Posted on: Friday, December 24, 2004

By Lee Cataluna
Advertiser Columnist

After 40 years of teaching music at Kaua'i High School, Larry McIntosh is retiring in June.

When pressed, though, he sounds like he's still undecided. He says things like "if I retire" or "if I can work it out."

But perhaps the biggest sign that the 62-year-old band director is really going to do it this time is the huge project he took on this year.

"I thought, 'Why not?' I wanted to go out in style," said McIntosh.

So he's taking 282 Kaua'i kids to march in the 116th Annual Rose Parade. The All-Kaua'i Ku Kilakila Band is the only Hawai'i entry in this year's parade. It is made up of students from McIntosh's band program as well as other Kaua'i schools. Some are as young as eighth grade.

"The Rose Parade, they don't want bands less than 300. They want large bands, lot of sound," McIntosh said. "I could not get that amount of kids from Kaua'i High. But then the other schools will never get the chance to go, so I said, 'Let's make it an all-island band. That way we get the whole island behind us.' "

He was right. Kaua'i has been very supportive of the students' efforts to raise $1,600 apiece for air and room plus tens of thousands more for uniforms, meals, and ground transportation. Local businesses have written large checks. Friends and relatives of band members donated to a "Walk for the Roses" fund-raiser.

Practices started back in April and continued all through summer. Since July, the band members have met every Sunday afternoon for four to five hours to rehearse. Meanwhile, band parents have held meetings every Monday night for planning and work sessions. Nearly as many parents as students will go on the trip as chaperones.

It's a lot of work for just three songs.

Ku Kilakila will play a medley of "Maika'i Kaua'i" and "Drums of Hawai'i" as they walk the 5›-mile parade route on New Year's Day. The band will perform "Hawaiian War Chant" at the Band Fest at Pasadena Community College next week and at an appearance at Disneyland. Some of the kids have never been to the Mainland before.

"I tell them that there is no more important parade," McIntosh said. "There's over a million and a half people along the parade route, I tell them."

If McIntosh does go through with his talk of retiring, this performance will not be his swan song.

"Whoever takes my job, I'll be around helping for a long time. Like I told the kids, 'If I do retire, I'm just not getting paid, that's all. I'll still be here.' "

Reach Lee Cataluna at 535-8172 or lcataluna@honoluluadvertiser.com.