Kamahana
Lena Kaulumau Wai`ale`ale was born in the district of Pauoa in Honolulu on the island of O`ahu on October 16, 1903. The last of five children, Lena was hÄnai (a Hawaiian tradition in which a child is unofficially adopted and raised by close family or friends of the birth parents) to the Loo Pan family, friends of Lenaâs mother. So young Lena was immersed in a household where English, Hawaiian, and Chinese were spoken. As a child Lena was prone to tinker musically â singing, of course, or making makeshift instruments from assorted otherwise non-musical household items. But Mrs. Loo Pan admonished Lena for such behavior â pushing her toward more productive endeavors and setting the expectation that the young lady would indeed become a school teacher someday, demanding that all time and energy (even at this tender age) be focused on that goal alone. This conflict was escalated to a fever pitch when neighbors entered six-year-old Lena in a talent contest. Lena sang âLet Me Call You Sweetheartâ and took first prize. Naturally, Mrs. Loo Pan disapproved and set forth an edict: No more singing. And, as everybody knows, nothing can help ensure that a child will absolutely do something more than telling them that they canât. Lena was discovered for the second time when KGU radio station manager Marion Mulroney overheard the teenaged Lena singing while perched high in a mango tree. Mulroney asked Lena to audition, and he was so impressed that he signed Lena to her first professional contract. The radio appearances naturally led to numerous other offers including national tours. According to one newspaper reviewer: The Pacific Songbird is said to possess a voice of magnificent range and rich timbre fully capable of coping with the demands of a grand opera. Her singing in the film-musical presentation A Trip To The Hawaiian Islands, though limited to the simple but rhythmic songs of her native land, has yet been able to captivate the most fastidious of musical critics with its unmistakable suggestion of exotic personality. After a few years of touring, Lena returned home to KGU radio and professional engagements around Honolulu. By age 23, she married Honolulu Police Department detective and musician Luciano Machado. And soon, with the addition of Luâs brothers and a sister-in-law, Lena had her own band. The timing was perfect for Lena as Hawaiian music was becoming the popular music of the era with â according to Hawaiian music historian George Kanahele in his Hawaiian Music and Musicians â three out of every five songs played on mainland U.S. radio a Hawaiian song. Source: https://hwnmusiclives.libsyn.com/lena-machado-1927--- This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app [https://anchor.fm/app]--- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/kamahana/messageSupport this podcast: https://anchor.fm/kamahana/support [https://anchor.fm/kamahana/support] Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/kamahana [http://supporter.acast.com/kamahana]. ---------------------------------------- Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy [https://acast.com/privacy] for more information.
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