It was just another talk-story session, idle conversation among old friends.

But these friends happened to be some of hula's most respected living masters. And the subject was how Hawai'i's unique art of story and dance has spread around the world, and how many of the dancers and even some teachers from outside the Islands have never been to Hawai'i, the piko of hula, the center from which it was born.

It could have stopped there, with a shake of the head, a grumble, a dismissive wave of the hand.

Instead, that conversation — and the will and energy of na kumu hula Pua Kanaka'ole Kanahele of Hilo, Leina'ala Heine Kalama of O'ahu and Hokulani Holt-Padilla of Maui — was the piko from which grew Ka 'Aha Hula 'O Halauaola, the World Conference on Hula.

"The three of us felt you cannot just moan and groan, because then where does the improvement come from, how does the learning happen? We are all teachers, and so our instinct was to ask how can we help it get better," said Holt-Padilla.

The first conference, in Hilo in 2001, drew 900 people, many from as far away as Asia and Europe. Now held every four years, the second conference gets under way Sunday, with pre-conference workshops beginning Thursday, and is expected to draw more than 1,000 people.

"What's sort of amazing is you couldn't find three busier people," said Holt-Padilla. "However, this was important to us. Our concern was, if hula is an expression of poetry, you must understand the poetry to express hula appropriately."

The title of the conference, selected by Kanahele, comes from a traditional chant that speaks of halauaola — the house of life. ("Halau" is often translated as school, but it refers to the longhouse in which hula troupes met.)

"The chant talks about the place that you go for health and for life. ... Pua chose that because it's how we feel about hula," Holt-Padilla explained.

One who is looking forward to the conference with a shiver of anticipation is Karl Veto Baker, kumu hula with Michael Lanakila Casupang, of Honolulu's award-winning Halau I Ka Wekiu. Baker and Casupang taught a workshop at the first Halauaola event. But this time, they're taking four students and participating in the opening ceremony and other events, as well as teaching a course in modern compositions in hula kahiko.

The thought of that opening ceremony is what particularly has chicken skin rising on many dancers. For a year and a half, Holt-Padilla and other conference planners have been island-hopping to teach the oli (chant) and hula that will performed en masse by conference participants on Sunday at the Maui Arts and Cultural Center. No one will be allowed into the ceremony who is not prepared to perform the chants and the dance, except for invited kupuna (elders).

"I think it's going to be amazing," said Baker. Even though the halau can send only a few students, Baker is teaching the entire troupe the Halauaola dance, so that everyone can share in some small way in the conference learning experience.

The dance employs choreographic moves that are foreign to the Wekiu way, but that's been good, Baker said. "We are learning a different style and as you teach them, you can see them having a challenge because it's not the way we would normally do it. But when they put it all together, it's beautiful to see."

One day, he was so excited, he had to write Holt-Padilla to tell her: "It's one thing to see your students do well, but then to see them doing something new to them, and they do it well, it's sweet."

It's also sweet for Baker, whose family genealogy goes back to King Kekaulike on the Valley Isle, to be learning "Maui stuff."

"In protocol, you have a mele kahea, which is a call for permission to come in. We have our own mele kahea that we have taught our students, but now we are learning a mele kahea for Maui and it's very interesting and satisfying," said Baker. "Different hula schools have different genealogies and styles. Many years ago, when you looked at a particular halau, you could really tell where they came from. Many halau today have lost their identity, so it's good for us to learn and see the differences."

This relates to one important goal of the event: to provide the opportunity for people to learn from teachers in Hawai'i who have had knowledge passed down to them from many different lines and traditions. And this includes knowledge not just of dance or language or poetry or chant, but also of the various allied crafts.

"As hula practitioners, we understand that hula touches on every aspect of Hawaiian life, so ... there will be classes about plants, about lomilomi (massage), about history, about places — a bunch of different things, because they are all connected to hula," said Holt-Padilla.

Holt-Padilla said she believes the first conference created an awareness, "the beginning of understanding that there are things that are important, things you need to be aware of, things you need to connect to."

There are the friendships formed and interactions created. "The conference provides a space in which to get to know people you have only seen in competition or in a magazine, people knowledgeable in their fields," she said. "Seeing everyone anxious to learn and engaged in learning — for me as a teacher, that fills my little cup."

And there is the opportunity to immerse yourself in hula and Hawaiian culture. "As a hula practitioner, sometimes you say 'I wish I could just do hula all day,' " Holt-Padilla said. "Well, this one week, you can."