All Nippon Airways celebrates its return to Hawaiʻi with November events in Honolulu

All Nippon Airways celebrates its return to Hawaiʻi after the worldwide hiatus in travel, with live events at its ANA ʻAha Mele Festival in Honolulu.

Partnering with the State of Hawaiʻi and the City & County of Honolulu, ANA ʻAha Mele festivities mark the resumption of the ANA Honolulu Music Week, which debuted in 2019. A series of events are planned for Nov. 18 and 19, 2022, bringing together local musicians and global artists.

Junko Yazawa, senior vice president overseeing customer experience management and planning said, “We are excited to be partnering with the state and city to bring this culturally important event to the public.”

Performance by Japanese pianist, Nobuyuki Tsujii:

World-renowned Japanese pianist Nobuyuki Tsujii will host a music class for Oʻahu elementary school students at the Tom Moffatt Waikīkī Shell.

This event encourages children to experience the joy of connecting through music, regardless of nationality, race, language, disability or age, while deepening their interaction with Tsujii.

This event takes place on Saturday, Nov. 19, from 10 a.m.-11:30 a.m.

*The music class (workshop) is open only to elementary school students invited by ANA, but anyone can watch the event free of charge.

ʻUkulele Picnic Concert produced by Japanese pop band Southern All Stars member, Kazuyuki Sekiguchi:

Focusing on the ʻukulele, an instrument symbolic of Hawaiʻi, ANA is collaborating with the “ʻUkulele Picnic in Hawaiʻi,” organized by the ʻUkulele Foundation of Hawaiʻi. The event will foster interaction between ʻukulele enthusiasts and children, and includes performances by top musicians from Japan and Hawaiʻi. This free event is designed not only to introduce the joy and wonder of the ʻukulele, but also to promote appreciation and respect for Hawaiian culture and music.

• From Japan: Kazuyuki Sekiguchi, bassist of the world-famous music group Southern All Stars, will produce the concert. A specially assembled band led by Sekiguchi, including renowned guitarist Yoshio Nomura, will perform.
• From Hawaiʻi: Also appearing are Nā Hōkū Hanohano (the Grammy Awards of Hawaiʻi) Award winners NUE, Ku’uipo Kumukahi and Jody Kamisato, who teaches ʻukulele classes to children at ʻUkulele Hale, and his students.

This event takes place on Nov. 19, from 2 to 5:30 p.m. at the Tom Moffatt Waikīkī Shell.

*Participation in the workshop is limited to guests with invitations only, but the ʻUkulele Picnic stage is open to everyone free of charge.

Environmental activities (tree planting event):

ANA will plant 260 new Milo trees, a tradition that began in 2019 to celebrate the launch of the Airbus A380 FLYING HONU operation.

In July, ANA’s Airbus A380 FLYING HONU, the world’s largest passenger aircraft, resumed operations between Japan and Honolulu. This passenger aircraft will transport a large number of passengers and increase the number of people traveling between the two cities. With this event, ANA continues its efforts to promote cultural heritage, children’s education, DEI and environmental preservation in Hawaiʻi.

ANA HOLDINGS Inc. was established in 2013 as the largest airline group holding company in Japan, comprising 71 companies including ANA and Peach Aviation, the leading LCC in Japan. ANA is the largest operator of the Boeing 787 Dreamliner, making ANA HD the biggest Dreamliner owner in the world.