Leilehua Lanzilotti

Moananuiākea — string quartet (2026)

This project was awarded a 2025 AWAW Environmental Art Grant with support from Anonymous Was a Woman in partnership with The New York Foundation for the Arts. The musical work was completed while in residence at Copland House, Cortlandt Manor, New York, as a recipient of the Copland House Residency Award. The project’s musical premiere was supported, in part, by a Foundation for Contemporary Arts Emergency Grant, duration 16’

Moananuiākea is a new work for string quartet celebrating the 50th Anniversary of the Hōkūleʻa’s first voyage to Tahiti. Performances of the work have been paired with community activities and educational resources around the subject of Polynesian Voyaging. In addition, public engagement in Hawaiʻi, California, Pennsylvania, and New York provide opportunities for audience members to strengthen eco-social engagement through participation in volunteer activities related to caring for the ocean and canoe plants, as an extension of the mission of Hōkūleʻa to care for the earth and oceans—the inspiration for Lanzilotti’s artistic work.

Polynesian Voyaging Society

The Polynesian Voyaging Society (PVS) was founded in 1973 on a legacy of Pacific Ocean exploration, seeking to perpetuate the art and science of traditional Polynesian voyaging and the spirit of exploration through experiential educational programs that inspire students and their communities to respect and care for themselves, one another, and their natural and cultural environments.

On May 1, 2026 PVS celebrated the 50th anniversary of voyaging canoe Hōkūleʻa’s maiden voyage to Tahiti. This historical voyage was the first time in more than 600 years that a Polynesian voyaging canoe sailed from Hawaiʻi to Tahiti using traditional non-instrument navigation, the ancestral art of wayfinding that had been lost in Hawaiʻi for hundreds of years. Hōkūleʻa’s 1976 arrival to Tahiti brought great pride to Native Hawaiians and sparked a voyaging revival in Hawaiʻi and the Pacific.

The 50th Anniversary of Hōkūleʻa’s first voyage to Tahiti is a milestone celebration to honor voyaging visionaries and the rebirth of voyaging. In this time, PVS has conducted numerous voyages to connect with communities in Hawaiʻi, the Pacific and around the world and to share the story of Hōkūleʻa in hopes that it will inspire others to protect their culture, people, place and nature.

“We use voyaging to inspire other Indigenous communities about reclaiming their culture and how that’s connected to caring for the Earth and oceans.”

“PVS looks forward to collaborating with people such as Leilehua to help amplify the story and mission of Hōkūleʻa through various mediums including music, poetry, storytelling and education.”

— Sonja Swenson Rogers, Director of Communications, Polynesian Voyaging Society

Upcoming Concerts

Monday, July 20, 2026 — Del Sol Quartet gives the East Coast Premiere of Moananuiākea at Elizabeth S. Lenna Hall, Chautauqua Institution, NY

Tuesday, July 21, 2026 — Del Sol Quartet gives a lecture concert with a performance of Moananuiākea at Chautauqua Institution, NY

Past Concerts

Saturday, July 11, 2026 — Del Sol Quartet gives the World Premiere of Moananuiākea at Angel Island Immigration Station Detention Barracks Museum (The event is free with admission to the Detention Barracks Museum). In partnership with Polynesian Voyaging Society, there will be community activities with Captain Mark Ellis, Director of Education, and Dr. Miki Tomita Okamoto of Wayfinder, Bel Tiburon, CA

Past Community Events

Sunday, July 5, 2026 — Meet Del Sol cellist Kathryn and violist Charlton at Ocean Beach in SF. It will be the day after July 4th when beach cleanup is essential. Local beaches are stewarded by volunteers just like you! Your contribution helps raise awareness about plastic pollution and the toxic lifecycle of plastic. Sign up through this link. San Francisco, CA

Saturday, June 20, 2026 — Meet Del Sol violinists Hyeyung and Ben at Shorebird Park Nature Center in Berkeley. Receive a service-learning presentation and safety talk on the impact of trash and plastics in our oceans and waterways, and how we can help. Supplies will be handed out along with a map of cleaning locations. Clean for as long as you want and bring the trash back to the Nature Center before you leave. Organized by City of Berkeley. Register through this link. Berkeley, CA

Sunday, June 14, 2026 — In partnership with Pulse Oceania, join us for free activities to learn more about wayfinding at ʻIolani Palace’s Kamaʻāina Sunday celebrating the 50th Anniversary of Hōkūleʻa’s first voyage. The day will include entertainment, hula, and presentations that honor this significant anniversary.

Monday, June 8, 2026 — The Lower Manhattan Cultural Council, the New York Climate Exchange, and the Climate Museum present a free concert including the string quartets ahupuaʻa and the water in your body is just visiting by Leilehua Lanzilotti performed by musicians from the Metropolitan Opera and AMOC* (American Modern Opera Company) in honor of World Oceans Day at the Arts Center at Governors Island. The event will examine our relationship with the natural world, celebrate our interconnectedness with the sea, and offer attendees ways to take civic and collective action toward protecting our oceans. World Oceans Day: A Musical Celebration, The Arts Center at Governors Island, New York, NY

Saturday, May 23, 2026 — In partnership with Ocean Music Action, join us for a volunteer workday at Paepae o Heʻeia, followed by lunch and a short musical performance, in celebration of the 50th anniversary of the Hōkūleʻa’s journey to Tahiti in 1976; Kāneʻohe, HI

Saturday, May 16, 2026 — Meet Del Sol violinists Hyeyung and Ben at Shorebird Park Nature Center in Berkeley. Receive a service-learning presentation and safety talk on the impact of trash and plastics in our oceans and waterways, and how we can help. Supplies will be handed out along with a map of cleaning locations. Clean for as long as you want and bring the trash back to the Nature Center before you leave. Organized by City of Berkeley. Berkeley, CA

Saturday, May 9, 2026 — Join us for a Community Aloha ʻĀina Day at Hoʻokuaʻāina to learn more about canoe plants and support greater community resilience and food sovereignty, Kailua, HI

Saturday, April 18, 2026 — We Are the Seeds invites members of the community to plant the first seeds of their Indigenous Listening Garden, which “celebrates Indigenous ecological knowledge, community-driven storytelling, and multimedia artwork. The Garden is a place for community to connect to the land and each other.” Seeds sourced from Ernst Seeds, Experimental Farm Network, Hayefield, Hudson Valley Seed Company, Prairie Moon Nursery, Seed Savers Exchange, and Truelove Seeds, donated by Leilehua Lanzilotti in partnership with the public, land-care engagements of the Moananuiākea project. Mantua, West Philadelphia, PA