The Kaua‘i Steel Guitar Festival will feature school visitations, a steel guitar workshop, kanikapila, Open Stage sessions, and a ho‘olaule‘a featuring several of Hawai‘i's steel guitar masters and Hawaiian steel guitar players from California and Illinois.
The festival's educational component provides learning opportunities for local area schools. These educational presentations will be made by teams of festival steel guitar masters and are geared towards reintroducing the Hawaiian steel guitar to the younger generation and to get them interested in the instrument and its importance in Hawaiian music. If your Kaua‘i school is interested in such a presentation and has not been contacted, please fill out the contact form to reserve your opportunity.
A festival Kickoff Kanikapila will be held in the Crooked Surf Bar. Everyone is invited to bring their instruments, portable amplifiers, and music stands as appropriate and play along Hawaiian-style with the festival's all-star band. The Kanikapila will begin at 5:30 P.M. and run until 8:00 P.M.
Friday Open stage entertainment will be held in the Makai Room and feature guest artists and performers. These 30-minute playing sessions will showcase steel guitarists from all over the world, including some Aloha Music Camp attendees.
11:30 AM | Joey Misailidis, Tai Misailidis, and Patti Maxine |
12:00 PM | Mark Gaponoff |
12:30 PM | Joe Stewart |
1:00 PM | Barbara Bones and Mary Newdorffer |
1:30 PM | Vickie Van Fechtmann |
2:00 PM | Rhonda Murotake |
2:30 PM | Aaron Benolkin |
3:00 PM | Ki‘ileiah Jeffries |
3:30 PM | Ke Kula Mele NextGen |
A Friday evening steel guitar workshop will be presented in the Makai Room by festival steel guitarists Alan Akaka and Bobby Ingano. The workshop will be in a "talk story" format with discussions guided by topics suggested by workshop attendees.
A public kanikapila jam session will be held in the Makai Room. Everyone is invited to bring their instruments, amplifiers, and music stands as appropriate and play along Hawaiian-style with the steel guitar masters. The kanikapila will begin at approximately 8:30 P.M. and run until 10:00 P.M.
The festival's main program will be hosted by Lady Ipo Kahaunaele-Ferreira. Eight featured steel guitarists will be presented in two performance segments with a two-hour intermission between segments.
Ho‘olaule‘a Ekahi will begin at noon, run until 3:00 P.M. and hosted by Lady Ipo Kahauna‘ele-Ferreira.
Ho‘olaule‘a Elua will begin at 5:00 P.M. run until 8:00 P.M., and hosted by Alan Akaka.
The Ho‘olaule‘a will be presented in the hotel's Makai Room and both segments will be livestreamed on the Hawaiian Steel Guitar Showcase's Facebook Page and YouTube Channel. The livestream may also be offered on the Kaua‘i Steel Guitar Festival's Facebook page.
This year's featured steel guitarists include Alan Akaka, Bobby Ingano, Dave "DK" Kolars, Kapono Lopes, Patti Maxine, Geronimo "Geri" Valdriz, Kilipaki Vaughan, and Joseph Zayac.
12:00 PM | Kilipaki Vaughan |
12:45 PM | Dave "DK" Kolars |
1:30 PM | Joseph Zayac and NextGen Pono Fernandez |
2:15 PM | Alan Akaka and NextGen Enosa Lyman |
3:00 PM | INTERMISSION |
5:00 PM | NextGen Mālie Lyman with Pomaika‘i Keawe |
5:45 PM | Geronimo "Geri" Valdriz |
6:30 PM | Bobby Ingano and NextGen Tai Misailidis |
7:15 PM | Patti Maxine and NextGen Joey and Tai Misailidis |
A public kanikapila jam session will be held in the Makai Room. Festival guests are invited to bring their instruments, amplifiers, and music stands as appropriate and play along Hawaiian-style with the steel guitar masters. The kanikapila will begin at approximately 8:30 P.M. and run until 10:00 P.M.
An exhibit featuring vintage and contemporary lap steel guitars will be presented in the Makai Room. The instruments are from the instrument collections of Kaua‘i steel guitarist Martin Curnan and Maui steel guitarist Geri Valdriz. Come and see this wide assortment of steel guitars.
A Hands-On Experience will be offered for anyone wanting to become more familiar with the Hawaiian Steel Guitar. Festival guests can gain an introduction to the instrument and try their hand at playing the instrument under the direction of a trained steel guitar docent.
This year's T-Shirt features an exclusive design created especially for the 2022 festival. The reverse of all t-shirts contains the slogan, "NO FRET JUS' SLIDE." Click here for additional info.
Copyright ©2022 by Hawaii Institute for Music Enrichment and Learning Experiences, Inc., and Cyberventures Unlimited.Terms of Use
Statewide Festivals
Kaua‘i Steel Guitar Festival
Maui Steel Guitar Festival
Waikīkī Steel Guitar Week
Hawai‘i Island Steel Guitar Festival
Japan-Hawaiian Steel Guitar Festival
Kona Steel Guitar Festival
Community Festivals
Ka Makana Ali‘i - Kapolei
Windward Mall - Kane‘ohe
Kahala Mall - Wai‘alae-Kāhala
Livestream Hawaiian Steel Guitar Showcase