music theory and have intermediate guitar finger picking techniques to fully benefit from this methodology book.
A number of "classic" Ki ho'alu tunings are covered. Open G or Taropatch, Drop C, G Wahine (Gmaj7), D Wahine (Dmaj7), C Wahine (Cmaj7), Cmaj9, Cmaj or open C, C Maunaloa or C6th, High C Maunaloa, and G Maunaloa. The slack key pieces are intermediate in nature in my opinion. Opinions being highly subjective, you may beg to differ.
This book is an indepth study of traditional Hawaiian slack key, by a Hawaiian Ki ho'alu artist, and a distinguished Kumu at the University of Hawaii of the art form for nearly 4 decades . Peter Medeiros' talent, knowledge-base of Ki ho'alu and contributions to the art form qualifies him to be a cultural living treasure of Hawaii.
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RobO
Akahai
USA
97 Posts |
Posted - 10/31/2009 : 10:24:57 AM
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| Great news Peter. I can't wait to receive mine... Mahalo nui |
a hui hou... Rob
"Lawe i ka ma'alea a ku'ono'ono"
Translation: Acquire skill and make it deep |
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Fran Guidry
Ha`aha`a
USA
1579 Posts |
Posted - 11/01/2009 : 11:42:45 AM
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This is one many of us have been waiting for. I've enjoyed learning from Peter on many of our visits to O`ahu, and even more enjoyed hearing him cut loose with his fabulous singing and playing. I've been honored to sample some prerelease material, and spent hours soaking up the deep lessons contained in one song after another.
Thanks, Peter, for sharing your knowledge, and congratulations on the completion of the first volume.
Fran |
E ho`okani pila kakou ma Kaleponi
Slack Key Guitar in California - www.kaleponi.com
Slack Key on YouTube
Homebrewed Music Blog |
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kihoalukid
Lokahi
USA
289 Posts |
Posted - 11/01/2009 : 7:05:44 PM
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| Awesome! looking forward to it. |
Lee |
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Mika ele
Ha`aha`a
USA
1493 Posts |
Posted - 11/02/2009 : 1:42:11 PM
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Aloha Kakou,
I have had the honor and priveledge to study under Peter while on Oahu and was one of his (non-university) students that received the early draft versions of this text while taking lessons at his home in Kaneohe. I have been on the waiting list to purchase the first copy for many years. Mine came in the mail three weeks ago (Copy #1). I have been busily reading and poring over the text ever since. I met with Peter last week and he handed me three more copies for the SCSKS bubbas (already spoken for). Although none was really asked for, he sat with me on the UH campus for quite some time and explained some of the concepts and background to this book. What was a real "ah-ha" moment for me though, was when I saw in the book, for the first time, HOW AND WHY the same simple chord shape in one tuning works in other tunings but on different strings -- why most "wahine" tunings can be related through leading tones, and why maunaloa tunings sound so sweet.
This is not a book for those that are afraid of musical terms, musical notation, and an in-depth explanation and analysis of Slack Key Methodology -- Peter is a Professor of Music. If you run away from words like "scordatura", "habanera", "kinetic patterns", and the like -- then you should hold off on this book. However, if, like me, you never received a good and well-thought out answer from a slack key master, when you asked "why it was done that way" -- then this is exactly the book you have been searching for. If you have been wondering how to approach not only learning but mastering slack key with the ability to move between different tunings with ease; to be able to improvise and jam along at kanikapila; to apply the methodology to ukulele, mandolin, banjo, tiple, and the like; to learn effective two-finger chord applications and a simple way to remember them; to learn why the alternating bass patterns and the rhythm are key to the music; and to learn much about the history and traditions of slack key from a true kumu (inside source) -- this is exactly the book you are looking for.
There is musical notation and tablature for many, many songs. This book is almost 300 pages long!!! The purpose of the songs are to get you to understand the concepts, history, and methodology through application. You really should try to sing along -- the words are all there. One day I'd like to provide the musical background for a beautiful hula dancer and help her tell the story. This is one reason why Peter wrote this book.
Peter has poured his time, talent, and treasure into this book while battling severe health issues. I'm sure he wondered many times why he should keep pushing on to complete this project. I am so very thankful that he did. This is BY FAR the finest and most comprehensive book on learning the art of slack key that has ever been written -- BAR NONE.
I cannot say enough kind things about this book  -- and as many of you who receive yours will observe. We paid too little for what we got.
Peter suggests, that if you wish to place this book on your music stand and really bite into it, then you should consider making your own spiral binding. My copy sits pretty well on the stand while I learn the songs and apply the methodology, but I am sure it will not stay that way for long -- I plan on abusing the binding through much dog-eared effort!
E Malama Pono,
CAPT Mike  |
E nana, e ho'olohe. E pa'a ka waha, e hana ka lima. |
Edited by - Mika ele on 11/03/2009 07:34:31 AM |
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chunky monkey
Ha`aha`a
USA
1022 Posts |
Posted - 11/05/2009 : 08:32:24 AM
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| What Mike said. A milestone work. Way to go Peter. Hard to believe there are more vols in the wings. |
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Lawrence
Ha`aha`a
USA
1597 Posts |
Posted - 11/06/2009 : 09:03:51 AM
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Aloha Peter,
Many of us have been waiting for your book to finally come out, and as you can see, some of us were worried that you would not complete it when you were also battling serious illness. So the news is doubly good that you have it completed.
Is there some way I can order the book without dealing with PayPal?
This is one web company that I refuse to do business with (another is Amazon). As far as I am concerned they are crooks.
Can I send you a check or Money order? I will even pay extra just so I do not have to deal with PayPal.
Mahalo...
...Lawrence
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Mahope Kākou...
...El Lorenzo de Ondas Sonoras |
Edited by - Lawrence on 11/06/2009 09:11:47 AM |
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Peter Medeiros
`Olu`olu
546 Posts |
Posted - 11/06/2009 : 10:07:50 PM
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Recently, someone e-mailed me a question indicating that she was concerned that my textbook may be too difficult because of the musical terminology and transcriptions in the book. I would like to share my response with you, which is set forth below.
“I cannot tell you if my book is going to be hard for you because I haven’t met you or heard you play. What I can tell you is that the book provides you with an organized and logical way to learn slack key. And it isn’t necessary to learn or know musical terminology in order to use my methodology. Even if you don’t know how to read musical notes, you should be able to play the songs using the tablature and fingering.
The methodology is covered in the first chapter. If you read through and understand this chapter, what you learn here can then be applied to each of the ten tunings in the text. Although each tuning is in one sense unique, they also share certain characteristics, which is what I explain in detail in the first chapter. What my book does is provide you with an efficient means of learning slack key.”
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Baritone
Lokahi
USA
136 Posts |
Posted - 11/09/2009 : 05:08:08 AM
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| Ei nei, Bradduh Pi'tah! Your heart stay pumping!!!!! Right on! Put me down fo the 100th copy (Joke, Brah!). Dat way I know I goin get mine considering the orders coming in your Hale Ike! |
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Textbook and Guide to Slack Key by Peter Medeiros
