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Helen Kapuailohia Desha Beamer (September 8, 1882 – September 25, 1952)[1] was a musician, composer of songs in the Hawaiian language, hula dancer and coloratura soprano of Hawaiian ancestry. Her descendants have also become accomplished artists in the U.S. state of Hawaii. In 1928, her duet of "Ke Kali Nei Au" with Sam Kapu Sr. on Columbia Records was the first commercial recording of the Charles E. King composition. She was inducted into the Hawaiian Music Hall of Fame in 1995.

Helen Desha Beamer
Background information
Birth name	Helen Kapuailohia Desha
Born	(1882-09-08)September 8, 1882 Honolulu, Kingdom of Hawaii
Died	September 25, 1952(1952-09-25) (aged 70)
Genres	Hawaiian
Occupation(s)	Singer, musician, composer
Instrument(s)	Vocals, Piano

Early life

Helen Kapuailohia Desha was born on September 8, 1882, in Honolulu, on the island of Oahu, in the Kingdom of Hawaii. Her parents were George Langhern Desha and Isabella Hale'ala Miller. Her mother and grandmother, Kapuailohiawahine Kanuha Miller, taught hula in secret when the dance was banned.[1] Her grandmother was a notable hakumele, Hawaiian for composer of music. Helen was a graduate of Kamehameha School for Girls, where the school's music director noted her talent as a pianist and as a song composer.[2] Kamehameha Schools was established by the estate of Bernice Pauahi Bishop to provide education for children of Hawaiian ancestry.[3]

She was also the organist at Haili Church in Hilo.[4]

Professional career

She had a coloratura soprano range and was a recording artist for Columbia Records. In 1928, she and artist Sam Kapu Sr. made the first commercial recording of the "Hawaiian Wedding Song," which had been written by composer Charles E. King as "Ke Kali Nei Au".[2][4] She was the composer of numerous songs in the Hawaiian language that are still being recorded by contemporary Hawaiian artists.[5]

Personal life and legacy

Helen Desha married Peter Carl Beamer of Hilo. The couple had five children. She was the matriarch of a musical dynasty that includes her grandson, falsetto singer Mahi Beamer, who was inducted into the Hawaiian Music Hall of Fame in 2006; granddaughter Winona (Nona) Beamer; and Nona Beamer's two sons, Keola and Kapono.[6] She died in 1952 and is buried at Homelani Memorial Park in Hilo.

In 1995, she was inducted into the Hawaiian Music Hall of Fame.[2]

Compositions (partial list)

Source: allmusic[5]

Family tree

v t e Family of Helen Desha Beamer

Key- Subjects with bold titles and blue bold box= Aliʻi line. Bold title and grey bolded box= Lower ranking Aliʻi line. Bold title and un-bolded box= European nobility. Regular name and box= makaʻāinana or untitled foreign subject. Mela (Miller) Kānekapōlei[lower-roman 1] Kaialii Poimoa Kilinahe Lama (w) Alexander P. Miller Jr. (Alika Mela)[lower-roman 2] Kapuailohia Wahine Kanuha Kaialiilii.[lower-roman 3] Ai Namakalele Charles Makee[lower-roman 4] Sarah Kaʻili Miller John Mahiʻai Miller/Kaneakua (Oct. 9, 1860-Jan. 26, 1936) County Clerk of Kaua‘i Hui Hawaiian Aloha ʻĀina Lucy Kaʻumealani Cummings Samuel Kalimahana Kaialiilii Miller.[lower-roman 5][lower-roman 6] (1868-Nov. 24, 1933) Daisy Amoe Ai[lower-roman 7] George Langhern Desha Isabella Haleʻala Kaʻili Miller[lower-roman 8][lower-roman 9] (1865-Feb. 28, 1949) Noa Miller Charles Miller Sakichi Hayashi Annie Maikaʻi Miller Charles Hoolulu Siemsen Peter Carl Beamer Helen Kapuailohia Desha (Sept. 8, 1882–Sept. 25, 1952) David Lester Desha James Waichiro Miller Milton Hoʻolulu Beamer (October 18, 1903[lower-roman 10] - ) Kaaloehukaiopuaena Copp Francis Kealiʻinohopono Beamer Louise Leiomälama Harriet Kekahiliokalani Beamer Peter Carl Kaleikaʻapunihonua Beamer Jr. Helen Elizabeth Kawohikukapulani Beamer Mahi Beamer Odell Steppe Winona Beamer Keola Beamer Kapono Beamer Notes: Hawaiian researcher Dorothy Barrère lists Kanekapolei as the wife of Mela (Miller) on page 458 of her book from the full Mahele land claim of Kanekapolei's son Alika Mela- LCA 8018.[lower-greek 1] Kaʻanoʻi Walk writes in an article for the Hawaiian Cultral Center: "..my great-grandfather John Mahiʻai Kāneakua was born in Honuaʻula, Maui to his loving parents Alexander P. Miller and Kanuha (Kaialiilii) Miller".[lower-greek 2] Kapuailohiawahine and her daughter Isabella, taught Hula in secret, hiding it after the ban by Kaʻahumanu.[lower-greek 3] The son of Charles Makee (the son of James Makee, a wealthy sea Captain) Charles Miller was the son of "Sarah Miller, written as "S. Mila" on the marriage record".[lower-greek 4] Hawaii State Archives lists Samuel Kaia Miller marrying Amoy Ai on 5-2-1903 in Honolulu, Hawaii.[lower-greek 5] The Marriage certificate of Samuel and Daisy Amoe Ai lists Alika Miller and Kanuha as parents to Samuel, with Namakelele and Ai as parent to Daisy.[lower-greek 6] Daisy Amoe and Samuel Kalimahana Miller had 12 children and resided in Kalihi where Samuel worked as a painter.[lower-greek 7] In a press release from the Hula Preservation Society, they list Isabella Hale`ala Miller Desha as Nona Beamer's great grandmother.[lower-greek 8] The Desha Genealogy lists William Francis Desha as the son of Isabella and George Desha.[lower-greek 9] Hawaii Births and Christenings, 1852-1933. Milton Hoolulu Desha Beamer, 18 Oct 1903; citing Hilo, Hawaii, Hawaii, reference p 36; FHL microfilm 1,031,747.[lower-greek 10] Barrère, D.B. (1994). The King's Mahele: The Awardees and Their Lands. D.B. Barrère. OCLC 31886789. Walk, Kaʻanoʻi. "Kāneakua, John Mahiʻai". Hawaiian Cultural Center. Kamehameha Schools. Retrieved December 27, 2014. Barbara Bennett Peterson (1984). Notable Women of Hawaii. University of Hawaii Press. p. 23. ISBN 978-0-8248-0820-4. Chinese America, History and Perspectives. Chinese Historical Society of America. 1988. p. 175. ISBN 978-0-9614198-1-3. "MARRIAGES: Oahu (1832-1910)". Hawaiian Genealogy indexes. Hawaiʻi State Archives. Retrieved December 27, 2014. State of Hawaii Department of Health, Office of Health Status Monitoring, Certificate of Marriage, May 2, 1903 "No Race Suicide Here". The Garden Island. December 17, 1918. Retrieved May 14, 2014. "Hula Preservation". Hula Preservation Society. Hula Preservation Society. Retrieved December 27, 2014. DeWitt Collier Nogues (1983). Desha genealogy: a survey. ATEX Austin Inc. p. 212. Births, Kaʻanoʻi. "Milton Hoolulu Desha Beamer". Family Search. Retrieved September 4, 2015.

References

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