The Hawaiian gazette. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1865-1918, 1904-02-16

| there are Few full-blooded Hawaiians
with perfect knowledge of the native
language, or sufficient education to
repeat the meles. In the Photographic
records made there are some imper-
fections, caused" by the habit of the
ohanters in stopping to clear their
threats, something made necessary by
the length of the songs they sang.
The mele is chanted In a monotone.
often accompanied by the beating Of
the drum, and at luaus NATIVE feasts)
1t is still the custom to have the
chanters, either men or women, pres
ent and to entertain the guests with
their chants of the brave deeds of
the chiefs of long ago.
4 In paper written by II. l.. Marx,
a local musician, who has been maxi
| ing study of the mele, he gives the
results of some experiments made by
him.
MY method" he said, was to place
the violin under my chin then place
the rubber tubes connecting with the
| monograph to my ears, and attempt to
| catch the musical notation on the
| fingerboard of the violin. The rapid
| changes in tempo from A to "a and
back again were bewildering, and /
was obliged to go over the same rec
ord time and again before l succeeded
in gaining very clear impression.
| THE prolonged note used was, ac-
cording to my violin, b fiat below the
staff, with an occasional quaver of the
voice. producing an interval not in
accordance with our recognized divi-
| sion, somewhere between C and d fiat.
10 Ton ,aIA
MED by droning chant on almost a
| monotone. The music which accom-
panied it Is found to have been rather
regulated defamation than song.
With the ancient Hawaiian music was
used as an accompaniment, and never
alone"
comparison is made between the
Hawaiian mele and the Greek epic, to
the advantage of the former, according
to Mr.. Marx. He says that the Ha-
waiians had no such advantages as
the Greeks in coming into contact with
older civilizations, and the fact that
they were able to evolve a musical
system of their own and to compose
poetry of such merit shows the inher-
ent genius of the race.
Curtis j. Lyons has made IA transla-
ton of one of the ancient Hawaiian
meles, written by David Malo, the old
native poet. This is entitled Lam
entation for Kaahumanu," who was a
queen, and portion of it is given. to
show the style of the ancient mele
Ceasing from storm, the sea grows
calm and CLASSY. Like puff of wind
fitting over it. so her spirit glides
away to the far regions beyond Kahi-
XII
She flies, averting her eyes: she |
fades away in the wild mists of the |
northand-the deep, dark, mysterious
north.
She has gone from us to the courts |
of Kane, treading royalty the red,
streaked path of the rosy dawn, the |
misty, broken road to Kanaloa.
An ebbing tide flows out, laden with
departing wealth.
The chief is turning away, sinking
to sleep, drifting away. She fled at |
the first CLEAN of the dawn, at the
faint ending of the cutoff night Then |
was her departure.
o our beloved one Our departed
one! our bemoaned one!
The heart beats unanimously: It
throfs within US; 1t strains us; it
breaks the wall around it.
OH the pain, the breaking up, the
rushing of tears, the falling of the
flowers scattered of grief.
we are borne away, carried away;
the very depths of us are torn from
us by this passionate grief.
Our true liege lady was she, and I
Rr1eNo. Love IN a SiStpr 10 nina
yet not to a sister. Yea, sister chos-
en- and separate in the Lord, born of
the Holy Spirit of the one Father of
us all. Thus, thus I feel that she is
mine to sorrow for. The precious
name, sister, is indeed ours (to use)
by dear inheritance Alas, my sister!
My beloved sharer in the sweet labor
of the voice Conversation. o, my
beloved! My beloved! centre of
thought? o centre of thought!
The voice is the staff that love leans
upon. With the voice we seek COM
mon treasure together sweet converse
together Gone-gone-gone!
lady seeking shelter from the Wa
ahila rain of KOna, the cutting rain,
with the wind beating against the
house gables! o lady companion on
the hot sun-beaten plains of Pahoa!
O lady beloved in the cold rain of Nu-
uanu! We flee together; there Is moth
Ing all is in vain-empty, forsaken!
Confusion all tangled together; there
Is no more love, no more good; 1t Is
an enemy that Is now with us. Alas
The spirit OF the shadowy presence,
the spirit body Is gone. The many
Swallowed, the glorified, the trans
figured body is beyond, new featured,
formed companion of angels
She rests in the rich light of heaven;
she moves triumphant. She sings
of joy in the paradise
Of glory in the everlasting daytime of
the Lord. He is our Lord, the ever
lasting Lord. He indeed, In truth.
such are the thoughts that burn
they burn and go out from
.N.f /