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WAILUKU, Hawaii (AP) — A Maui-based program that provides students with an opportunity to study under award-winning musicians has been nominated for two Na Hoku Hanohano awards.
The Institute of Hawaiian Music at the University of Hawaii Maui College has been recognized for its CD, "Aloha 'Ia No 'O Maui." The collection of songs has been nominated for Compilation Album of the Year and Hawaiian Language Performance. This year's awards ceremony will be held May 28 on Oahu, The Maui News reported on Monday (http://bit.ly/1SVS3Hc).
"We're so excited. I don't think any of us thought of it as being entered in any type of music awards program," said 2015 graduate Leihuanani Kealiinohomoku, who played ukulele and sang her own version of "Kilakila 'O Maui" and "Haleakala Hula."
"Aloha 'Ia No 'O Maui" is the institute's second CD and features 16 students singing, mostly in Hawaiian, and playing guitar, ukulele, acoustic bass, piano and steel guitar. Keola Donaghy, the institute's faculty director, said most of the songs are about Maui or written by performers from the island.
The two-year music program requires students to take Hawaiian language courses along with their music instruction. It launched in 2012 with a class of 27 students.
Donaghy said the program was founded by former music department head Robert Wehrman and renowned Maui slack key guitarist George Kahumoku Jr. as a mentorship program.
"The whole idea of the mentorship program was to hook up the students with the master artists," said Kahumoku, the institute's former director.
Donaghy said the program has received a wide variety of students over the years, ranging from teenagers to people in their late 60s. Some students are already professional musicians and others are looking to focus on improving their Hawaiian language skills.
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Information from: The Maui News, http://www.mauinews.com
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