Spirit of Aloha | Articles | Music | May/June 2003

Music
By Ozzie Kotani

Rising Falsetto Star

Raiatea Helm's recording debut brings freshness to the traditional art of falsetto singing

Like the cooling mist rising from a waterfall, Raiatea Helm's voice evokes freshness and youth. Add to this the art of falsetto singing, and a wonderful new sound emerges. Hawaiian falsetto singing, or leo ki'eki'e, is a unique and beautiful style in which a vocal break, or ha'i, is used to transition into higher registers. It is a style that is playful, sweet and always full of feeling. Raiatea's new recording matches her great singing with contemporary arrangements by Alden Levi and Ken Makuakane. Titled Far Away Heaven (a translation of the Tahitian name Raiatea), the CD is a mix of the old and the new, with just the right amount of flair in the production, to make it all work.

Although she started singing just three years ago and has no formal training, Raiatea has closely studied some of the legends in Hawaiian music: "While many people have been influences on my musical career, I would have to say that the late Lena Machado had a major impact on my wanting to learn to sing falsetto. It was her style that caught my ear. There are also other greats like Leina'ala Haili, Genoa Keawe, Linda Delacruz and Nina Keali'iwahamana." Her voice also reflects her musical lineage. Her justifiably proud father is Zachary Helm, a notable musician who has entertained for years, and her uncle was the late George Helm, a renowned falsetto singer.

One of the sparkling cuts on this CD is "Kauoha Mai," also known as "The Keyhole Hula." This Lena Machado classic is a showcase for the control and skill of the vocalist and Raiatea does it with ease. The CD features other Hawaiian favorites such as "Kimo Henderson Hula," "Holau," "Ka'ano'i Hula" and a great closing number, "'Alekoki."

Raiatea has begun work on a second recording, which will be a very special one, according to people close to the project.

Among those of us who are delighted with Raiatea's debut in Hawaiian music is KINE-FM Radio personality Brickwood Galuteria, who makes the pronouncement: "The future of women's falsetto is secure with 'Moloka'i's Sweetheart,' Raiatea Helm."

Far Away Heaven, by Raiatea Helm; Rip Tide Records, LLC; produced by Alden Levi, co-produced by Kenneth Makuakane; 2002.

Hawaiian 105 KINE is the main source of information for this column.

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