Moonlight Tunes
Musician Clanny ‘CC’ Clement. Photo: Scott Stege
A great way to discover some old and modern Marshallese music is to get hold of the CD ‘Moonlight Leta Volume I: Musical Transitions.’
The 23-track CD was produced by Moonlight Recording Studios and its parent, the Marshall Islands Music & Arts Society (sample track below thanks to permission given by Scott Stege).
The artistically arranged volume takes the listener back to the days of Marshallese music without electronic amplification, sampling, tone generators, or sequencing.
With 17 original string band story “bwebwenato” and love “iakwe” songs, the CD highlights the tight harmony, technical artistry and unhurried style for which Marshallese music is best known. The CD also includes six contemporary tunes recorded by three Majuro ukulele boys bands, as ukulele fever washed over the Marshalls like high waves. Many of the tunes were digitally transferred at Moonlight Studios from the WSZO library of vintage reels, originally recorded between 1975 and 1985.
The Moonlight Studios operate under the auspices of the Marshall Islands Music & Arts Society, a non profit organization committed to preserving, promoting and celebrating Marshallese and other traditional art and culture. Scott Stege is its founder. The Society received major funding for its digital recording projects from both UNESCO and the United States Ambassador’s Fund for Cultural Preservation.
To buy a CD or learn more about the Music & Arts Society or its projects, write to moonlightmajuro@gmail.com.
