George Kahumoku Documentary ‘Seeds of Aloha’ at Palace Theater

From Grammy Awards to gardening, George Kahumoku Jr’s wide range of interests have earned him the label “Hawaii’s Renaissance man.”

On Thursday May 2, musical film producer David Barry will introduce Kahumoku for a performance at the Palace Theater in Hilo, followed by a screening of Barry’s documentary “Seeds of Aloha” about Kahumoku’s varied and prolific life.

A multiple Hoku and Grammy Award winner for his slack key guitar recordings, Kahumoku headlines the famed “Masters of Hawaiian Slack Key Guitar” concert series at the Napili Kai Beach Resort on Maui, the first long-running series of its kind to feature slack key guitar artists.

Barry and his team spent three months in 2012 filming Kahumoku as he traveled around North America and Hawaii sharing his gift of music. The film also explores Kahumoku’s efforts at farming, his artwork, and his passion for teaching. To make the documentary, the team also interviewed 88 people including Kahumoku’s friends, students and fellow musicians.

George Kahumoku performs with Norton Buffalo. Image courtesy.

Kahumoku currently lives on Maui with his wife Nancy. In addition to his busy musical career, he farms a 3 acre parcel on his property. Kahumoku also teaches painting, ceramics, guitar and ukulele at the historic Lahainaluna High School, along with teaching guitar performance at Maui Community College.

The film “Seeds of Aloha” was funded in an unconventional manner, raising over $33,000 on the crowd-funding website “Kickstarter.” Post-production on the project was completed in January of 2013. The film is currently being shopped to various networks and has been submitted for showings at festivals around the world.

Thursday’s show starts at 7:00 pm, with doors open at 6:30.

For tickets and more information, visit the Palace Theater website: www.hilopalace.com