Peter Kater Piano, Synthesizers, Native American Flute Silvina Samuel Cello David Choy Soprano Saxophone James "Hutch" Hutchinson Acoustic Fretless Bass Anthony Natividad Bamboo Percussion
Executive Producers: Barry Hauser, Dino Maniatis, Kristin A. Freestone-Maniatis Produced and Composed by Peter KaterAll Songs published by Kater Music/BMI. Engineered and Mixed by Peter Kater Cover Photo by Richard Marks Cover Graphics by Jeff Lancaster
Aloha au ia 'oe is Hawaiian for "I love you." The word "Aloha" is not the Hawaiian way of saying "Hello" or "Good-bye" or "Fare-Well" which is how the average dictionary defines it. If you talk to some of the local Hawaiians they'll tell you that Aloha means "unconditional love" or "the common breath of life that we all share." Aloha is an energy field that pervades the amazingly beautiful islands called Hawaii. When I first moved there I quickly started to draw the distinction of whether I was being "in" the Aloha or "outside of" the Aloha. Being "outside" of the Aloha felt like I was a separate individual going about my day fulfilling my personal needs, goals and desires. Probably how most of us relate to life on a daily basis. Being "in" the Aloha feels like moving with and through an energy field that connects all of us together in an environment of mutual awareness, interdependency and support.
Life is a vital network of energies and beings, connected and pulsating within a common reality and experience. It feels like being loved by nature and part of the environment. The air or "wind" takes on a quality of thickness and substance where you feel it connecting you by it's soft touch to the distant hills and the clouds. The water or "sea" takes on the attributes of silk and softness and becomes even more "alive". You feel the distant sun or "flame" warming you, caressing you from millions of miles away. And the Earth of "rock" nurtures and holds the foundation for our existence and blesses us with bountiful fruits and vivid colors. It is the experience of being part of something greater than ourselves and transcendent of our separate egos.
I recorded this music as a way of acknowledging and giving thanks for the profound beauty that is available to us on this Earth. And to communicate and share my experience with as many people as possible in the hopes that it will nurture, heal and inspire others as it has me. We find our souls in nature because it is our nature to be soulful. - Peter Kater
