Unwritten Literature of Hawaii Part 37

It will be noticed that the stress-accent and the rhythmic accent, marked by the down-beat, very frequently do not coincide. The time marked by the drum-down-beat was strictly accurate throughout.

The tune was often pitched on some other key than that in which it is here recorded. This fact was noted when, from time to tune, it was found necessary to have the singer repeat certain pa.s.sages.

The number of measures devoted to the _i'i_, or fluctuation, which is indicated by the wavering line [Ill.u.s.tration:], varied from time to time, even when the singer repeated the same pa.s.sage. (See remarks on the _i'i_ p. 140.)

Redundancies of speech (interpolations) which are in disagreement with the present writer's text (pp. 155-156) are inclosed in brackets. It will be seen that in the fifth verse he gives the version _Maka'u ke kanaka i ka lehua_ instead of the one given by the author, which is _Maka'u ka Lehua i ke kanaka_. Each version has its advocates, and good arguments are made in favor of each.

On reaching the end of a measure that coincided with the close of a rhetorical phrase the singer, Kualii, made haste to s.n.a.t.c.h, as it were, at the first word or syllable of the succeeding phrase. This is indicated by the word "antic.i.p.ating," or "antic.i.p.atory"--written _anticip._--placed over the syllable or word thus s.n.a.t.c.hed.

It was somewhat puzzling to determine whether the tones which this man sang were related to each other as five and three of the major key, or as three and one of the minor key.

Continued and strained attention finally made it seem evident that it was the major key which he intended, i.e., it was [Music: f] and [Music: d] in the key of [Music: B-flat], rather than [Music: f] and [Music: d] in the key of D minor.

ELOCUTION AND RHYTHMIC ACCENT IN HAWAIIAN SONG

In their ordinary speech the Hawaiians were good elocutionists--none better. Did they adhere to this same system of accentuation in their poetry, or did they punctuate their phrases and words according to the notions of the song-maker and the conceived exigencies of poetical composition? After hearing and studying this recitation of Kualii the author is compelled to say that he does depart in a great measure from the accent of common speech and charge his words with intonations and stresses peculiar to the mele.

What artificial influence has come in to produce this result? Is it from some demand of poetic or of musical rhythm? Which? It was observed that he subst.i.tuted the soft sound of _t_ for the stronger sound of _k_, "because," as he explained, "the sound of the _t_ is lighter." Thus he said _te tanata_ instead of _ke kanaka_, the man. The Hawaiian ear has always a delicate feeling for tone-color.

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In all our discussions and conclusions we must bear in mind that the Hawaiian did not approach song merely for its own sake; the song did not sing of itself. First in order came the poem, then the rhythm of song keeping time to the rhythm of the poetry. The Hawaiian sang not from a mere bubbling up of indefinable emotion, but because he had something to say for which he could find no other adequate form of expression.

The Hawaiian boy, as he walks the woods, never whistles to keep his courage up. When he paces the dim aisles of Kaliuwa'a, he sets up an altar and heaps on it a sacrifice of fruit and flowers and green leaves, but he keeps as silent as a mouse.

During his performance Kualii cantillated his song while handling a round wooden tray in place of a drum; his wife meanwhile performed the dance. This she did very gracefully and in perfect time. In marking the accent the left foot was, if anything, the favorite, yet each foot in general took two measures; that is, the left marked the down-beat in measures 1 and 2, 5 and 6, and so on, while the right, in turn, marked the rhythmic accent that comes with the down-beat in measures 3 and 4, 7 and 8, and so on. During the four steps taken by the left foot, covering the time of two measures, the body was gracefully poised on the other foot. Then a s.h.i.+ft was made, the position was reversed, and during two measures the emphasis came on the right foot.

The motions of the hands, arms, and of the whole body, including the pelvis--which has its own peculiar orbital and sidelong swing--were in perfect sympathy one part with another. The movements were so fascinating that one was at first almost hypnotized and disqualified for criticism and a.n.a.lytic judgment. Not to derogate from the propriety and modesty of the woman's motions, under the influence of her Delsartian grace one gained new appreciation of "the charm of woven paces and of waving hands."

Throughout the whole performance of Kualii and his wife Abi-gaila it was noticed that, while he was the reciter, she took the part of the olapa (see p. 28) and performed the dance; but to this role she added that of prompter, repeating to him in advance the words of the next verse, which he then took up. Her verbal memory, it was evident, was superior to his.

Experience with Kualii and his partner, as well as with others, emphasizes the fact that one of the great difficulties encountered in the attempt to write out the slender thread of music (_leo_) of a Hawaiian mele and fit to it the words as uttered by the singer arises from the constant interweaving of meaningless vowel sounds. This, which the Hawaiians call _i'i_, is a phenomenon comparable to the weaving of a vine about a framework, or to the [Page 160] pen-flourishes that illuminate old German text. It consists of the repet.i.tion of a vowel sound--generally _i_ (=_ee_) or _e_ (=_a_, as in fate), or a rapid interchange of these two.

To the ear of the author the pitch varies through an interval somewhat less than a half-step. Exactly what is the interval he can not say. The musicians to whom appeal for aid in determining this point has been made have either dismissed it for the most part as a matter of little or no consequence or have claimed the seeming variation in pitch was due simply to a changeful stress of voice or of accent. But the author can not admit that the report of his senses is here mistaken.

A further embarra.s.sment comes from the fact that this tone-embroidery found in the i'i is not a fixed quant.i.ty. It varies seemingly with the mood of the singer, so that not unfrequently, when one asks for the repet.i.tion of a phrase, it will, quite likely, be given with a somewhat different wording, calling for a readjustment of the rhythm on the part of the musician who is recording the score. But it must be acknowledged that the singer sticks to his rhythm, which, so far as observed, is in common time.

In justice to the Hawaiian singer who performs the accommodating task just mentioned it must be said that, under the circ.u.mstances in which he is placed, it is no wonder that at times he departs from the prearranged formula of song. His is the difficult task of pitching his voice and maintaining the same rhythm and tempo unaided by instrumental accompaniment or the stimulating movements of the dance. Let any stage-singer make the attempt to perform an aria, or even a simple recitative, off the stage, and without the support--real or imaginary--afforded by the wonted orchestral accompaniment as well as the customary stage-surroundings, and he will be apt to find himself embarra.s.sed. The very fact of being compelled to repeat is of itself alone enough to disconcert almost anyone. The men and women who to-day attempt the forlorn task of reproducing for us a hula mele or an oli under what are to them entirely unsympathetic and novel surroundings are, as a rule, past the prime of life, and not unfrequently acknowledge themselves to be failing in memory.

After making all of these allowances we must, it would seem, make still another allowance, which regards the intrinsic nature and purpose of Hawaiian song. It was not intended, nor was it possible under the circ.u.mstances of the case, that a Hawaiian song should be sung to an unvarying tempo or to the same key; and even in the words or sounds that make up its fringework a certain range of individual choice was allowed or even expected of the singer. This privilege of exercising individuality might even extend to the solid framework of the mele or oli and not merely to the filigree, the i'i, that enwreathed it.

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It would follow from this, if the author is correct, that the musical critic of to-day must be content to generalize somewhat and must not be put out if the key is changed on repet.i.tion and if tempo and rhythm depart at times from their standard gait. It is questionable if even the experts in the palmy days of the hula attained such a degree of skill as to be faultless and logical in these matters.

It has been said that modern music has molded and developed itself under the influence of three causes, (1) a comprehension of the nature of music itself, (2) a feeling or inspiration, and (3) the influence of poetry. Guided by this generalization, it may be said that Hawaiian poetry was the nurse and pedagogue of that stammering infant, Hawaiian music; that the words of the mele came before its rhythmic utterance in song; and that the first singers were the priests and the eulogists. Hawaiian poetry is far ahead of Hawaiian song in the power to move the feelings. A few words suffice the poet with which to set the picture before one's eyes, and one picture quickly follows another; whereas the musical attachment remains weak and colorless, reminding one of the nursery pictures, in which a few skeletal lines represent the human frame.

Let us now for refreshment and in continued pursuit of our subject listen to a song in the language and spirit of old-time Hawaii, composed, however, in the middle of the nineteenth century. It is given as arranged by Miss Lillian Byington, who took it down as she heard it sung by an old Hawaiian woman in the train of Queen Liliuokalani, and as the author has since heard it sung by Miss Byington's pupils of the Kamehameha School for Girls. The song has been slightly idealized, perhaps, by tr.i.m.m.i.n.g away some of the superfluous i'i, but not more than is necessary to make it highly acceptable to our ears and not so much as to take from it the plaintive bewitching tone that pervades the folk-music of Hawaii. The song, the mele, is not in itself much--a hint, a sketch, a sweep of the brush, a lilt of the imagination, a connotation of multiple images which no jugglery of literary art can transfer into any foreign speech. Its charm, like that of all folk-songs and of all romance, lies in its mysterious tug at the heartstrings.

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VIII--He Inoa no Kamehameha (Old Mele--Kindness of H.R.H. Liliuokalani) Arranged by LILLIAN BYINGTON [Music:]

_He Inoa no Kamehameha_

Aia i Waipi'o[315] Paka'alana,[316]

Paepae[317] kapu ia o Liloa.[318]

He aloha ka wahine pi'i ka pali,[319]

Puili ana i ka hua ulei, 5 I ka ai mo'a i ka lau laau.[320]

Hoolaau[321] mai o ka welowelo.

Ua pe'e pa Kai-a-ulu o Waimea,[322]

Ua ola i ku'u kai,[323] Keoloewa,[324] e.

[Footnote 315: _Waipi'o_. A deep valley on the windward side of Hawaii.]

[Footnote 316: _Paka'alana_. A temple and the residence of King Liloa in Waipi'o.]

[Footnote 317: _Paepae_. The doorsill (of this temple), always an object of superst.i.tious regard, but especially so in the case of this temple. Here it stands for the whole temple.]

[Footnote 318: _Liloa_. A famous king of Hawaii who had his seat in Waipi'o.]

[Footnote 319: _Wahine pii ka pali_, Haina-kolo, a mythical character, is probably the one alluded to. She married a king of Kukulu o Kahiki, and, being deserted by him, swam back to Hawaii. Arrived at Waipi'o in a famis.h.i.+ng state, she climbed the heights and ate of the _ulei_ berries without first propitiating the local deity with a sacrifice. As an infliction of the offended deity, she became distraught and wandered away into the wilderness. Her husband repented of his neglect and after long search found her. Under kind treatment she regained her reason and the family was happily reunited.]

[Footnote 320: _Lau laau_. Leaves of plants.]

[Footnote 321: _Hoolaau_. The last part of this word, _laau_, taken in connection with the last word of the previous verse, form a capital instance of word repet.i.tion. This was an artifice much used in Hawaiian poetry, both as a means of imparting tone-color and for the punning wit it was supposed to exhibit.]

[Footnote 322: _Ua pe'e pa Kai-a-ulu o Waimea_. _Kai-a-ulu_ is a fierce rain-squall such as arises suddenly in the uplands of Waimea, Hawaii. The traveler, to protect himself, crouches (_pe'e_) behind a hummock of gra.s.s, or builds up in all haste a barricade (_pa_) of light stuff as a partial shelter against the oncoming storm.]

[Footnote 323: _Kai_. Taken in connection with _Kai-a-ulu_ in the preceding verse, this is another instance of verse repet.i.tion. This word, the primary meaning of which is sea, or ocean, is used figuratively to represent a source of comfort or life.]

[Footnote 324: _Keoloewa_. The name of one of the old G.o.ds belonging to the cla.s.s called _akua noho_, a cla.s.s of deities that were sent by the necromancers on errands of demoniacal possession.]

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[Translation]

_A Name-song of Kamehameha_

In Waipi'o stands Paka'alana, The sacred shrine of Liloa.

Love to the woman climbing the steep, Who gathered the ulei berries, 5 Who ate of the uncooked herbs of the wild, 5 Craving the swaying fruit like a hungry child.

A covert I found from the storm, Life in my sea of delight.

The text of this mele--said to be a name-song of Kamehameha V--as first secured had undergone some corruption which obscured the meaning. By calling to his aid an old Hawaiian in whose memory the song had long been stored the author was able to correct it. Hawaiian authorities are at variance as to its meaning. One party reads in it an exclusive allusion to characters that have flitted across the stage within the memory of people now living, while another, taking a more romantic and traditional view, finds in it a reference to an old-time myth--that of _Ke-anini-ula-o-ka-lani_--the chief character in which was _Haina-kolo_. (See note _e_.) After carefully considering both sides of the question it seems to the author that, while the principle of double allusion, so common in Hawaiian poetry, may here prevail, one is justified in giving prominence to the historico-mythological interpretation that is inwoven in the poem. It is a comforting thought that adhesion to this decision will suffer certain unstaged actions of crowned heads to remain in charitable oblivion.

The music of this song is an admirable and faithful interpretation of the old Hawaiian manner of cantillation, having received at the hands of the foreign musician only so much tr.i.m.m.i.n.g as was necessary to idealize it and make it reducible to our system of notation.

EXPLANATORY NOTE

_Hoaeae_.--This term calls for a quiet, sentimental style of recitation, in which the fluctuating trill i'i, if it occurs at all, is not made prominent. It is contrasted with the _olioli_, in which the style is warmer and the fluctuations of the i'i are carried to the extreme.

Thus far we have been considering the traditional indigenous music of the land. To come now to that which has been and is being produced in Hawaii by Hawaiians to-day, under influences from abroad, it will not be possible to mistake the presence in it of two strains: The foreign, showing its hand in the lopping away of much redundant foliage, has brought it largely within the compa.s.s of scientific and technical expression; the native element reveals itself, now [Page 164] in plaintive reminiscence and now in a riotous _bonhommie_, a rollicking love of the sensuous, and in a style of delivery and vocal technique which demands a voluptuous throatiness, and which must be heard to be appreciated.

The foreign influence has repressed and well-nigh driven from the field the monotonous fluctuations of the i'i, has lifted the starveling melodies of Hawaii out of the old ruts and enriched them with new notes, thus giving them a spring and _elan_ that appeal alike to the cultivated ear and to the popular taste of the day. It has, moreover, tapped the springs of folk-song that lay hidden in the Hawaiian nature.