The Royal Hawaiian Band is the oldest and only full-time municipal band in the United States. At present a body of the City & County of Honolulu, the Royal Hawaiian Band has been entertaining Honolulu residents and visitors since its inception in 1836 by Kamehameha III. It was thrust into global prominence under the leadership of Prussian Heinrich "Henri" Berger, an officer of the imperial German army loaned to the Kingdom of Hawaiʻi in 1872. Berger composed of many beloved marching tunes and other melodies, and would later be honored with the title of Father of Hawaiian Music. He collaborated with King Kalākaua in creating Hawaiʻi Ponoʻi, the national anthem of Hawaiʻi; it is still used today as the official state song. During its long and distinguished history, the Royal Hawaiian band inspired the development of other brass bands in Hawaii, and possibly elsewhere in Polynesia and the Pacific. According to researcher Patrick Hennessey, the band may even be credited for originally introducing Hawaii's world-renowned song "Aloha 'Oe" to the mainland USA.
As of 2008, the Royal Hawaiian Band is composed of 40 full-time musicians. Under the baton of Bandmaster Clarke Bright, the band performs every Friday at noon on the grass grounds of the historic Iolani Palace in downtown Honolulu and on Sundays at two o'oclock at the Kapiolani Park Bandstand in Waikiki.
Famous quotes containing the words royal and/or band:
“High from the summit of a craggy cliff,
Hung o’er the deep, such as amazing frowns
On utmost Kilda’s shore, whose lonely race
Resign the setting sun to Indian worlds,
The royal eagle draws his vigorous young”
—James Thomson (1700–1748)
“What passes for identity in America is a series of myths about one’s heroic ancestors. It’s astounding to me, for example, that so many people really seem to believe that the country was founded by a band of heroes who wanted to be free. That happens not to be true. What happened was that some people left Europe because they couldn’t stay there any longer and had to go someplace else to make it. They were hungry, they were poor, they were convicts.”
—James Baldwin (1924–1987)