A Monarch’s Gift

HONOLULU

For 39 years, Clarence Kam Siu has worked at a job he loves: playing bass clarinet in the Royal Hawaiian Band. And when he deposits his paycheck, he can thank King Kamehameha III for establishing the band more than 160 years ago.

The island kingdom then could only be reached by an arduous ocean voyage. The band greeted each ship as it came in and saluted those sailing off.

The arrivals and departures were often tearful, wrenching experiences. The band became part of that emotional tradition.

“We would go down to the pier early,” recalls Kam Siu, a member of Hawaii Government Employees Association/AFSCME Local 152. “We’d see three ships in at 7, 8 and 9 and take a break. In the afternoon, we’d see three ships out.”

But air travel changed all that. In the mid-1960s, the ships stopped coming.

THE BAND PLAYED ON. The Royal Hawaiian Band was integrated into a wide range of community activities: noon-time concerts, special events and parades. The band also reaches out to the community: performing at senior centers and in the schools.

Recently, the economic tide has turned for Hawaii and its good will ambassadors. “Several cruise ships come through Hawaii on the way to the Orient,” says Kam Siu. A number of shipping lines have started offering Hawaiian cruises.

“Boat days” have returned. The band welcomes the large cruise ships as they dock — and sends them off in style.

The greetings and separations may not be as dramatic as in the past, but for thousands of visit-ors to the Aloha state, the Royal Hawaiian Band is the first and the last sound of paradise.