T.J. Keanu Tario - Standing Above The Clouds [Vinyl LP]

Details

T.J. Keanu Tario is a kanaka maoli classical pianist and composer, Native Hawaiian cultural practitioner, and māhū drag artist. They are a graduate of both Julliard and CalArts. This album is the soundtrack to the award-winning film Standing Above the Clouds, which documents the impact on generations of mothers and daughters in their sovereign fight to defend the sacred mountain of Mauna Kea from desecration by foreign power. T.J.’s sonorous score highlights their virtuosic piano alongside minimalist strings, electronics and fragments of ʻukulele, pahu and voices. At turns meditative, fierce and joyful, this score gives voice to the deities who dwell in Mauna a Wākea’s summits and the Kiaʻi whose kuleana is to protect them. The digital and limited-edition color vinyl releases close with a mele to the mountain, composed for the voice of Makaʻala Perry, Miss Aloha Hula finalist at the 2021 Merrie Monarch Festival.

T.J. Keanu Tario - piano, ʻukulele, pahu
Eric Silberger - violin
Duane Padilla- viola
Joshua Nakazawa - cello
Makaʻala Perry & Relle Reavis - voice
Makaʻala Perry - lead vocal on Ka Hau ʻo Poliʻahu
Recorded by Gaylord Holomalia
Mixed and Produced by Dean Harada
Photograpy by Hōkūpaʻa Melim
Art Direction by Hema

About the Label

Lōʻihi Records is a Hawaiian Avant-Garde label, celebrating emerging endemic music, culture and community.

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