"Hawaiʻi Aloha," also called "Kuʻu One Hanau," is a revered anthem of the native Hawaiian people and Hawaiʻi residents alike. Written by Lorenzo Lyons, a Christian minister who died in 1886, to a tune by James McGranahan, "Hawai‘i Aloha" was considered by the Hawaiʻi State Legislature in 1967 and by the Hawaiʻi State Constitutional Convention in 1978 to become the official state song, but "Hawaiʻi Pono‘ī," written by King David Kalākaua and composed by Royal Hawaiian Band Master Henri Berger, was chosen instead.
"Hawaiʻi Aloha" is typically sung in both small and large, formal and informal gatherings, both in Hawaiʻi and abroad, while participants stand in a circle with joined hands. It is a feature of the inauguration of the Governor of Hawaiʻi (called Ke Kiaʻaina), and the opening sessions of the Hawai‘i State House of Representatives and Hawaiʻi State Senate. Traditionally, the last chorus is sung with hands raised above heads; the act of raising hands is especially important to advocates of the Hawaiian sovereignty movement.
Listen to an excerpt: (The Rose Ensemble) http://www.roseensemble.org/recordings/hawaii.html