Lyn ‘Unihipiliowailelepualu Moreno Hilliard (who is usually known as “Pili Moreno” in the world of Hawaiian music) received his first ‘ukulele at the age of five, started playing guitar when he was thirteen, and has had his head and heart full of music ever since.

Pili is skilled in Hawaiian slack key guitar and vocals, and has performed solo, with Hawaiian bands, and with a number of award-winning hula troupes at concerts, hula competitions, festivals, and Hawaiian gatherings of all sorts on the West Coast and in Hawai‘i. He has worked with hālau hula such as The Ladies of Moani Ke ‘Ala O Ka Mailelauli‘i and The Men of Ka Iho Makawalu A Ka Ua Kipu‘upu‘u (Kumu Hula Clark Kahekemālamalamaika‘āina Bolivar, Jr.), Hālau Hula Nā Pua O Ka La‘akea (Kumu Hula Shawna Kealameleku‘uleialoha Alapa‘i), Ka Ua Tuahine Polynesian Dance Company (Kumu Hula Māhealani Uchiyama), Hula O Kahawai (Artistic Director Barbara Chung), and, currently, with Hālau Hula Nā Pua O Hawai‘i Nei (Kumu Hula Pekelo Day). Pili has also performed with Nā Hōkū Hanohano award-winning vocalist Uluwehi Guerrero. He is cultural advisor to Nā Leo Nahenahe, the Hawaiian chorus of San Francisco.

Pili is working on his first solo CD, due out later this year! If you would like to be notified when it is released, contact us and you will be added to the email list.

“Traditional Hawaiian music expresses a love for the land, for beauty, for family and companions, for Spirit, that is deeply soulful and healing. Whether I’m singing and playing guitar for a flock of hula dancers at a festival, or softly chanting an ancient prayer as part of a healing, the aloha is always at the heart of the experience.”

Visit Pili's Hawaiian Cultural Resources page for reviews of great traditional Hawaiian music, as well as books and films on Hawaiian culture, online resources, and more.