| Ha`aheo (Marc) was born and grew up in various parts of Northern California. His earliest memories attest that his influence in music started when he was young. His mom sang frequently for Ha`aheo and his brothers and sister as his dad accompanied on piano, guitar and harmonica. Ha`aheo learned to play piano and guitar by watching his dad and playing by ear. At age 11, he began taking formal music lessons in his school band as a percussionist and private drum lessons in a professioinal music school. Soon after, he and his brothers and sister formed a band. With Ha`aheo on the drums, they played for family functions with a repertoire consisting of R & B and Rock 'n' Roll numbers. He concurrently played in 2 other bands with friends to perform at school shows. In high school, he joined the drumline in the James Logan Marching Band to participate in field show competitions. Additionally, he played in the high school Concert Band, Improvisation Jazz Band, Percussion Ensemble and Symphonic Band. After high school, Ha`aheo attended CSU, Sacramento studying music appreciation, history and theory. He danced for 1 year with Samahang (Pilipino club of CSU, Sacramento) and then danced with Mga Kapatid (Pilipino organization of UC Davis) for 5 years. In 1997, Ha`aheo entered the halau of Kumuhula Naomi Kalama and studied Hawaiian chant, culture, history, hula and music with her. He also took Tahitian drumming with Ra`atira Marlo Caramat in the Bay Area. Ha`aheo believes that Nativ Sun allows him to artistically express their love of life through music, and he hopes that everyone who listens to Nativ Sun's music absorbs the positivity that they strive to project. |
