LAHAINA — Chapman Stick® musical artist, Michael Kollwitz, will hold a CD release party where he will perform selections from Suntan Lady, his tenth CD, as well as other favorites, on Sunday, August 1st, from 7 to 10 p.m. at Lulu’s Lahaina Surf Club & Grill at the Lahaina Cannery Mall.

Suntan Lady features five new original songs on The Chapman Stick and also includes longtime standards like Aloha Oe, Puamana and Hawaiian War Chant. Additional musicians include Don McClellan (pedal steel), Mika Villaren (ukulele) and Kris Thomas (percussion).

What is a Chapman Stick you may ask? Possibly the coolest stringed instrument you’ve never seen or heard of. Invented in 1974 by Emmett Chapman, The Stick is a unique stringed instrument that combines elements of guitar, bass, piano and percussion. The strings are tapped and held onto the frets, rather than plucked or strummed, enabling both hands to play complete and expressive multi-part arrangements.

Kollwitz was one of Chapman’s first Stick students and is considered to be a top player and pioneer of the instrument and two-handed tapping technique.

Some of his previous releases include Waterfallin’ (2006), Hawaiian Paradise (2008) and Under The Banyan Tree (2009). Suntan Lady will be available for purchase at the release party.

Admission is free. A no-host bar and full menu will also be available. Come get your CD personally autographed, check out the instrument, meet the artist and enjoy some great music.