 OZZIE
KOTANI is a respected teacher, arranger, composer and accompanist
as well as a solo performer. He has played ki ho`alu, Hawaiian
slack key guitar, for over 20 years, representing it on the Mainland,
in Spain and Japan, as well as all around the Hawaiian islands. Like
the late slack key master Sonny Chillingworth, with whom he
studied, he freely interjects his own personality into his playing,
preserving and expanding the tradition.
Born in 1956, Ozzie grew up in the Honolulu neighborhood of Pauoa. He
learned a bit of `ukulele in the fourth grade as part of the statewide
music and culture curriculum. His interest in ki ho`alu
blossomed during high school when he heard one of the great
instrumentals from slack key guitarist Keola Beamer on the radio.
"I was captivated by his sound," Ozzie recalls. "I somehow managed to
learn some elementary slack key by listening to a tape of Keola over
and over. Not having the faintest idea how to tune, I experimented.
Some of the harmonics gave me a clue to the melody strings." Ozzie
also developed a distinctive four-finger picking method. "Many people
insist I'm a classically trained guitarist when they watch or hear me
play. This could not be further from the truth!" In 1975 Ozzie
enrolled in Peter Medeiros' slack key class at the University of
Hawai`i Continuing Education Program (where he later returned to teach
and continues to do so today). In 1976 he began studying privately
with legendary Sonny Chillingworth. The 1970s were an exciting
time in Hawai`i as many young people of all backgrounds began to look
to na kupuna (the elders) for inspiration. Many of the legends
of Hawaiian music and dance performed regularly and made albums, some
for the first time. With the guidance of his teachers, the influence
of recordings and long hours of practice, Ozzie established a style of
his own. His completely unique guitar techniques are instantly
recognizable to aficionados of ki ho`alu. He recorded his landmark
first album, CLASSICAL SLACK (Pacific Sound Design 1001)
in 1988. It is an all-instrumental and mainly solo collection of his
own compositions and his great interpretations of Hawaiian standards,
such as Ku`u Pua I Paoakalani. He is currently recording a
series of solo instrumental guitar albums for Dancing Cat Records'
Hawaiian slack key guitar masters series, documenting his entire
repertoire as well as other experimental pieces.
Ozzie's first release for Dancing Cat is entitled KANI KI HO`ALU.
It includes six originals, including the title piece which translates
as "The Sound of Slack Key," which was a name given to Ozzie
when he was studying the Hawaiian language at the University of
Hawai`i at Manoa. "I feel that every artist in an oral tradition
sounds different," Ozzie says. "Slack key puts a premium on playing
from your heart with your own special touch. That's why I'll show
anybody anything they want to see."His most release for
Dancing Cat is TO HONOR A QUEEN, The Music of Lili`uokalani.
Ozzie researched and worked five years to come up with the
interpretations on this project. He says, “Since the start of my of my
interest in Hawaiian music, I have been captivated by her songs and
who she was. I want my efforts to reflect back to the Queen first and
foremost. Albums come and go, but Queen Lili`uokalani’s memory and
music will live on and be appreciated forever.” Cyril performs on
the compilation CD, Masters of Hawaiian Slack Key Guitar, Volume 1,
winner of the 2006, 48th GRAMMY Award for Best Hawaiian Music Album.
Ozzie is featured on our just released compilation CD:
Legends of Hawaiian Slack Key Guitar -Live from Maui
(Daniel Ho Records)
which was honored with the 49th Annual
GRAMMY Award for Best Hawaiian Music Album.
Five distinctive features of Ozzie's playing are his frequent use of
the nylon string guitar, a distinctive, vocalizing approach to
ballads, his use of atypical chord progressions, rolls played with the
thumb and three fingers and a stand-up bass-type sound on the low
strings on the first and third beats of the measure.
Ozzie returned to the University of Hawai`i at Manoa in 1986 to teach
slack key for the College of Continuing Education and Community
Service. "The main thing I want to do with my playing and my teaching
is to give back to others what Sonny so patiently shared with me."
For more information on Ozzie, visit
www.dancingcat.com
Ozzie last performed in The Masters of Hawaiian Slack Key
Guitar Concert Series at The Napili Kai Beach Resort, Maui on
June 20, 2007. Prior to that Ozzie performed in this series on
September 6, 2006, June 21, 2005 and November 30 and February 3 in 2004 and December 16,
2003. |
