MEDIA RELEASE

Hawaii Volcanoes National Park is offering a two-day Hawaiian
music songwriting retreat for beginners on Saturday, August 16 and Sunday, August 17.
Hawaiian music, language and haku mele (Hawaiian song) experts Kenneth Makuakane and
Kaliko Trapp-Beamer will lead the workshops.

Both workshops run from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., and will be held at the park’s Education Center.
Advance registration is required.

To register, call (808) 985-6166. Leave your name, email address, and best contact number no later than August 8. Space is limited. The park will contact you by email to confirm your reservation.

The retreat will be held in the park at the summit of Kilauea. Budding songwriters will find
inspiration in this wahi kapu (sacred place), among the towering koa and ohia lehua trees, over
fields of ropy pahoehoe lava, and in the awe-inspiring eruptive glow from Halemaumau Crater.

Also inspirational are the retreat’s accomplished teachers. Kenneth Makuakane is a multiple
Na Hoku Hanohano award winner, along with his group, The Pandanus Club. He’s a prolific
songwriter (1,500-plus songs), producer of more than 100 albums, and collaborator who has
worked with virtually all of the stars of Hawaiian music over the years.

Kaliko was raised as the hanai son of Hawaiian cultural expert Aunty Nona Beamer (1923-
2008), learning Hawaiian chant, storytelling, traditional protocol, family songs, and stories. He
currently teaches Hawaiian language courses at the University of Hawaii in Hilo, and helps
coordinate the Beamer Family Aloha Music Camp. He is the President of the Mohala Hou Foundation dedicated to “preserve and perpetuate Hawaiian culture through education and the arts.”

The two-day Hawaiian songwriting retreat is sponsored by Hawaii Volcanoes National Park and
Hawaii Pacific Parks Association. Park entrance fees apply.