Music from the Taro Patch | Stephen M. Sano | TEDxStanford

Sano discovered his connection to the music of Hawai'i many years ago. He approaches his relationship to slack key with the care and responsibility he believes is demanded of all practitioners but particularly those who approach it from outside the Island community. Acknowledging the powerful spirit of those who have gone before him, Sano's goal is to always approach the art form and its masters with the greatest reverence and respect. It is his hope that all students of slack key share these sensibilities - creating a community of players worthy of the powerful Hawaiian roots of ki ho'alu.

Stephen M. Sano is professor and chair of the Department of Music, and the Harold C. Schmidt Director of Choral Studies at Stanford University, where he directs the Stanford Chamber Chorale and Symphonic Chorus. Sano holds masters and doctoral degrees in both orchestral and choral conducting from Stanford, and a bachelor's degree in piano performance and theory from San Jose State University. His choirs have performed with the world's leading artists including the Choir of Trinity College, Cambridge; master flamenco guitarist Paco Pena; and the Kronos Quartet. Sano received the 2005 Dean's Award for Distinguished Teaching at Stanford. Winner of numerous piano competitions, his interests also include Hawaiian choral music, Hawaiian slack key guitar and North American Taiko. Sano's most recent slack key recording "Songs from the Taro Patch" was on the preliminary ballot for the 2008 Grammy Awards.

This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at http://ted.com/tedx