Real Hula Sheet Music (Page 2 of 4) in pdf

Green Rose Hula

Johnny Alemeida

Background:

Johnny Almeida was one of Hawai‘i's most prolific composers of songs. He could play many musical

instruments and possessed a marvelous falsetto voice. Johnny was considered quite a ladies man in his

younger days, and was known for composing songs for the young women who were the current object of

his attention. His compositions were always in the Hawaiian language. I am told that "Green Rose Hula"

was composed for his wife, Elizabeth.

We have a real Green Rose that grows in Hawai‘i. I have several plants in my yard. It has a true rose leaf

and thorns, but the flower is entirely green. The fragrance can best be described as peppery. It is a flower

not often seen, but highly esteemed.

Costuming:

This number lends itself to many costuming options while still remaining appropriate to the mele. During

the period in which "Green Rose Hula" was composed, the classic picture post card hula girl image with tï

leaf skirt and satin tube top, plumeria lei head, neck, wrist and ankles, reigned as the preferred costume of

the day. The girls would wear green briefs under their skirt and show lots of leg on the spins. Red satin

was the most popular color for the tube top, which was tucked into the briefs. But other colors abounded.

A bright Hawaiian print "bra" top was also a widely used choice for this era.

It is equally appropriate to use other types of costumes. I would, however, reserve the pareo for Tahitian

dance numbers, and stick to hula traditions for this mele. Pä‘ü skirts of any color, or bright print, would

certainly be fine. A blouse top, tube top or other top that would compliment the skirt is fine. A mu‘umu‘u

is appropriate as well, even one tied up around the hip "Hilo Hattie" style. Artificial "grass skirts" can be

altered to look more realistic as I have shown you in the bonus track on making a tï leaf skirt.

Examples of adornments are floral materials, shells, kukui nuts or other permanent lei materials. Silk

plumeria leis can be taken apart to create these adornments very realistically (assuming you do not have

access to plumeria in your region.) The many silk lei that are being made today are more realistic looking

that ever before. The rules for ‘auana are not so strict with regard to adornments as they are for kahiko, so

it is not absolutely necessary to have adornments at head, neck, both wrists and both ankles such as it is in

the kahiko class of hula. However, something at the head and at the neck is a must for hula.

Thoughts for the teacher.

I find this a wonderful beginning hula for students from the ages of about 9 years to grandmothers. It has

unique value because it introduces so many of the basic hula steps, but it does so one verse at a time. This

leaves the student free to concentrate on the hands after the step is mastered. It is also a good first hula

because it is in the Hawaiian language, and helps overcome the beginners' reluctance to deal with Hawaiian

language songs. The final reason I find this such a good beginning hula is that when the number is

mastered, the student has a classic hula number in their repertoire, one that is familiar to most musicians

who play Hawaiian music. It gives the student a well-known hula to perform when given the opportunity

to dance.

It takes four to six lessons to teach this if it is the first hula a student is learning. I find that writing the

words and choreography on a white board one verse at a time as it is taught helps the student to not only

learn the routine, but to associate the words with the movements. We are, after all, talking with the hands

when we dance to the music. Therefore, the text is of primary importance to the dancer.

The final teaching involved with this dance is to teach the student to "kähea": the first few words of each

verse. This is a good thing to encourage and teach from the beginning. Even though most all musicians

know this song they may be unsure about the order of the verses, and there are additional verses to this

song that are seldom sung. So the kähea keeps the musicians and the dancers on the same text. The kähea

should come on the third count of the second vamp that goes between verses. It has a very specific timing.

Not too early in the vamp, but in enough time to cue the musician/chanter about the verse desired next by

the dancer.

Unlike some songs, I find this one equally appropriate for young and old. It doesn't have a lot of romantic

kaona (hidden meanings) or references that would make it inappropriate for youngsters to dance. It is my

belief that we must be careful about what we teach the young ones. Some texts are too sexually suggestive

to be fitting choices for children, in my opinion.

Another aspect of this classic hula song is the "Hawaiianess" of the text. Johnny Almeida composed solely

in the Hawaiian language, and was a masterful composer of both music and lyrics. He employs a greatly

admired pattern in hula poetry: that of linked assonance. This is when the last word or words of one verse

mimic, sound like, or are the same as the first words of the succeeding verse. There is no linked assonance

between the first and second verse, but you will see that the second verse ends with "e walea" and the third

verse begins with "E walea". It makes it easy for the dancer to kähea when she becomes aware of this

sound alike pattern. The third verse ends with "ho‘oipo" and the fourth verse begins with "A he ipo", a

close sound pattern.

Real Hula Sheet Music Page 2

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