Gabby Pahinui, left, teaches his son Cyril, foreground, in the yard of their Waimānalo home as Joe Gang looks on. - Photo by David Cornwell, courtesy Cyril Pahinui

By T. Ilihia Gionson / Ka Wai Ola Loa

As one could surmise from his last name, Cyril Pahinui learned slack key from the legends of the art: his dad Gabby and his contemporaries. He has been teaching the art of slack key in various venues for years, but now, he's looking to settle in by opening Hālau Mele Hawai'i O Pahinui.

"During my dad, Gabby Pahinui's life, weekends at home in Waimānalo were a continuous jam session. Dozens of musicians, both young and old, came by to jam with 'the Master'," Pahinui said.

Pahinui's most popular programs have been He Huaka'i E Pana Na I Ke Ea – think field trip meets jam session, inspired by Uncle George Nā'ope – where students and kumu alike visit wahi pana and learn the songs of that place.

One of the famous Pahinui backyard jam sessions. Gabby Pahinui leads the session in the foreground, as Atta Issacs, Philip Pahinui, Cyril Pahinui, and Martin Pahinui play along. - Photo by David Cornwell, courtesy Cyril Pahinui

The last one was held in conjunction with Kamehameha Day in Kohala, which will become an annual tradition. Pahinui was joined by fellow slack key masters John Keawe and Leabert Lindsey, and Kohala storyteller Fred Cachola, Donald Kaulia, Pomaika'i Brown, and Matthew Kupuka'a.

"I think this is something that should have been done years ago. Me, I didn't have a workshop. My kind of learning was eyes and ears, that's all. I learned from my daddy, just watching," Pahinui said, also listing Sonny Chillingworth and Atta Issacs as his teachers.

Nelson Denman of Kohala enjoyed the workshop. "It's so great to be here with living cultural icons, carriers of slack key wisdom. The music was developing every day."

Pahinui, left, teaches a workshop in Kohala with fellow slack key master and Kohala native John Keawe. - Photo: T. Ilihia Gionson

The Kohala workshop was held between several small bed-and-breakfasts in living rooms, giving beginners and advanced students a rare intimacy with slack key masters. The Hālau will continue this, emulating the backyard jams that the Pahinui house in Waimānalo was famous for, with space for eager learners to stay for a few nights and be immersed in Hawaiian music and culture.

The Hālau is offering classes and workshops in other venues as it amasses the funds to purchase a permanent home. Pahinui's current gig is at the Kani Ka Pila Grille at the Outrigger Reef hotel in Waikīkī, where he holds classes earlier in the day on Wednesdays and performs in the evenings from 5:30 – 9 p.m.

Pahinui works one-on-one with Ulu in one of his workshops. - Photo courtesy Cyril Pahinui

"I'd like to teach as long as I live, around the island, the islands, the mainland. As long as I can walk and talk and sing, that's my goal," Pahinui said.

The next Huaka'i on Hawai'i will be in Hilo December 3-6, and the Kohala workshop again in June 9-14, 2010. There are also classes monthly at the Pahinui home in Waimānalo. For more information on the Huaka'i, other workshops, the Hālau Mele, and to purchase a t-shirt to support the Hālau, email cyril@cyrilpahinui.com, visit cyrilpahinui.com, or call (808) 722-8575.