It *was* Joan Sutherland, at her best, this morning.  It *was* the trio and
finale from "Faust," coming from my shirt pocket (and Aiwa's mighty, tiny,
inexpensive stereo receiver I never leave home without).

That much is known.  The big, embarrassing question is who in the devil
was the Devil, and who sang that twerp, Faust -- given that the tenor was
definitely neither Pavarotti nor Domingo, either of whom I would have
recognized under the circumstances.

Those surroundings -- on Moloka`i's Kamehameha V Highway, right by the
Kakahai fish pond -- included some gnarly kiawe trees, a couple of
bougainvillea by the mirror-smooth ocean, and -- across the road -- an
Axis deer.  Whoa!  A what?

I have heard of this deer from India being presented to the man who was
a king before he became a highway (presented by whom? why?), but I never
saw one, certainly not 30 feet away, ready to do...  what?

So, while Sutherland was about to descend to heaven, my attention turned
to the mating habits (if any) of Axis deer, and the related question of
my possible resemblance to one of the species.  The thing to do, when
confronted by such a situation, of course, is to remove *both* earphones.
(Don't ask me why: logic and survival instinct rarely coexist.)

Apparently disgusted, the deer (who could have been a female, explaining
lack of interest) hopped, skipped and jumped out of sight.  Back went the
earphones, but by this time, the announcement was about the upcoming
Bervald Second Symphony -- which accompanied me, uninterrupted, all the
way through the trek to Kaunakakai.

So, who sang with Sutherland? I bet it was an early recording for a
pre-Dame Joan, but other than that, I have no idea.  Help?

Thank goodness for KHPR-FM, Hawaii's public radio station, reaching here
from Honolulu, 50 miles (and 50 years) away, and throughout the islands,
with NPR news and a mix of classical-music programs that may well be the
envy of almost every Mainland city.  (I still remember when SF's KQED had
this kind of programming, but that was a long time ago.)

By the time I had the Portuguese-sausage-&-eggs breakfast at Kanemitsu's
Bakery, taking in the local scene (Japanese-Filipino-Hawaiian variations
on Gaugin paintings), KHPR came up with a delightful surprise.

Just a couple of weeks ago, I attended an extraordinarily passionate
performance of the Enesco Violin Sonata No. 3 at the La Jolla SummerFest,
with Robert McDuffie and Christopher O'Riley, and now -- along with that
kama`aina breakfast -- there was the recording of the concert from Sherwood
Auditorium!

Bless public radio for making a small world a most enjoyable one.

And let's hear it for Moloka`i as well.  While other places use slogans
such as "Live Free or Die!" of "We're the Best and We'll Break Your Nose,"
the official motto here is (so help me): "Slow down -- this is Moloka`i!"

Janos Gereben/SF
Currently one of six guests at the Hotel
Moloka`i. No wonder: it's the peak season!
[log in to unmask]