He Mana'o Ko'u Ia 'Oe

[Rick Aiello]

I have been searching for this song since seeing Jerry Byrd play it on the ‘88 Joliet Convention video (that I no longer can find or play for that matter). As he introduced the song (which I never understood his pronunciation) . he said ; it was Sol’s best ; it was about pretty girls in Hawaii ; it was a song Benny Kalama used to sing with him.

I really wanted to add this song to the ones I regularly play… so I called on the guy who knows more about Hawaiian music than anyone I know … Bill Wynne

I gave him the above info … that’s all I had … five minutes later her returns with this Sol Ho’opi’i song … “He Mana'o Ko'u Ia 'Oe “ … sung by Benny Kalama :

https://youtu.be/GKVJnX9B3dU?si=lssFLZKjBUr7N6zw

Amazing … after all these years … but it rings a “bell” in my head that I have that song … so I dug thru my Sol H. collection and found this:

https://drive.google.com/file/d/16Vauzv ... p=drivesdk

It it’s in 3/4 and Benny’s is in 4/4 … I asked Bill and he said it was mainly for the hula dancers … I guess they don’t waltz

So I set out to learn it , decided to check my JB “Professional Arrangements” and to my surprise it was there, I had it all along

I found it to be a difficult one … he really fancies up the song as he repeats it … I’m too old to work through tab like that anymore , so I just took his first run through and took a few more passes on my own …

Bill , here’s what I have on PSG after a few days, many mahalos and see you in Winchester this summer:

https://youtu.be/BftAZ8BnWq4?si=W7NV1c9hK4-sXzlc

[Michael Kiese]

Aloha Rick,

Wow, really well done!

I'm constantly amazed at the ingenuity you have applied to counteract your Parkinson's disease.

You play well for anybody, and especially for someone with Parkinson's! I can hear improvement with each subsequent upload.

Please keep playing and keep uploading! I enjoy your contributions!

[Rick Aiello]

Mucho mahalos …

You didn’t see my new bar … 1” half oval brass , a 1/8” slab of Tungsten and a topper … 204 g … it’s all about rotational momentum

IMG_2842.jpeg

[Glenn Wilde]

That's great, nice to compare Sols singing to Benny's, I love them both. What a cool song.

[Rick Aiello]

I like them both too … I wasn’t even sure they were the same song

That’s Alan Akaka on steel with Benny Kalama …

[Michael Kiese]

Mucho mahalos …

You didn’t see my new bar … 1” half oval brass , a 1/8” slab of Tungsten and a topper … 204 g … it’s all about rotational momentum

IMG_2842.jpeg

Ah cool! So THAT's what you did with the block of Tungsten that you ordered.

What are the metals you used in your previous bars, and how does the Tungsten compare? Is it an improvement?

[Rick Aiello]

I just used all brass before …

Tungsten carbide’s density is close to 16 g/cc (lead is 11 g/cc ; steel is about 9 g/cc) … it’s there just for mass.

The smallest piece I could buy was 6” long and it is so hard … I had to score it with a diamond cut off wheel and then snap it in a vise with a rubber mallet.

It sits just below the axis of rotation on top of a 1” brass half oval … the goal: increasing rotational momentum.

The tungsten weight makes rolling the bar much easier initially … and … the brass’ half oval shape keeps it from rolling too much (rotational inertia) , making it easier to roll back to the rest position …

IMG_2846.jpeg

I’m quite happy with this ugly thing

[Rick Aiello]

I don’t know if you can see this … I put this little video on Facebook:

https://www.facebook.com/share/v/1Ab66p ... tid=wwXIfr

This was with a brass topper and two 1/8” slabs of W … which I found made it too heavy …it rolled great, but it was too difficult to move around fast enough …

[Michael Kiese]

I just used all brass before …

Tungsten carbide’s density is close to 16 g/cc (lead is 11 g/cc ; steel is about 9 g/cc) … it’s there just for mass.

The smallest piece I could buy was 6” long and it is so hard … I had to score it with a diamond cut off wheel and then snap it in a vise with a rubber mallet.

It sits just below the axis of rotation on top of a 1” brass half oval … the goal: increasing rotational momentum.

The tungsten weight makes rolling the bar much easier initially … and … the brass’ half oval shape keeps it from rolling too much (rotational inertia) , making it easier to roll back to the rest position …

IMG_2846.jpeg

I’m quite happy with this ugly thing

That's really, really clever!

The vibrato you're getting is musical! MUCH improved over the many other project attempts through the years. This is the best product by far.

How did you determine the radius (is focus the better term for ovals?) of the oval shape in order to maximize rotational momentum? Did you kind of eyeball it, or did you use math to determine the focal points of an ellipse?

It would make sense that there is an optimal oval shape for rotational momentum. Kinda like how Nuclear reactor cooling towers are 3D hyperbolas (Hyperboloids?) which optimize evaporation.

Also, what was the reason for choosing an oval shape vs a circle?

[Rick Aiello]

Thank you for the kind words

I tried both … half rounds vs half ovals

3/4” , 7/8” , 1” … tried every combination

The half rounds were much harder to control …

Here’s a couple full rounds I tried too … 7/8” and 1” … had to mill a channel in the 1” full round -> too tall

IMG_2869.jpeg

3/4” & 7/8” half ovals didn’t roll as smooth as 1” …

Trial and lots or error … my wife asks “why all the metal” … ha ha … she hasn’t seen the bill for the tungsten yet

[Michael Kiese]

Trial and lots or error … my wife asks “why all the metal” … ha ha … she hasn’t seen the bill for the tungsten yet

Ahhh. I see. Well, the trial and error really paid off! Keep honing in on what works. Thanks for sharing for the good of the community!

I'm sure there are others who can benefit from this information.

What a concept...an oval bar! That's thinking outside of the box.