In 1865 a number of Portuguese arrived to work the mighty Pioneer Sugar Plantations and through them, the island musicians were exposed to the first “non-classical” guitar styles - some 50 - 60 years before it moved into the limelight of American popular music.The guitar quickly became part of island life and because European music or technical approaches offered little that suited the Polynesian’s expressive needs, they literally re-invented both the instrument and it’s music, to bring forth a style know as “Ki ho alu”, or “slack key guitar”.The name was used by the Hawaiians to describe the method of tuning - several strings were loosened or slackened down to spell out the sound of a basic triad, usually major. Many tunings exist, but the original and still the most common, is called - “taro patch” tuning ?..1 2 3 4 5 6 D B G D G DTunings were originally developed and kept within the family, then handed down to succeeding generations as a family secret. Nowadays, tunings continue to be developed, but the veil of secrecy is gone and ideas are willingly shared by all good players.Since 1960 there has been a tremendous upsurge of interest among young Hawaiians in the traditional slack key methods and a great deal of wonderful music can be found within the recorded works of Gabby Pahanui, Atta Isaacs, The Breamer Brothers, Raymond Kane and other masters of the style. Their music is tightly locked into the modern Polynesian psyche as Flamenco is interlaced with the Spanish, and Jazz with the Afro-American way of life.Slack Key and its “Taro Patch” tuning were taken one step further when an eleven year old Hawaiian schoolboy, Joseph Kekuku, as early as 1885, placed the guitar flat on his lap and using a comb discovered the sweet sounds of the slide guitar.He progressed from this comb a railway bolt, a knife or tumbler, and finally to a steel bar which he designed and made in the school workshop. To increase the volume he designed metal fingerand thumb picks shaped to fit his right hand. When after some experimentation, Kekuku realized that this new style of playing was more than a novelty, he became determined to tap its potential and master whatever his findings brought to life.He worked hard and while still at school, gave professional concerts in Honolulu. Many classmates learnt from Joseph and took his method of playing bavk to their homes throughout the islands, and from there it spread throughout the world. In 1904 Joseph Kekuku moved to the American mainland and begun a full-time playing and teaching career. His ability to communicate with audiences opened the doors for the international acceptance of Hawaiian and steel guitar music. Between 1919 and 1927 he toured Europe and ?played before the Kings and Queens of many countries’ - he set up effective teaching practices in Chicago and Boston and finally died in 1932. He was considered to be “a great teacher of the steel guitar and the possessor of the sweetest-toned guitar in the world.”