Music Directors

Keith Higaki
Music Director

Mr. Keith Higaki serves as Music Director for the Honolulu Wind Ensemble, an adult community band of musicians throughout the island of Oahu. He recently retired as the Band Director at Sacred Hearts Academy where he taught Beginning Band, Intermediate Band and Concert Band, and Wind Ensemble as well as the Marching Band in the fall semester. Mr. Higaki is a graduate of the University of Hawaii where he received both his Bachelor of Education degree and a Master's degree in Music Education. In his former assignment he served as Associate Director of Bands and Director of the Marching Band and Symphonic Band at the University of Hawaii at Manoa. He also taught other music courses including conducting and woodwind techniques. He also designed, charted, rehearsed, and conducted the nationally televised McDonald’s Hula Bowl Marching Band halftime shows from 1983-1989.

Mr. Higaki has also taught band and various other music courses at the high school level at Kaimuki High, Kalani High, and Punahou School where he served as Director of Academy Bands. He has also served several years as President and other offices for the Oahu Band Directors Association and is currently serving as the Middle School Honor Band East Chair. Mr. Higaki served as guest conductor for the Maui District High School Band Festivals Massed Band in 1984 and 1997 and the High School Honor Band in 1986 and 2010, for the 1987 and 1988 OBDA 8th Grade Select Bands, for the 2010 OBDA High School Symphonic Band, twice for the Maui Middle School Honor Bands, and for the Maui High School Honor Band in April 2024. Mr. Higaki has also served as adjudicator for several local marching band festivals and competitions as well as for the Big Island Band Directors Association Music Festival in Hilo.

Mr. Higaki’s current interest is in photography, culinary arts, computers, software programming, and digital audio and video production. He develops and markets his music education software for the Windows platforms on the Internet. His programming projects include a music clef & note flashcard program, and a marching band drill design program which is used to design drill charts for the University of Hawaii Marching Band.

Hunter Nakama
Associate Music Director

Mr. Hunter Nakama currently serves as the Associate Music Director of the Honolulu Wind Ensemble. A native of East Honolulu, Mr. Nakama is a graduate of Henry J. Kaiser High School. He commenced his undergraduate studies at the University of Puget Sound in Tacoma, Washington, and subsequently completed his degree at the University of Hawai‘i at Manoa, where he earned a Bachelor of Arts in Economics with a Minor in Music.

A member of the HWE since grade school, Hunter has served as an integral part of the percussion section since 2014. Hunter first guest-conducted the HWE in 2017 while still a junior in high school. After several years of guest conducting the ensemble, he was officially appointed as Associate Music Director in December 2023. He has since traveled with the HWE to Omiya, Japan, where he conducted alongside Keith in a joint concert with our sister ensemble, the Omiya Wind Symphony, during the summer of 2025. While attending the University of Hawai‘i, Hunter performed with the University Symphony Orchestra. He continues to remain active in the local music community, performing as a substitute percussionist with the Royal Hawaiian Band.

Upon graduating from college, Hunter began his professional career in real estate with RE/MAX Hawai‘i as a member of the Kiriu Sasaki Team. He assists clients with the sale of their homes, ensuring that each listing is handled with the highest level of professionalism and care. 

Outside of his work in real estate and music, Hunter enjoys traveling, gardening, and spending time with friends. In recent years, he has explored destinations across the United States, Japan, Korea, and Europe. Hunter enjoys traveling with his partner, Lexi, and together they reside in East O‘ahu with their dog, Luna, and two cats, Peter Cottontail and Roo.