Ki ho'alu, or Hawaiian slack key guitar, is an island tradition. It's more than that. It's the rich expression and reverence for all that life holds: Through its unique finger-picked style and special tunings ki ho'alu tells the story of the Hawaiian islands and its people, past and present. It is music drawn from the heart and the soul. The guitar, the instrument itself, can only be created in that same spirit. The craftsman must live ki ho'alu, deeply fulfilled in his timeless work.

Such a craftsman is David Gomes, musician and guitarmaker for over 25 years. I talk with him in his new dream shop, where he moved in February 1995. It strikes me that this successful man, so busy that any new guitar order will be on hold for two full years, so busy that he spends five to seven hours per day in his shop and then drives an hour to the nearby hotels to play music in the evenings, can be so calm. I soon discover how he does it: He is happy.