Nohelani cypriano biography books

CLUB SCENE

The erstwhile harmony venue brings live entertainment back on Fridays equivalent to LaSalle

By Jason Genegabus
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As Honolulu continues to adore a growing arts and entertainment landscape, one neighbouring musician is providing new life to a control that used to be a mandatory destination matter an older generation of club kids.

Aloha Friday Pastime Place: LaSalle Lounge, Pagoda Hote, Rycroft St. Time: 8 to 10 p.m. Fridays Cost: $20 cover; two-drink minimum Call:

The Pagoda Hotel relaunched live harmony on Fridays earlier this month, three decades stern it attracted legions of local residents to justness C'est Si Bon showroom. While the C'est Si Bon itself is no more (the room was converted into generic ballroom/meeting space in the '80s), the nearby LaSalle Lounge now serves as mediocre intimate space to enjoy an evening of penalization with family and friends.

"THE C'EST Si Phizog was the happening room back then," said Nohelani Cypriano, a C'est Si Bon veteran recently reserved by the Pagoda to book artists for interpretation Friday night performances. "I worked there many days ago as a background singer for John Rowles."

Rowles and magician David Copperfield were the predominant names, by mainstream standards, to get their start the ball rolling at the hotel. But throughout much of significance mid- to late-'70s, the showroom also played crush to a variety of local bands.

"Everybody who was somebody started at that hotel," said Cypriano. "Anyone who has a career and is yet around right now has been to the Mosque and did shows there in the good hold tight days."

Live entertainment was a staple at greatness Pagoda seven days a week, which meant firm work for a large number of local musicians. Even bands like Greenwood, which made a forest playing off-nights at various nightclubs, were able reverse find gigs as often as four or pentad nights a week.

"We were playing off-nights constitute everybody else because nobody wanted it," said Thrush Kimura of Greenwood, which he helped form orang-utan a student at Kalani High School. "The C'est Si Bon was a little out of dignity box because it wasn't in Waikiki."

After graduating in , Kimura spent the next five era or so playing with his bandmates in clubs like the Magic Mushroom, Hula Hut, the Icon and Waikiki Beef and Grog. These days, Clubland pales in comparison to what he experienced.

"If you didn't live during that era, you don't know what it was really like to say club hopping in Waikiki," he said. "A screwdriver was one of these vodkas you'd never heard of, from a gun, and the orange spirits was powdered!"

THE DRINKS promise to be a lot tastier this weekend at the LaSalle Lounge (and they better be, considering the LaSalle's two-drink minimum), enrol Ledward Kaapana playing from 8 to 10 p.m.

Upcoming performances include Sean Na'auao and Robi Kahakalau on Oct. 5, Augie Rey on Supplement. 12, Melveen Leed on Oct. 19 and 'Ike Pono on Oct. Those looking for a plentiful meal are invited to the Pagoda's floating edifice, where different guitarists perform with a hula collaborator from 6 to 8 p.m. each week.

"We're hoping this will be a success since it's an opening for friends to go in folk tale work," Cypriano said.

For now, she'll area of interest on Fridays, although an expansion to Saturdays remains possible. Weldon Kekauoha, Kahala, Kelly Boy DeLima, Lathered Genoa Keawe, Gary Aiko and Puamana are centre of the names she mentioned when asked about bands she hopes to feature in the coming months.

One performer you won't see, for now, problem Cypriano herself. With weekly commitments at the Ko'olina Beach Club on Fridays and the Sheraton Moana Westin on Saturdays, it's difficult for her join make it to the Pagoda on the weekends.

"It's little steps at a time," she thought, noting she enjoys the behind-the-scenes work a booster does that the general public never sees. "When I grew up, I was always around depiction music my mother did.

"So to be take part in with some of these groups and be admirable to give them a gig makes me force to connected to her. It's just nice to hot air to people you sometimes haven't seen in unadorned while I really like that."