Keali'i Reichel, the singer, has released a new CD of his collected music: "Kamalei: Keali'i Reichel Collection Two" (Punahele Records).

But his focus is on Keali'i Reichel, the kumu hula.

"He's just concentrating on (Halau) Ke'alaokamaile," said his Punahele Productions partner Fred Krauss. "He's going to Merrie Monarch for the first time."

The 46th Annual Merrie Monarch Festival — the biggie in the hula world — is set for April 16-18 next year. Hula folks know it takes a good year to prep for the rigid competition.

Reichel recently returned from a hula trek to Japan with dance, not song, a top priority.

Though he has accumulated enough material for about half of a new album, there are no immediate plans to get back in the studio. Not until the hula side of his life is taken care of.

Reichel, who has studied Hawaiian dance and vocals with Pualani Kanaka'ole Kanahele, the Big Island-based daughter of eminent kumu hula and Hawaiian scholar Auntie Edith Kanaka'ole, is by all accounts consumed with his pursuit of excellence in hula. His halau has changed names, from Halau Hula o Ka Makani Wili Makaha o Kaua'ula to Halau Ke'alaokamaile.

Song and performance remain in his repertoire, of course. He'll be a guest artist at "Na Leo's Holiday Music Spectacular" at the Royal Hawaiian Center, beginning tomorrow.

According to notes provided by Reichel and Krauss, "Kamalei" is a follow-up to "Kamahiwa," the first collection, with both terms meaning "cherished child."

Both compilations feature music that "showcase the poetry of the Hawaiian language, utilizing mostly Keali'i and Puakea's (Nogelmeier) original composition, with English tracks tapped for their poetic content. When glimpsed as a two-part set, the collections reflect "a historical record of Keali'i's first 15 years as a recording artist," the pair said

Co-producer Jim Linkner said "a very careful approach" was used. The original recordings were sent to mastering engineer Bernie Grundman, whose credits include Michael Jackson, Barbra Streisand and Quincy Jones, for digital reprocessing.