“Punahele”

The printed music for “Punahele” is sold as an individual transcription. Raymond Kane wrote this “Punahele” in 1938, inspired by the moonlight reflecting on the water at Zablan’s Beach in Nanakuli. Punahele means favorite. This unusual composition, with its distinctive five-bar form and graceful ornamentation, has been embraced as a classic of the Hawaiian slack key repertoire and has been recorded with extended variations by such well-known artists as Sonny Chillingworth and Ledward Kaapana.

Like such tunes as “The Last Steam Engine Train” by John Fahey or “Doc’s Guitar” by Doc Watson, aspiring players have enjoyed cutting their teeth on “Punahele” and professional players have enjoyed using it to demonstrate their virtuosity. This transcription was developed from the audio recording Ray Kane/Punahele , Dancing Cat Records, 1994, 08022 38001-2.