Welcome to the Cyberhome of Bill Wynne
Aloha! E komo mai! Hello, everyone! Welcome to my home on the internet! I actually have many rooms on the internet - places where I keep this and that - but this is the place where I try to bring all of those rooms together. And much like my real home, this one is also perpetually under construction.
Those of you who know me - or think you know me - might think of me as outspoken, opinionated, and perhaps even cynical. I won't deny any of that. But nobody can be labeled and categorized so easily. There are any number of passions that bring me great joy - words, music, technology, and anything and everything from the beautiful islands of Hawaii. Whenever I can bring two or more of these passions together, I am more the "me" I would like people to know than most of you have yet had the opportunity to meet.
Over the years I have started websites under various domains - "squatting" on domains that I knew I would want in the distant future and eventually realizing their purpose. It is a work in progress. But if anyone cares to really get to know me - the whole me, and not just the parts of me floating around cyberspace - this is a repository of the things I would like you to know.
Musician
I am a musician. I have been since a child. I have dabbled in all sorts of music - from playing jazz guitar in smoky bars to arranging for and conducting choirs of all sizes. But my passion from the very earliest age has been the traditional folk music of Hawaii. Just how I became interested in the music of a land more than 5,000 miles from my home - and which, until recently, I hadn't even visited - is a very long story. If you ever have time and inclination to read that story, click on Musician for my musical biography. That "room" has not been updated in literally years. But the story is still accurate with the exception of a few notable recent events that modesty has thus far prevented me from putting in print.
Even the most humble musician will tell you that they are only half an equation. They are nothing without an audience. I am very proud of my music and so I let my music speak for itself. Click on Listen to hear some samples from my home studio. In the spirit of the season, I have recently updated this page with songs for the holidays. I hope that these songs help put you in the holiday mood and if one in particular touches your heart, I would love to hear from you as that would touch mine
Writer
I am a writer. And as a child of the digital age, almost everything I have ever written - even the things I am most embarrassed about - are floating around cyberspace for posterity. These days I tend to write about things I know well. As a musician, I am often writing about music. As a reader, I also write about books that I have recently dusted off. As an amateur philosopher (and aren't we all?), I sometimes write about the things that keep me awake at night (with the intention of keeping you awake so that I, at last, can sleep, having gotten these things off my chest). And as a writer, I am frequently - more often than not - ranting about the deterioration of the English language - citing samples of the abominations I read and hear everyday. For examples of these random musings, check out Random Thoughts - a blog where I ramble on about these and other things that pop into my head.
What I write about most often, however, is music and, specifically, the music of Hawaii - past, present, and future. This amateur ethnomusicological foray began when I was only 5 years old but it is my life's passion. I own almost every recording of Hawaiian music published in Hawaii since the advent of the LP (that is a "long playing vinyl record," for those of you too young to get the reference) and a few that predate this. For my musings, recommendations, and even rants about Hawaiian music, check out my other blog at Hawaiian Music.
Radio Host
And now add to my list of passions yet another passion that combines all of the others: radio show host. One of my fondest memories of my childhood was playing "DJ" - spinning records and commenting on the songs and artists. I really had always hoped to do this someday, and I am grateful for the opportunity. Each Sunday for two hours I spin rare and out-of-print classics from the vast Hawaiian music canon and discuss at length the evolution of Hawaiian music - the artists, the composers, the instruments, the influences, the various elements that when combined result in this unique indigenous art form. This program is unique, too, in that it is possibly the first endeavor in Hawaiian music "edutainment." I call the show Ho`olohe Hou which is Hawaiian meaning "to listen again," and I am really proud and excited that a Hawaiian music radio station, 50th State Radio, has given this show a place in its line-up - yet another of my "rooms" in cyberspace. Although the station is in Las Vegas - often affectionately referred to by Hawaiians as "the ninth island" - you can enjoy the show via the internet. To check out the program schedule and thoughts and playlists from previous shows, visit the Ho`olohe Hou Radio blog.
The one thing that I clearly am not is a web designer. I hope that you will find it in your hearts to overlook the aesthetically unpleasing nature of the "rooms" you are about to visit and somehow manage to appreciate the content. For me, it's all about the words, the thoughts, and the music.
About the chambered nautilus... I am also a collector. I began collecting various things as a child but, regrettably, nothing that any of the other kids in my neighborhood collected like baseball cards or marbles. I collected books, LP records, and shells. Some shells can be as rare and valuable as some baseball cards, but I just thought they were beautiful and their beauty brought me great pleasure. There is a depth of symbolism in the chambered nautilus. Some believe it represents different stages of life spiraling into increasing states of consciousness. Some believe it represents a constructive form of the spiraling energy of Nature. For some it represents home, family, and community. As a musician, sometimes the nautilus reminds me of an ear beckoning us to listen and other times it reminds me of the reel-to-reel tape in motion (once the professional recording medium of choice and of which I have quite a few laying around the studio myself) as it captures a once-in-a-lifetime performance for posterity. But at its most sublime, some believe it represents Aristotle's concept of entelechy - that state of being in which a thing is actively working to be itself, the vital force propelling one to self-fulfillment or full realization of potential. This site represents everything that I am and everything I am aspiring to be. So the nautilus is the perfect symbol for billwynne.net. Plus it was the free image that came with this free website design template.
Enjoy your visit! Malama pono...
Bill Wynne