MICHAEL-THOMAS FOUMAI
COMPOSER
LILIʻUOKALANI
Kuʻu Pua I Paoakalani [My Flower in Paoakalani] (1895)
Arranged By Moon Kauakahi
Orchestrated By David Kauahikaua
During her eight months of incarceration in ʻIolani Palace, Queen Liliʻuokalani was allowed a few privileges; one of those permitted her to receive an occasional basket of flowers, usually from her garden at Uluhaimalama in Pauoa. One day she noticed that the flowers came not from Uluhaimalama, but from Paoakalani, her home in Hamahamo, Waikīki. The Queen was inspired to write this song, dedicated to the young boy who delivered the flowers. (Moon Kauakahi)
E ka gentle breeze e waft mai nei
Hoʻohāliʻaliʻa mai ana iaʻu
E kuʻu sweet never fading flower
I bloom i ka uka o Paoakalani.
Hui:
ʻIke mau i ka nani o nā pua
O ka uka o Uluhaimalama
ʻAʻole naʻe hoʻi e like
Me kuʻu pua i ka laʻi o Paoakalani.
Lahilahi kona mau hiʻona
With soft eyes as black as jet
Pink cheeks so delicate of hue
I ulu i ka uka o Paoakalani.
Nane ʻia mai ana kuʻu aloha
E ka gentle breeze w waft mai nei
Oh come to me kaʻu mea e liʻa nei
I ulu i ka uka o Paoakalani.
*Compiled by Michael-Thomas Foumai. Digitally published for the Hawaiʻi Symphony Sheraton Starlight Series on June 4-6 2021.
Oh, gentle breeze that blows softly here
Bringing fond memories to me
O my sweet never fading flower
That blooms inland of Paoakalani
Refrain:
I always see the beauty of the flowers
From the upland of Uluhaimalama
But these cannot compare
With flowers from the serenity of Paoakalani
Delicate are her features
With soft eyes as black as jet
Pink cheeks so delicate of hue
That grow inland of Paoakalani.
Ask me of my love in the form of a riddle
O gentle breeze that blows softly here
O come to me, that which I now desire
That grows inland of Paoakalani.