Tag Archives: music

Vanuatu Bamboo Pipe Drums

1 Reply

There were rumors of a few islands that put on musical performances playing bamboo pipe drums.  We saw a video and it quickly got on our list as a “must do item” in Vanuatu.  The problem was we were not sure which anchorage or island played this unusual performance.

We decided to have a nice dinner one night while we were anchored at Peterson Bay, Santo Island.  We headed to Turtle Bay Resort which is a lovely resort, with super delicious food and reasonable prices.   To our surprise they had a band playing so we sat back, enjoyed our dinner, and awaited the mystery band.

Imagine our joy when 11 men came in carrying bamboo pipe drums followed by 4 female dancers!  Sweet as!!!!!

Bamboo Pipes

Bamboo Pipes

Bamboo Pipe Drums

We were not really sure what to expect.  Will it be enjoyable and entertaining?  Can you listen to a band play bamboo pipes for more than a few minutes without being “bored”?  The answer to all of those questions is a resounding, yes, yes, and yes!

Sorry for the weird colors in the photos, but the resort had colored lights.

They had drummers that ranged in ages from 9 to 50+.  The interesting thing is that the band rotated instruments throughout the night.  They did not stay with one set of bamboo pipes.  

There were 6 bamboo pipe drums, each with varying lengths of bamboo and each making unique musical notes.  

One person played a set of bamboo pipes like a flute, blowing into each culm creating beautiful baritone or base notes. And another person played the bag (for lack of better words). Inside the bag were a lot of nuts and they would lift and squish the bag making a marvelous sound.

What do Bamboo Pipes Consist of?

The bamboo culm (stem) is latched with vines and expertly organized by its sound.  One resort guest went up and asked to play (he was not so good).  But the guest asked the performer for “e” and believe it or not he pointed to a specific bamboo pipe!

The paddles are made of used, yellow floats that are carved up, shaped and attached to sticks to pound onto the pipes.  Talk about a great way to reuse these floats that end of up littering the beaches!

One of the dancers managed to get me out to the dance floor.  Not sure my Lake girl skills were helpful at this time 🙂

Matt and I had such an amazing time!  We really thoroughly enjoyed the bamboo pipe band!  The music was played with enthusiasm and joy and was truly fantastic.

Our blog posts run 10-12 weeks behind actual live events.  We saw the Bamboo Pipe Band at Turtle Bay Resort on 10 August 2024.  We finally found an adventure trail that almost wipes me out – the Millennium Cave Adventure — check out the blog post here.

Hoppin Huahine

Leave a reply

We finally had a good weather window to head to Huahine. We typically do this passage at night because it is far enough (almost 80nm) where we cannot make it during daylight hours. So, we leave at 1600 and usually arrive around 0800-0900.

We had a beautiful beam reach sail from Mo’orea to Huahine. We had a reefed main and jib as we did not want to go “too fast” and arrive before sunrise. As it turned out, Sugar Shack wanted to move. Matt kept trimming the sails to slow her down, but she was on a mission to get to the Leeward islands. As it turned out, we managed to slow down enough to arrive at dawn.

Trip Details

Total Miles: 89nm
Total Hours: 14.5
Avg Speed: 5.96
Max Speed: 11.9

First 50 miles rocking it
Avg Speed: 7.7
Max Speed: 11.9

Friends Abound

Our first stop is Izzy’s burgers. Doesn’t matter how tired you are, you stop at Izzy’s! We have been craving her burgers for months and months. As it turned out we stopped by 3 different times for lunch and once for breakfast and it never disappoints!

She makes an Izzy burger that Matt is in love with! It is a regular burger with bacon wrapped shrimp, lettuce, tomato and special sauce. I usually get the veggie burger with cheese and on my last day I topped it off with bacon wrapped shrimp and found a new favorite! One day her plate dejure was shrimp salad and I loved it! For breakfast I had a giant omelet and Matt had poison cru with a shredded coconut (an Izzy special).

Izzys at Huahine

Izzys at Huahine

We met Anne in Gambier. Her best friend is Poerani, our friend who is an English teacher in Gambier. Anne lives in Huahine and is an English teacher as well. We brought her a bunch of school supplies and books for her students. We even had Anne and Lizzy, another teacher on the boat for an afternoon of fun.

Matt, me, Anne at the Huahine Yacht Club

https://www.svsugarshack.com/2022/01/moorea-escapades/

HOPPIN HUAHINE

Our friends Steve and Lili on the boat Liward joined us in Huahine. Steve plays with a few of the locals and decided to put together another concert. As you might recall, he played at Rock the Barge and Polynesian Jam Session in Mo’orea.

Steve secured a private bungalow on shore at the Huahine Dream Beach House. We had it for the afternoon and early evening. What a really beautiful place right on the beach with gorgeous views. It has a huge deck with a full size table and chairs, lounge chairs, and BBQ. Inside is a spacious living area and a marvelous kitchen with a chef worthy range and refrigerator. It has two bedrooms and can sleep 7 people, but 5 comfortably.

Huahine Dream Beach House

Huahine Dream Beach House

Our friends on Bella (Ulreka and Matias), Matt and I helped Steve and Lili bring all their gear to the bungalow and set up. We enjoyed a lazy day on the deck and beach until our event started.

A few of the locals brought floral crowns, which just made our day! The couples….Matt and I, Steve and Lili (lower left), Ulreka and Matias (lower right).

The ladies:

Taha’a Bound

After a week in Huahine we went to Taha’a and Raiatea. Lucky for us it was an easy 20nm downwind run so we flew Big Bertha and made it no time!

On the way we pass my 2nd yacht – Lady Christine which is a 68m (150’) by 12.5m wide (she is as wide as we are long)! She boasts of a helicopter, negative edge pool on the stern, cinema, workout room, guest suits for 10, 2 dinghies, and a 10m sailboat. Check out the photos on the above link as they are spectacular.

We have fun with loads of Mo’orea Escapades in our last blog. Events from this blog post occurred early October. Our blog posts run 10-12 weeks behind our adventures.

Polynesian Jam Session: Cruiser Style

Leave a reply

Our friends, Steve and Lili from the boat Liward came back to French Polynesia after being stateside for the past 10 months.  Steve is a fantastic musician and has put on many jam sessions around French Polynesia.  Our last jam session was called “Rock the Barge” and was held in Huahine.

This time we had to do things a little different.  Technically, no live music is allowed during our confinement.  So, Steve thought, well we can host an impromptu jam session off the back of his boat.  We were all technically respecting the 1 meter distance and we are all vaccinated.

Steve has an all in one guitar which can be used as an electric or acoustic guitar.  He uses a luper where he can record himself playing and then play over it at the same time.  It is amazing to watch and listen to!  Steve plays a lot of Polynesian music and some American rock. 

 

We had about 8 dinghies show up carrying 22 people.  All from the Opunohu anchorage.

Some close ups of our friends.

It started right around dusk and lasted a few hours.  Super cool  We had a beautiful sunset to go with the amazing musical talents of our friend Steve.

Sugar Shack is right next door.  We could have easily seen and heard the music from our boat but it would not have been nearly as fun!

We take the ferry to Tahiti and are duly impressed with the Aremiti 2, the last blog.  Events from this blog post occurred the end of September.  Our blog posts run 10-12 weeks behind our adventures.