It’s a rare night when a childlike grin isn’t cracking Ledward Kaapana’s rugged, brown face wide open. But in June, the beloved Hawaiian slack key guitar player had something special to smile about.

A master of the slack key guitar, Led Kaapana has been one of Hawaii's most influential musicians for four decades. His mastery of stringed instruments, his exceptional picking style on slack key ...

Ledward Kaapana is widely acknowledged to be one of the most exciting and accomplished players in ki hoalu or slack key guitar style With its wide range of tunes and techniques this lesson will ...

Ledward Kaapana will headline the free 33rd Annual Ki Ho‘alu Festival at the Maui Arts & Cultural Center on June 30. Courtesy photo Acclaimed as one of the Hawaii’s greatest slack key guitarists, ...

For more than 150 years, slack key guitar, or ki ho’alu, has been the “house music” of Hawaii. Islanders were introduced to guitars by Spanish and Mexican vaqueros and quickly adapted the sound and ...

Willie K and Ledward Kaapana are household names in Hawaii, fixtures from the islands’ soundtrack. But they’ve never shared a stage together — until now. “This is our first time in public,” Willie K ...

One of the greatest acoustic guitar traditions in the world is a fingerstyle guitar unique to Hawaii. Slack key guitar or “ki ho’alu,” which translates to “loosen the tuning key,” starts with standard ...

KANEOHE (KHNL) -- Grammy Award nominated slack-key artist Ledward Kaapana is reunited with a most special instrument this week. Oh, that familiar sound to many in Hawaii and around the world. That ...

A longtime, local musician says he felt surprised and embarrassed after he was told to stop playing his guitar at Honolulu International Airport. “You know, that’s my life. I love to play music and ...

When I think of Hawaiian music, I first think of the ukulele, but slack-key guitar is just as uniquely Hawaiian. Ledward “Led” Kaapana is a ukulele virtuoso, but to my ear, he shines brightest when ...