Right: Benny Chong and Byron Yasui pose for the camera
By Kenny Cabanting
Hawaii has many characteristics that make the people who live here different from those living on the Mainland. The arts here, especially, are expressed through the various types of instruments and dances of Hawaiian culture. From a number of instruments, the “ukulele” is the most well-known and used in modern Hawaiian music. For some time, the sounds of the ukulele have been heard in pop and reggae; now it’s being heard in a jazz form of music.
Musicians took part in was a concert held last Friday, June 25. The historical Palace Theatre in Downtown Hilo hosted the ukulele musicians, Benny Chong and Byron Yasui. The duo performed blends of ukulele and jazz. As the opening act of the concert, local band, Ben Kaili and Friends began the evening with wonderful acoustic sounds.
Before the concert I had the opportunity to interview Benny Chong. As a self-taught learner of the ukulele, Benny grew up on Oahu, hoping to make music of his own. The main sources that inspired him to become a musician were his uncles. Learning chord after chord, Benny was able to conjure up and also build his creativity from simplicity. By taking songs like “Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star” and “Crazy G,” and adding his own flavor to it. He showed his originality along with his ability to progress as a musician by combining the older songs with his own mixtures. Benny has been performing as a musician all his life, first off playing solo, then at the age of 18 forming “The Ali`is.” He eventually went on to perform with Jake Shimabukuro and Byron Yasui.
His experience and journey as a musician is still flying high, displaying incredible sounds on the ukulele. With knowledge of playing various types of music, Benny considers “contemporary music” his favorite genre.
In my sit-down interview with Benny, he said, “I can teach music, but I cannot teach creativity.“
His strong words were inspiring given the fact that music is about expressing an individual’s thoughts or feelings and about not what others think. In the end, I asked him, “What advice would you give young musicians out there?” Benny replied back: “Don’t make music a full-time job. . . only a small percentage of people will actually make it.” Teaching is an aspect that Benny loves. With already one album out titled “Ukulele Jazz,” he now wants to take on other projects such as creating books and videos about playing the ukulele.
Also included in the Ukulele Jazz duo is Byron Yasui. He has a significant background in music. As a music professor since 1972 at University of Hawaii at Manoa, his knowledge for this type of art is put into teaching. Skilled in music composition and theory, jazz double bass, guitar, as well as ukulele, Byron’s passion for music is endless. Once being part of the symphony, he now performs all over the country. The works he produced as a composer earned him numerous awards as well as the opportunity for those works to be performed in prestigious theatres, such as Carnegie Hall. Byron now has one album out titled “Anahola” which features a number of island contemporary songs. In the future, there are many more music projects that he wants to take on.
Soon after, on center stage, both Benny and Byron presented their ukulele jazz music. Sponsored by the Hilo Palace Theatre and VKG Enterprise, this spectacular event displayed the great talents of the two musicians. Benny on ukulele, and Byron playing the double bass as well as the ukulele, the duo filled the theatre with incredible music. Performing a medley which included “The Mickey Mouse Club Theme Song” and “Somewhere Over The Rainbow,” the audience had a chance to reminisce their childhood. Among the many pieces they played, the most interesting was composed by the famous Tchaikovsky — “Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy.” The duo’s ukulele version of the composition was impressive. Throughout the evening, the audience enjoyed the entertainment provided by both Benny and Byron and in the end, a stand up ovation made the concert a perfect success.
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