Cellist Joshua Nakazawa on the Mana Music Quartet’s Commitment to Hawaiian Culture

By Greg Cahill | From the November/December 2024 issue of Strings

To understand the depth of the Mana Music Quartet’s commitment to the indigenous culture of Hawaii, you just need to know that in 2020 this island ensemble released a debut album of often breathtaking compositions by Queen Lili‘uokalani (1838–1917), the last sovereign monarch of the Hawaiian Kingdom. The group’s latest album, Journey Through Hawai’i, gathers such contemporary Aloha State musicians as ukulele phenom Jake Shimabukuro, vocalist Raiatea Helm, and singer/songwriter Kalani Pe’a, among others. “On our musical Journey Through Hawai’i, we have had the privilege and joy to form lasting friendships with incredible musicians and cultural bearers,” says cellist Joshua Nakazawa, a member of the Honolulu Symphony Orchestra who plays in Mana Music with fellow chamber musicians and educators Eric Silberger, Mann-Wen Lo, and Duane Padilla, a member of the board of the American String Teachers Association.

Strings had a chance to chat with Nakazawa about the ensemble, its new album, and its cultural mission.

What was the central goal of Mana Music when it formed? 

The origin story of the Mana Music Quartet begins with the Covid pandemic. On March 15, 2020, we found ourselves performing together on the historic USS Missouri battleship in Pearl Harbor. The following day, the world shut down due to the Covid pandemic. Stranded in Honolulu, we ended up quarantining together as a quartet. Serendipitously, Duane had recently arranged a Hawaiian song by Queen Lili‘uokalani. “Ku’u Pua i Paoakalani” was composed while she was imprisoned during the overthrow of her kingdom. Her music emotionally resonated with us so deeply we felt compelled to explore it further. The resulting album went on to win the prestigious Instrumental Album of the Year award from the Hawaii Academy of Recording Arts. This support from Hawaii’s musical community inspired us to continue exploring the music of Hawaii with our new album.

What challenges have you faced along the way?

While we all feel strong connections to Hawaii and its people, none of the quartet members are of Hawaiian descent. To earn the respect of a culture that is not natively our own, we reached out to Hawaii’s musical kapuna—honored elders, teachers, and community leaders. Musical mentors Aaron Mahi, 30-year director of Hawaii’s Royal Hawaiian Band, and Nola Nahalu, the choir director of the Kawaiaha’o Church, the national house of prayer, helped educate us about the musical culture around us, and with their blessing, the quartet has been accepted into the Hawaiian musical community.

What have you learned about Hawaiian culture?

Our need to embrace Hawaiian culture grows out of our desire to find our place in this unique musical melting pot. In Hawaiian culture, music is much more than simply entertainment. Music and dance—mele and hula—are the glue that holds Hawaiian society together. Music and dance are the way that thousands of years of ancestry, genealogy, and history are passed from one generation to the next. Music expresses the connection of people to the land, the ‘aina. Over the centuries, this has taken many forms, ranging from indigenous chant, hymn styles taught by Christian missionaries, and the slack-key guitar stylings of the Hawaiian cowboys, the paniolos. A forgotten story in the history of Hawaiian music is that the violin was the lead instrument in Hawaiian string bands, circa 1850. A second, seldom told story is that today’s Hawaii Symphony is the oldest symphony orchestra in the United States west of the Rocky Mountains. Learning the stories of the musicians that came before us and also the stories of today’s Hawaiian music makers is an essential part of our musical journey.

How did you decide on special guests for the new album?

All of the prominent artists are our musical friends. We wanted to showcase the diversity of Hawaii’s music. Jake Shimabukuro represents the sound of the ukulele. Raiatea Helm is a specialist in the hapa-haole tradition of the 1920–50 period. Jeff Peterson represents the sound of the kī hō alu/slack-key guitar tradition. Kelly Boy De Lima, Kapena De Lima, and Lilo Tuala represent the island “Jawaiian” [Jamaican-Hawaiian] sounds that developed in the 1980s and ’90s. Hāwane Rios represents Hawaiian-chant tradition. Keilana, Kalani Pe’a, Kimié Miner, and Kala’e Camarillo represent today’s contemporary Hawaiian music.

What were the studio sessions like?

Working with artists like Jake required everyone involved to reach beyond their “comfortable workflow.” In Hawaii, many musicians perform by ear without the aid of sheet music. Song structures are flexible and often improvised in the moment. Classical musicians in a string quartet normally operate in a very carefully defined environment, where every pitch and rhythm is notated. One of the greatest joys of the project was exploring the best unique way to work with each artist. For example, working with Keilana and Kapena incorporated contemporary production techniques in our collaborations. Jake, on the other hand, joined us as the fifth member of the Mana Music Quartet with a world-premiere classical composition for ukulele and strings commissioned by the quartet and composed by Hawaiian composer Michael-Thomas Foumai.

What would you like listeners to take away from this project?

We hope that listeners will see that the music of Hawaii is diverse, complex, and rich in traditions, and that it is worthy of the same respect as classical music by masters like Bach, Beethoven, and Mozart, and more modern artists like the Beatles and the Rolling Stones.