The Waitiki 7 Returns: Exotica Music Live at House Without A Key
Sixty-five years ago, the enchanting sounds of Hawaii’s musical maestros, Martin Denny, the virtuoso pianist, and Arthur Lyman, the mesmerizing vibraphonist, ignited a national sensation with their groundbreaking albums “Exotica” and “Taboo.” Through their creativity and passion, they not only crafted extraordinary music but birthed an entirely new genre — Exotica!
Emerging amidst Hawaii’s vibrant postwar music scene, Exotica was the quintessential, easy listening soundtrack behind many a bachelor pad, tiki bar, or globe trotters’ fantasy. The genre’s lush instrumentation and faraway soundscapes continue to inspire and captivate audiences worldwide.
Back by popular demand, The WAITIKI 7, consisting of seven conservatory trained professional musicians (four from Honolulu), will perform two nights of Exotica at one of Waikiki’s most iconic venues, Halekulani’s House Without A Key, from 6:00pm to 8:30pm on the evenings of Friday, May 24 and Saturday, May 25, 2024. This marks the triumphant return of live Exotica music to Waikiki, a revival of a bygone era. Savor the sunset and indulge in the signature Halekulani cocktail while basking in the exotic sounds of The WAITIKI 7.
Waitiki 7
The Waitiki 7
Coincidentally, Halekulani played a pivotal, early role in the Exotica legacy: In 1954, Arthur Lyman, then working as a desk clerk at Halekulani, crossed paths with pianist Martin Denny. Denny offered Lyman a place in his band, and the rest, as they say, is history.
Martin Denny’s music catapulted to the mainstream, with both him and Arthur Lyman gracing national television shows like American Bandstand, Andy Williams, and Steve Allen. Denny’s 1959 hit single, “Quiet Village,” soared to #4 on Billboard’s charts, while his “Exotica” album eventually claimed the #1 spot. Local vibraphonist Arthur Lyman’s hit, “Yellow Bird,” peaked at #4 on the Billboard Charts in 1961.
WAITIKI 7 initially formed as a quartet in Boston, MA, twenty years ago in 2003, when Wong and jazz drummer Abe Lagrimas Jr. were college students at New England Conservatory/Harvard University and Berklee College of Music, respectively. The name, a fusion of “Waikiki” and “Tiki,” embodies their passion for the genre. During the 1990s lounge revival, Wong and Lagrimas discovered a void: there were few groups specializing in Exotica, none composed of conservatory-trained professional musicians.
The group boasts seven first-call musicians, four of whom hail from Honolulu: Jazz drummer Abe Lagrimas Jr. (Kamasi Washington, Eric Marienthal, Kenny Endo), bassist Randy Wong (of the Hawaiʻi Symphony Orchestra and President/CEO of the Hawaii Youth Symphony), percussionist and exotic bird caller Lopaka Colon (son of original Martin Denny percussionist and bird caller Augie Colon), and violinist Dr. Helen Liu (of the Hawaiʻi Symphony Orchestra and Galliard String Quartet). Completing the ensemble are flutist/saxophonist Tim Mayer (Artistic Director of the Orquesta Nacional de Jazz de Mexico), NYC-based Latin jazz pianist Zaccai Curtis (Eddie Palmieri, Donald Harrison), and Pittsburgh-based vibraphonist Jim Benoit (also timpanist of the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra), and special guests The Galliard String Quartet and Japanese marimbist Mika Mimura Erickson.