Aloha 'Oe, The Song at Pier 10
Aloha ‘Oe, The Song at Pier 10 is a tale of love between Hawaiian Queen Lili‘uokalani and the Prussian Kappellmeister (Bandmaster) Heinrich Berger, the first Bandmaster of the Royal Hawaiian Band.
Berger, 28, arrived in Hawai‘i in 1872 to take King Kamehameha V’s discordant marching band to the next level. He met a native lady, Lili‘u Kapa’akea Dominis. They developed a relationship more than close. Berger quickly took the King’s band to the next level, all the while composing and arranging hundreds of Hawaiian songs and saving over a thousand local tunes for posterity.
Lili‘u was named Princess Lili‘uokalani by the new King Kalakaua, her brother, who later appointed her Heir Apparent. After King Kalakaua’s premature death in 1891, Lili‘uokalani ascended to the Throne. Berger’s bond with Queen Lili‘uokalani tightened as he helplessly watched, with dismay, her rapid decline and fall two years later, ending Hawai‘i’s treasured monarchial times.
Through this distressful time, Berger remained closest to Lili‘uokalani’s troubled, lonely heart. How close were they? They keep us guessing.
John Tanaka, a native of Hawai‘i, lives on the Big Island with his wife, Amy. He attended Honolulu public schools, the University of Hawai‘i, and served as a Counter Intelligence Agent in the U.S. Army during World War II.
Post war, after he received his Master of International Affairs Degree from Columbia University, New York, he headed to Korea as a UN War Correspondent. Later, as a founder of international businesses, he has been chasing fanciful goals, missing some.
As one of his goals, he wrote Yesterday’s Rainbow, a novel of four lovers set against the backdrop of Hawaiian history, and then this novel, Aloha ‘Oe, The Song at Pier 10.
In the heydays of steamships before air travels, the author used to hear the Royal Hawaiian Band play “Aloha ‘Oe” at Pier 10. Tanaka says, “I’ll continue to savor memories of yesterday’s Hawai‘i until the Almighty says, ‘Hey, it’s time.’”
• 220 pages
• 4-1/8" x 6 7/8"
• Soft Cover"
• Suggested Retail: $7.95
Available at www.welcometotheislands.com, various online retailers or from your local book store.
