What makes Hawaiian steel playing sound different?

John Billings · Post by **John Billings** » 13 Dec 2005 8:14 pm

Mark, I just mentioned my experience with the beach kids because Jeff mentioned the unappreciative "haoles". All the adults I met on the islands were great, friendly, and pretty laid-back. Some of the kids were a different story! That was a long time ago,( heck, now that I think about it, Jerry was probably younger than I am now!) and I don't imagine it's gotten better. And,,,I got to segue into my Jerry Byrd story. It was a weeknight. Nothin' goin' on at the Beachcomber, but the Royal Hawaiian was packed with people watchin' the Polynesian show. The girl was there cuz nothin' was happenin', and she loved Jerry's music. I know, odd take,,,[This message was edited by John Billings on 13 December 2005 at 08:59 PM.]

Andy Greatrix · Post by **Andy Greatrix** » 13 Dec 2005 9:47 pm

I always enjoyed the none pedal playing of Kayton Roberts. His work with Hank Snow sounded very Hawaiian to me.

Kay Das · Post by **Kay Das** » 13 Dec 2005 10:36 pm

To me, the hawaiian steel guitar is the ultimate "analogue" instrument, and by that I mean that it has the closest ability to emulate the greatest musical instrument of all, the human voice.

With just your left arm and hand you are able to travel from note to note with any speed, variation, warble, empathy, pathos, elation, grace, sustain, vibrato, or any mood that exists in your mind at the time you are playing any particular section of a song. With your right hand, and sometimes a foot-pedal to add a softer dimension when you need it, you are able to modulate your note, or combination of notes, almost the closest any instrument on earth can to a human-originated sound or worded sound or even syllable. With a scale-oriented tuning such as C6 and others, you can create any combination of harmony or harmonise notes at will using just two arms and hands...closest to the brain. We touch and feel mostly with our hands. You can get blueness, darkness or levity.

It would a treat to see and study videos of Jerry Byrd and others, just of their arms and hands as they played a tune.

With that combination, the steel guitar can be likened to a paint-brush of sounds. Not just the voice, but also you can "paint" the sound of the sea, the surf, swaying palm trees, the gentle wind, a plaintive cry, a graceful movement..like a hula dancer would...you can get aggressive and pluck the strings with fire, you can get humorous and emulate a cock's crow, you can get staccato and "digitise" your notes with your left hand like you would on a normal guitar.....Many instruments have a measure of all of the above, but in my opinion, the steel guitar does it better.

This huge number of variables in playing parameters is why no two steel guitarists, do or ever will sound alike, just as they can never look alike or paint alike or sing alike. And Jerry Byrd would add, listen alike....

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kay

Don Kona Woods · Post by **Don Kona Woods** » 14 Dec 2005 12:21 am

WHAT MAKES HAWAIIAN STEEL PLAYING SOUND DIFFERENT?

THE QUESTIONS MIGHT BE PHRASED THIS WAY -
What makes the “the Hawaiian style and sound?”

This has never been nailed down to my satisfaction by anyone yet that I have heard.

And the following is just my non-expert ruminations about what produces the Hawaiian style and sound, they are:

1.Hawaiian vamps – learning a lot of the variations of Hawaiian vamps.

2.What Jerry Byrd calls - playing between the notes or telescoping or glissing.

3.Smooth oscillation of the bar other than when there is a need for fast picking. Hawaiian steel players oscillate bar much more than country western players. MHO

4.Delicate picking or good, sensitive touch with the picks rather than attacking the strings.

5.What Jeff Ah Hoy thinks is more single string playing which allows more expression. He feels more full chordal playing limits the expression, if I have heard him right.

6.Playing with heart says Jerry Byrd

7.Then there is Hawaiian soul playing. It comes from growing up with it. I suppose some haoles living in the Islands long enough could come close. This is akin to Black gospel singing. Blacks seem to do it better than whites. THIS IS NOT A RACIST REMARK.

8. Leave the volume foot-pedal control out of it. It sounds country.

Maybe somebody else can add to this list

Rick Aiello did some interesting analysis of measuring the oscillation of various steel guitar players and the effects of the oscillation from the bar.

We might have Dr. Aiello conduct some research on bar oscillation with pedal steelers and non-pedal steelers.

Maybe research will back my hypothesis that non-pedal steels oscillate the bar more, so therefore sound different.

Seems like I have heard this before.

May we all become better Hawaiian steel guitar players after the Hawaiian style.

Aloha,

Don

[This message was edited by Don Kona Woods on 14 December 2005 at 12:40 AM.]

basilh · Post by **basilh** » 14 Dec 2005 2:40 am

This is pedal Hawaiian Style (I think) Sweet Leilani

And Especially this

South Sea Island Magic

Pat and I have always lived Hawaiian music and try to play like it would (Should) be sung..

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Steel players do it without fretting

[This message was edited by basilh on 14 December 2005 at 03:02 AM.]

Andy Volk · Post by **Andy Volk** » 14 Dec 2005 3:11 am

To me, the single distinguising characteristic of Hawaiian-style playing is that the instrument is imitating the human voice and especially, the glottal stop or jump in the voice (almost a yodling quality at times) of traditional Hawaiian singing. Add a very subtle sense of swing coupled with a wide vibrato and you've got the Hawaiian sound.

According to Wikpedia: There are few words in English that universally contain a glottal stop. The best known example is the interjection "uh-oh". In Hawaiian, the glottal stop is a full phoneme. It is written as an opening single quote ‘, which is called ‘okina. A glottal stop often occurs between repeated vowels (for example Hawai‘i), but as the example ‘okina indicates, this is not the only place where a glottal stop may occur.

basilh · Post by **basilh** » 14 Dec 2005 3:37 am

play like it would (Should) be sung..

basilh · Post by **basilh** » 14 Dec 2005 3:44 am

for the past 50 years or more we've called Sol "Sol HOOPEE" only to find out now that we should be saying Sol "HO-O PE-EE"
Oh dear me, what a gigantic faux pa..
Andy.. have you a Hawaiian font installed ? or how do you get the Okina ? ‘okina

Rick Aiello · Post by **Rick Aiello** » 14 Dec 2005 5:11 am

We might have Dr. Aiello conduct some research on bar oscillation with pedal steelers and non-pedal steelers

My wife tries to be interested in steel guitar ... but the most I can hope for ... is her continued financial backin' of all the "wild hair up my ... " projects ...

Seriously ... vibrato .... my favorite subject ...

Since the 2004 HSGA convention ... I have had the pleasure of corresponding alot with Hal Smith ... who ... in my opinion ... has the best Hawaiian sounding vibrato I have heard from any "living" players ...

I had mentioned to him that some "modern" steel players find this wide, fast approach (about 5-6 Hz & 70-100+ cent extent) ... to be distastful and a sign of "immaturity" in playing the steel.

He got a big chuckle out of that ... and was actually quite surprised to hear it.

I sure hope Hal makes it this year ...

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Aiello's Cast Steel Guitars


My wife and I don't think alike. She donates money to the homeless and I donate money to the topless! ... R. Dangerfield
[This message was edited by Rick Aiello on 14 December 2005 at 07:36 AM.]

Rick Aiello · Post by **Rick Aiello** » 14 Dec 2005 5:28 am

I forgot ... for the folks who weren't members back then ...

I have most of that info saved on a page of my website ... and since the singers are singin' Christmas tunes ... have a look & listen ...

Vibrato Samples

The accompanying text is on this page ... scroll to Vibrato Characteristics

Ho Ho Hooo0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o
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Aiello's Cast Steel Guitars


My wife and I don't think alike. She donates money to the homeless and I donate money to the topless! ... R. Dangerfield
[This message was edited by Rick Aiello on 14 December 2005 at 05:42 AM.]

Bill Creller · Post by **Bill Creller** » 14 Dec 2005 6:36 pm

You are so right about Hal, Rick. I was at a party at his condo in Honolulu, and after most of the guests left he played a bunch of tunes for me, and really surprised me with how great he plays, especially when relaxed and in-person. I had heard him on stage many times, and he has that vibrata you talk about.

Andy Volk · Post by **Andy Volk** » 15 Dec 2005 3:23 am

Andy.. have you a Hawaiian font installed?

N'o.

Kay Das · Post by **Kay Das** » 15 Dec 2005 3:39 pm

Basil,

Greatly enjoyed, again, your two tunes on this thread. You have some interesting effects towards the end in both pieces with a volume swell. What do you use? I sometimes use a Line6 delay line (the green Echo/Delay stomp box) that has a similar but not identical feature. My guess is, however, that you were doing it manually or , to coin a new word in the English language, "footually"....

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kay