Waiata Magazine, Issue 1, May, 2011.

ISSUE 1 JUNE 2011

Sir Kingi Ihaka Honouring our industry icons

Behind

The Scenes 2011 Waiata Maori Awards

Singing

Maori

Taisha TARI & Maisey RIKA

Their Way To

Experts offer words of wisdom

S S E C SUC ALSO IN THIS ISSUE

Reggae Wave Is this the year of 1814? www.waiatamaoriawards.co.nz

World’s stage

Moana Maniapoto issues A challenge

Music Expo THREADS

Te Koanga Fashion Show

eature: Special F

Takitsimu tival Fe

2011 JUNE 2011

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Whänau Ora For more information contact Te Puni Kökiri Tel: 04 819 6024 Email: whanauora@tpk.govt.nz Website: www.tpk.govt.nz

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www.waiatamaoriawards.co.nz

Issue 1, PIPIRI 2011.

Rarangi Upoko Contents Editor: Tama Huata tama.kahurangi@xtra.co.nz

2 Nga Mihi

Message from the executive director, Tama Huata.

Advertising manager: Kylie Stafford kylie@primal.org.nz Editorial: Lawrence Gullery For feedback, email: lgullery@ihug.co.nz Production: Mark Story Design: Lawrence Gullery Daniel Stuut Photography: Steven McNicoll Lawrence Gullery Printing: Format Print Publisher: Takitimu Trust, 706 Albert St, Hastings, Hawke’s Bay, New Zealand. PO Box 1368, Hastings, New Zealand.

Circulation: Waiata is published biannually, 5000 copies printed each edition.

Available direct by subscription and free through selected sites.

For details, email: kylie@primal.org.nz or phone +64 6 873 0041 All contents and design remain property of the Takitimu Trust.

All rights reserved.

Official websites: www.waiatamaoriawards.co.nz www.takitimufestival.co.nz Media resource website: http://web.me.com/lawrence_ gullery/mediacentre/Haere_Mai. html

www.waiatamaoriawards.co.nz

3 What’s on

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TAISHA tari & MAISEY rika

Two leaders in Maori music share their views on making it in the industry.

This year’s Waiata Maori Awards.

4 Our icons

The winners of this year’s Nominated Awards revealed.

10 Lights, camera, action

Working behind the scenes at the 2011 awards.

11 Maori Music Expo

Experts in the music industry share their experiences.

16 Profiles

Northland reggae band 1814 and Moana Maniapoto.

20 Pacific Reunion

Preparations for the second international Takitimu Festival.

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Welcome to remember Training begins for the Taktimu Festival powhiri.

24 Let’s talk business

Introducing the Takitimu Indigenous Peoples Business Conference.

26 Te Maori Exhibition Mean threads 27

The 25th reunion of the Takitimu Te Maori Exhibition contingent.

Two fashion shows highlight the best of Maori & Pacific designers.

28 Te Waka Takitimu

An account of the waka and its journey to Aotearoa.

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NGA MIHI Dedication

Ka tohia atu koe ki te tohi nuku, ki te tohi rangi Kia hoaia koe ki te putiki whara Kia tiaia koe ki te manu rere rangi Te rau o titapa kia pai ai koe Te haere i runga ra I rangahaua koe i te po uriuri I te po tangotango I rakaitia koe ki te piki kotuku Te rau o te toroa, te huia titama Whakina e tama nga kupu o te riri Nga kupu o tawhiti hemea ka mau mai Ka kapiti runga e, ka kapiti raro e He pokanga nuku, he pokanga rangi Pou hihiko, pou rarama Tiaho i roto, marama i roto Tena te pou, te Poutokomanawa Te pou o enei korero Hui te marama, hui te ora e e Thou wilt be anointed by the blessing of earth and heavens Thou wilt be decorated with topknot And be dressed as the flying bird The leaf of titapa to enable thee To march forward above Thou wast acclaimed from the depth of darkness And in the changeable nights.

Thou hast been beautified with kotuku’s feather And the feathers of toroa and huia Display my son the action of war And those far reaching words you have learned.

Heaven will be closed and earth be united And will be at thy command Be ambitious and clear-minded Be shining within three and brightness upon Those the pillar, the main post of wisdom The post of protector of these saying Assembled brightness and settled life.

Maori music’s YEAR TO SHINE It is with great pleasure we present the first issue of the Waiata Maori Magazine, New Zealand’s only publication dedicated to Maori music, culture and performers.

E

very year we watch our people fly in the music industry inspired by our rich history, culture, passion and musical ability yet we are whakama when it comes to celebrating their successes.

And so this year we launch a new magazine to celebrate the 4th annual Waiata Maori Awards at the Hawke’s Bay Opera House in Hastings, New Zealand. The event encourages our musicians to reach for the stars and now, through this exciting new magazine, we are able to showcase what true superstars our Maori performers are.

Waiata Maori Magazine will tell the stories of their journey, inspirations and aspirations. It will celebrate past performers and their achievements and we hope it will encourage fledgling musicians to follow their dreams to become the iconic performers of the future in this exclusive boutique industry.

The magazine is a biannual publication aiming to capture the momentum created from the annual Waiata Maori Awards. In the issues to follow, it will focus on the major issues facing the music industry and will track the progress of our most famous and promising exports working and performing in Australia, the Pacific and Europe.

In this, the first issue, Waiata Maori Ambassador Taisha Tari and five-time Waiata Maori Award winner Maisey Rika speak about the responsibility of being role models for others to follow in the Maori music industry.

We reveal four of our five Nominated Awards for this year’s Waiata Maori Awards and we talk to Patu Colbert from Northland reggae band 1814 and singer Moana Maniapoto.

Also in September, Ngati Kahungunu will, in Hawke’s Bay, host the second international Takitimu Festival, which aims to unite Pacific Nations to celebrate their unique music and culture.

This major event is also previewed in our magazine including information on what is New Zealand’s first Takitimu Indigenous Peoples Business Conference.

The festival will also include the 25th reunion for the famous Te Maori Exhibition which toured the US in the mid-1980s.

And with the Waiata Maori Awards and the Takitimu Festival just a week apart, we are holding a fashion show at each event, under the banner, “Te Koanga”, signalling the new spring season.

Both events will be held at the fabulous Hawke’s Bay Opera House in Hastings, as part of the REAL New Zealand Festival during the Rugby World Cup 2011, when the world’s attention will turn to New Zealand heralding an opportunity to showcase Maori arts and culture to thousands of international visitors.

Finally I would like to thank sponsors who have thrown their weight behind this magazine and for the ongoing support from people, businesses and corporate entities who continue to ensure the Waiata Maori Awards and the Takitimu Festival are a success.

We welcome your feedback and ideas for our October edition.

Enjoy.

Tama Huata Executiver Director, Waiata Maori Awards and Takitimu Festival.

The 2011 National Waiata Maori Awards and the international Takitimu Festival are being held in Hawke’s Bay as part of the REAL New Zealand Festival celebrating all things New Zealand during Rugby World Cup 2011.

WAIATA MAORI AWARDS

VENUE:

SEPTEMBER 7-8, 2011

HAWKE’S BAY OPERA HOUSE, HASTINGS, NEW ZEALAND.

www.waiatamaoriawards.co.nz

www.hawkesbayoperahouse. co.nz

TAKITIMU FESTIVAL SEPTEMBER 14-18, 2011 www.takitimufestival.co.nz

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www.nz2011.govt.nz www.havingaball.co.nz www.waiatamaoriawards.co.nz

_ HOTAKA

Waiata Maori Awards Programme

Kapa haka.

It’s show time... at the Hawke’s Bay Opera House in Hastings The 2011 National Waiata Maori Awards event opens with the Maori Music Expo which will run over two consecutive days from September 7 to 8, 2011, beginning at 9am and concluding at 3pm each day. There will be a mixture of workshops around traditional and contemporary Maori music, kapa haka and performance. Some of the big names in the music industry will be on hand to share their experience and offer advice. It will include co-founder of the Maori Volcanics, Mahora Peters, who is now based in Queensland, and international entertainer Frankie Stevens. Well-known kapa haka leader John Tapene will also present on his experience in traditional Maori music.

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The collections of the country’s top Maori designers will appear on the catwalk of this year’s Te Koanga Fashion Show, which will celebrate hauhake, the new spring and harvest season, on the evening of September 7. The evening show will be a unique fusion of music and fashion.

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Panel workshops.

Fashion.

Haka Heroes.

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Breakfast with the stars, celebrity speakers will share their experiences in the music industry on the morning of September 8 at the Waiata Maori Music Breakfast. Last year’s speakers included the cofounder of the Maori Volcanics showband Nuki Waaka and Waiata Maori Ambassador, Taisha Tari.

The four-time winner from 2010, Maisey Rika will return to the 2011 awards with the Waiata Maori Ambassador Taisha. The awards evening will be full of many more music stars with Polyfonk pioneers Ardijah and entertainer Frankie Stevens attending to accept Music Industry Awards.

Young Sid.

Moana Maniapoto.

Anika Moa.

This year’s programme subject to changes:

Masiey Rika.

www.centralhealth.co.nz www.waiatamaoriawards.co.nz

Nuki Waaka.

MCs William Winitana and Te Hamua Nikora will host the 2011 Waiata Maori Awards night on the evening of September 8. Walk the red carpet with the stars, among those to perform include 2009 Maori Music Industry Award winner Moana Maniapoto, 2010 Maori Music award winners Young Sid and 1814, and making her debut at the Waiata Maori Awards, Anika Moa. This page sponsored by Central Health.

Betty-Anne from Ardijah.

Taisa Tari.

TRACK 1: Maori Music Expo, 9am to 3pm on Wednesday, September 7 and Thursday, September 8.

TRACK 2: Te Koanga Fashion Show, on the evening of Wednesday, September 7.

TRACK 3: Breakfast with the stars, the Waiata Maori Awards Celebrity Breakfast, at 7am on Thursday, September 8.

TRACK 4: Waiata Maori Awards night, from 6pm on Thursday, September 8 Tickets on sale soon: www.ticketdirect.co.nz

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NOMINATED AWARDS 2011

TOHU - TE PUNA O TE KI O NEHE

Iconic Maori Music Composers Award - Historical INTRODUCTION The Nominated Awards recognise those who have made a significant contribution to the industry. These categories are not judged but are awarded to highlight the work of past and present performers, singers and song writers working in the Maori music sector. The recipients are revealed over the next five pages.

ICONIC MAORI COMPOSERS AWARD (HISTORICAL): This is an individual that has composed

a body of work in Te Reo Maori, from traditional & historical teachings in contemporary or traditional styles that has impacted on the development of Maori Music. This award is selected by He Kura Te Tangata, the organisation responsible for the preservation of traditional Maori performing arts. This year it is awarded to Sir Kingi Ihaka.

One more nomination will be notified by the end of June.

MUSIC INDUSTRY AWARD: An individual, Maori or non-Maori, who is or has been active in the New Zealand music industry (production, promotion, operations, management) who has, through their dedication to Maori music, make a positive impact on Maori music. This year award to Ardijah and Frankie Stevens.

LIFE TIME CONTRIBUTION TO MAORI MUSIC AWARD: This is an individual who has

dedicated a large part of their life and career to the promotion and development of Maori music in contemporary or traditional styles. This year awarded to Mahora Peters, co-founder of the Maori Volcanics.

nzmusic.org.nz Your online guide to everything you need to know about the New Zealand music industry.

Check out videos, PDFs, guides, stats and more.

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The legacy of Sir Kingi Kapa haka leader John Tapene speaks about his initial work with Sir Kingi Ihaka, who is the winner of the Iconic Maori Composer Award 2011.

T

he work of a man revered for the way he wrote and performed songs and for his charisma as an orator, lives on today through the people he taught 50 years ago.

Sir Kingi Ihaka arrived in Auckland in 1967 to take up the role as Anglican Minister for Maori living in Auckland.

He arrived with an impressive reputation from his previous work with Putiki Maori Club, Wellington Anglican Maori Club and Wellington Anglican Maori Diocese.

Scores of people responded to his call to start an Auckland Anglican Maori Club and among them was John Tapene, John’s mother, two sisters and three brothers. “… including Dr Pita Sharples and his then wife Te Aroha Sharples as this was prior to them establishing Te Roopu Manutaki,” John remembers.

There were also other groups in existence at the time, Maranga e Anga ki Te Atua under the tutelage of Anne Tia; Rangimarie under the guidance of Manu Adams; Ara Whanaunga under Albie Pirini et al and Te Kauri Mormon Choir under Kelly Harris, to name a few. “… many of the members from those kapa haka would attend weekly practices with Kingi,” John says.

“Forty-four years on and we and others throughout the country will still answer the call whenever the Auckland Anglican Maori Club is called upon and our children and grandchildren are of the same ilk,” he says.

John says Sir Kingi was exciting to work with and was keen to see Maori from Auckland figure nationally in all forms of tikanga Maori.

“He acknowledged that with the

move to urban life by Maori there was loss of identity. Reaffirming that identity, I think, was a driving force.”

He remembers that Sir Kingi was “driven to the end”. He used the Anglican Club to lift the status of Maori with events such as the filming of Taku Toa at Hunua Falls, the first regular Maori programming with Pupuri Ra a series of weekly performances by the Anglican Club on national television.

Sir Kingi connected with the community. He joined the Lions and befriended entrepreneur Cliff Trillo who became patron of the Auckland Anglican Maori Club.

Others in his network included the Bishop of Auckland who became a mentor and friend.

Sir Kingi demanded high standards from those around him and if people failed at a task “well within your means” they were “openly admonished”.

“It could be ‘the look’, public humiliation in the form of rhetoric on the marae or absolute and total non-recognition. The signals were well known by those who chose to work with and for Kingi. It was an acknowledgement that you, singularly or as a group, had let your people down.”

“As a spokesperson he was untouchable and the words would flow from his lips as though prepared years in advance.”

John, who is now principal at Northland College in Kaikohe, says his work with the club and Sir Kingi opened up many opportunities to sit among leaders of the day involved in planning for the future of Maori. www.waiatamaoriawards.co.nz

It included attending the first national hui for kapa haka held at Waiwhetu representing Auckland roopu, being named the first secretary for Te Whanau a Tamaki Makaurau, a committee set up at a meeting held in 1975 at Kingi’s home in Kohimarama for adult kapa haka resident in Auckland. “… and I retained an executive position on that committee until 2000 even though I had been living in Taumarunui since 1995.”

“I learnt a lot of people skills, how to work with and manage others.

I learnt about developing music to suit my style of composition and how to believe in people.

“I also learnt how to delegate and accept mistakes from others, something Kingi may not have been the best at!”

John says he and others look back on their time with Sir Kingi with “much reverence”.

“I talk collectively because we were and still are known affectionately as The Angies and that name will never be lost because of the charisma attached to the name.”

Sir Kingi introduced those who worked with him to dignitaries from around the world, the royal family, Heads of State, diplomatic corps, native leaders and church leaders.

“As the leader in the college I now work at, I often reflect on work that I did with Kingi.

“But I was also privy to the counsel of many other great people and that is why his song Taku Toa is so relevant to me because I do acknowledge all of those who have fed me in my upbringing, my own tupuna and all those many teachers like Kingi and those he introduced me to. I know that this is also true of members of the Angies.”

Sir Kingi had perfect pitch and could hit a middle C, a G#, or an Eb. He had a tenor voice but his vocal range was easily 3½ octaves, even close to 4 octaves at the prime of his life, John says.

“Kingi used pepeha, whakatauki, whakatauaki and quotations from the scriptures in his waiata and I think that this is what possibly stood him and those other great www.waiatamaoriawards.co.nz

Sir Kingi Ihaka.

PAST WINNERS ICONIC MAORI MUSIC COMPOSERS AWARD HISTORICAL 2010: The Late Tuini Ngawai.

2009: The Late Sir Apirana Turupa Ngata.

2008: Princess Te Puea Herangi composers and writers apart.

“Many of his words would come to him at night so he would always have pen and paper by his bed so he would wake up and write his words and sometimes the tune,” John says.

Many groups try to emulate the Angies today and while John acknowledges their work, he believes the melody and harmonies

are lost in favour of a focus on performance.

“I do not blame those tutors; I blame myself and others from the Angies for not getting out there and ensuring that ‘purity of sound’ has not been maintained.”

John says Sir Kingi always acknowledged tupuna in all he did, he would turn to his God and the “old people who provided him with

the opportunity to put into practice their teachings”.

“As a spokesperson he was untouchable and the words would flow from his lips as though prepared years in advance.”

Sir Kingi would apply the same approach to receiving the Waiata Maori Awards this year, John believes.

“In receiving an award of this kind he would ensure that everyone knew that he was merely a servant of the people and that the award was in recognition of the old people giving him the skills and the ability to do things that we are all destined to do and that it was through his belief and faith in his God that he was able to fulfil the task at hand.”

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NOMINATED AWARDS 2011

_ TOHU - AHUMAHI PUORU Maori Music Industry Awards

‘Captain Fonk’

& the polyfonk revolution Ryan and Betty-Anne Monga are the “main stays” of Ardijah and the band’s work over 30 years is recognised with the one of two Maori Music Industry Awards for 2011.

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laying live and performing in towns “off the main roads” has offered a period of rediscovery for Ryan Monga and Ardijah.

The group, which started as a covers band in the late 1970s, has been through several changes but still retains the “polyfonk” sound it pioneered over 30 years ago.

The common denominators of the band are Ryan and lead vocalist Betty-Anne Monga. Earlier this year the now five-member band embarked on a tour of the North Island where it enjoyed performing live to a new generation of fans.

“The vibe we’re getting from people out there now hasn’t changed from 30 years ago, in fact I think it’s getting more intense,” Ryan says.

“There’s a lot of people that use to listen to us in the ‘80s, their children grew up on our music and now we’ve got their grand kids listening to us, we’ve got all ages listening.”

The North Island tour booked out venues at Waitara, Fielding, Wanganui, Turangi to Russell in the north, Porirua and Wellington and then back up to Napier.

“Each one is special, especially the ones off the main roads. Little towns like Waitara, they were just blown away we had considered playing there. And Turangi, when we got there it was like we had

Ardijah’s current line up:

come over from the States.

“This is something Betty-Anne and I had discussed, it’s about taking our music to small towns because sometimes the cities are spoilt for choice.”

Ryan was in his late 20s when he earned the title “Captain Fonk” after producing a demo tape for WEA New Zealand.

“And the head guy there listened to my demo and said, ‘oh no, not more funk, you’re like, Captain Fonk’. I took that as a compliment but what he was trying to say was, ‘is that all you can do?’.”

Ryan soldiered on as Captain Fonk, keeping the unique South Auckland style of funk when the band switched from being a popular covers group to writing and music in the mid 1980s.

Ryan Monga What’s one of the favourite songs you’ve written and why? One song I have written is called Journey, it’s about rediscovering my genealogy and following the journey of my tupuna. My father was Rarotonga and my mother was Tahitian but what I didn’t know was that my great-grandfather came over from Rarotonga and settled in the Kaipara. My grandfather was born there and his family returned to Rarotonga where my father was born. My father came back to New Zealand to live. Learning about that was a feeling of journey.

Past winners of Music Industry Awards: 2010: Nuki Waaka, New Zealand Maori Volcanics.

2009: Patea Maori Club (traditional) and Herbs (contemporary).

2008: Moana Maniapoto and Rim D Paul.

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Ardijah today, from left: Rico Tali, Ryan and BettyAnne Monga, Phil Crown & Kaitapu Monga.

“I grew up with a lot of Tahitian, Cook Island and Rarotongan music, with ukulele and log drums and in my teenage years I listened to a lot of music like Stevie Wonder, Earth Wind and Fire and the Commodores.

“I didn’t want to copy them and didn’t want to do traditional Pacific music. I also didn’t want to be just another funk band. I found a way to fuse them together with the songs I wrote and that’s what created that polyfonk sound.”

But the music industry struggled to “package” the band.

“They’d ask us what genre is this, it’s not hip-hop and it’s not rock.

There was no market for it at the time. I remember they put Betty in a ball gown for one of our videos and I wasn’t happy with the imagery or how the record company portrayed us.

“They wanted us to play rock and stuff but as you can see we stuck to our guns and developed our style of polyfonk.”

Ryan and Betty-Anne also developed their own production company, Poly Fonk, which allows them control over the development of their music and the way it is promoted.

“What I learnt about the music industry is that you’re just another number and when you’re number is up you’re put on the shelf until you come with a new product,” Ryan says.

“So we had to learn about the business side of music and that’s what led us to form Poly Funk Productions, so we could benefit from our art .”

Ardijah’s current line up includes Ryan’s son on bass, a “couple of relatives” on guitar and keyboards.

“I’ve moved over to drums, I was the original bass player, and BettyAnne is on vocals, percussion and plays the ukulele.”

The band feels it is “a compliment” other groups have taken on the poly funk genre and continue to make it their own or develop it further.

The original Ardijah line up during the 1980s.

“You’ve got groups like Jamoa Jam and Nesian Mystics that have picked it up (poly funk style) and I think that’s a compliment to us and to our neighbourhood in South Auckland because all I was trying to do in the first place was open the gates for our people there.” www.waiatamaoriawards.co.nz

Hi Five to his golden career

The teenager from Upper Hutt who became a singing sensation in the 1960s went on to perform around the world, and his colourful career has earned a Music Industry Award for 2011.

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rankie Stevens says he owes much of his success in entertainment to the professionalism he learnt while working in the Maori showband industry 30 years ago.

A household name in New Zealand music, Frankie began his career when he was 13 singing with a band in Upper Hutt. He left New Zealand at 16 to join Peter Nelson and the Castaways in Sydney. A stellar career developed taking him further afield and it was in 1971 while performing in Las Vegas he was asked to join the famous Maori Hi Fives showband.

“I was good at what I was doing at the time but at a young 21 year old I needed some serious performance experience and the best way to do that was to join a Maori showband.

“Nobody came close to them really and groups like the Maori Hi Fives were unique in terms of the skills they had and how they presented and related to a live audience,” Frankie says.

He joined the Hi Fives and was to replace East Coast performer Soloman Pohatu, who still performs with Showband Aotearoa.

“So I joined them in the Bahamas and was originally signed on for six months. I watched Solly and thought he was one of the strongest performers on stage I had ever seen.

“Vocally he was strong but as a performer and a comedian he was exceptional. I managed to

www.waiatamaoriawards.co.nz

watch him and learn about timing, about music, there was a lot of instrument swapping as well as a bit of kapa haka.”

Six months turned into a year-long term project for Frankie as the band left the Bahamas to take up a residency in Puerto Rico. And with the move can a name change to Mary and the Maoris, as most of the original Hi Fives had left.

“The band disbanded a year later but it was probably the most informative year of a young performer’s life, the learning curve was fantastic, from the point of view of how you conduct yourself on stage and off stage.

“In sport they talk about an All Black being a good player on the field and a good person off the field, well that is nothing new because it was the edict of the day for the Hi Fives and bands of that type.”

In the 1980s Frankie, after living in Hawaii, Britain and performing throughout the States and Europe, came home to New Zealand.

Geoff Turner, a man he knew “from years gone by” came up with the idea of Chips Night Club which used casino chips as the internal currency.

“It was a brand new club and I liked the idea. Geoff put up all the bucks and I was in charge of delivering the entertainment. A few years later I bought him out and had the club for 10 years.”

The club on Willis St was successful.

It offered Frankie’s family a base to settle after years of travelling, and a chance for his children to get to know their whanau.

FROM TOP LEFT: Frankie Stevens with his dancers from his show in Hawaii; Frank’s No.1 record in New Zealand received a Gold Record for the equivalent of one million sales; with American television presenter Merv Griffin, from the The Merv Griffon talkback show and performing at Christmas in the Park in Wellington.

Television New Zealand ran shows from the club called “Live From Chips” and Frank booked performers such as “a young” Billy T James, Tina Cross and Renee Geyer to name a few.

“I used to get a lot of bands from out of town and set them up as our resident band. The first one was a group from Rotorua, all Maori and the lead singer was Brannigan Kaa,” Frankie says.

The club closed in 1989 and marked the end of an era as venue which had opened the doors for young Kiwi performers.

“You had the pubs and coffee bars back in the 1960s where bands

Frankie Stevens He is the eldest son in a family of 10 from Upper Hutt.

His mother was Maori and his father Scottish. His mum performed in the Ngati Poneke kapa haka group.

As a solo artist he recorded My Elusive Dreams which became a major New Zealand hit.

In London, Frankie won talent show Opportunity Knocks six times.

He had his own show during a five-year term in Hawaii, where he also appeared on TV show, Hawaii Five O. He also appeared on TV at home on Xena and Lawless.

The highlight of his career was performing with Sir Howard Morrison in the mid-1990s.

could perform and then in the late 70s you had the rock pubs that were classic venues in New Zealand.

“They were places where you could go to hear a eight-piece band play live, nowadays you get a little bar with one muso playing sounding like 10, utilising computer skills.”

Frank agrees technology has its advantages and media such as Facebook, YouTube and Twitter can help Maori music reach international audiences easier than “back in the day”.

“Moana (Maniapoto) has been performing at cultural festivals around the world for many years and is well regarded overseas.

“From a recording perspective however, in terms of Maori (language waiata) none have really cracked it since John Rowles.

“There was Oceania, they did well internationally with te reo being sung, people might not have understood the lyrics but it was the music that got them and the structure of the music along with the kapa haka.”

Frankie’s next big gig is a performance at this year’s Waiata Maori Awards at the Hawke’s Bay Opera House in September.

“I’ve been told the awards is an exceptional night and I’m looking forward to hearing some really good Maori talent that I might not have heard before, I know it’s going to be a good night.”

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NOMINATED AWARDS 2011

_ _ TOHU - MauRiora o te aO PUORU MAORI Lifetime Contribution to Maori Music Award

whaia who lit the maori volcanics

What is a showband? That is the question Mahora Peters hopes people will discover after watching a film about her life with the Maori Volcanics. Her work as a singer and performer over 50 years will be recognised with the Lifetime Contribution to Maori Music Awards in 2011.

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omeone check to see if Jennifer Lopez is free because that’s who Mahora Peters wants to play her in a movie about her life during the Maori Showband era.

Mahora is one of the co-founders of the Maori Volcanics which travelled the world performing a unique blend of Maori culture, comedy and songs in the 1960s.

Although the group has had many changes over the years, it disbanded in the 1970s and soon after reformed, it still performs today around New Zealand and Australia. Mahora grew up in Whakapara, Northland where music played a big part in her life.

“But I was the only one in my family that had an interest in kapa haka and I made a point of learning everything I could.”

The current Maori Volcanics line up, back row: Selwun Rahiwi, Jessie Rawiri and Mahora Peters. Front: Renata Kahuroa, Billy Peters and Richard Tate.

Mahora Peters What is a showband? If you break it down, it is a band that puts on a show. But we don’t just play music, we do a production show, whether it be one hour or two, whatever is required.

We are well rehearsed and well dressed. We perform skits, comedy, impersonations, at

It included learning how to perform the “four-long poi” which was to become the trademark of her performance with the Maori Volcanics later on.

Mahora was 16 when she moved to Auckland where she gravitated to the Maori Community Centre meeting Trevor Rupe, better known as performer Carmen. She joined a kapa haka group which toured Pg 8

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J.Lo? No. It’s Mahora Peters modelling for Elam School of Fine Art in Auckland in the 1960s.

least 70 percent is comedy because that’s what people want.

Past winners of Lifetime contribution award: 2010: Tom and Vicky Ward.

2009: Morvin Simon.

2008: Tangiwai Ria and George Ria.

New Zealand and Australia.

“I also met other groups touring places like Rarotonga and I had my heart set on going overseas so performing was a good way to achieve that goal,” she says.

Mahora was married in her early 20s, enjoying the jazz era around Auckland clubs and growing up on a diet of singers like Ella Fitzgerald, Saran Vaughn and Billie Holiday.

She sang in clubs with people like Marlene Tong, “a very good jazz singer” and others like Mike Walker and Mike Perjanik.

Mahora and Nuki moved to Sydney to work the club circuit in the 1960s when they noticed the rising popularity of Maori showbands like The Hi Fives and the Quin Tikis.

“Matty Kemp was forming a Showband and asked us to join him and since he had all the contacts we felt it was a good idea.

“There were six of us in the group.

We got out first job at the Sylvania Hotel and then got the sack at the end of the first week.

“Nuki had never played bass guitar before and Hector was just learning saxophone, we knew we had the goods individually but needed to meld as a group.

“We decided we needed to rehearse more and so we got stuck into it.”

The group successfully auditioned for a year-long contract to perform at the Bronte Charles Hotel in the Eastern Suburbs.

“Prince Tui Teka joined us, we got offers to go overseas and that was the beginning of six and a half years of touring,” Mahora says.

The group joined the Asian circuit sharing the stage with Johnny Mathis, the Inkspots and Billy Eckstein. They toured Asia before and during the Vietnam war and also in Israel two weeks after the Six Day War. The Maori Volcanics headlined in the UK where the group was taken on by M A M Management the same office that handled big stars of the era such as Tom Jones.

Mahora left behind two children in New Zealand while on tour so there was a constant feeling of home sickness, despite all the glitz and glamour. The group returned to New Zealand in 1972 where it played its first and final tour to Kiwis before disbanding.

“Tui left to go solo so Bill (Peters) and I reformed the band with Billy T James and within six months was back out on the road again.”

She names Tui and Billy as two of the world’s most unique performers.

“There’s not likely to be anyone around like them for a long time.

Tui, when he joined us was quite spectacular, he was so enjoyable to work with.”

Mahora’s experiences of the music industry is documented in a book called, Showband! Mahora and the Maori Volcanics and work is now underway on turning it into a movie. And who would she like to play her in the move? “ … J.Lo? I don’t know, I mean that will be up to the producer, I will have a say in it of course but I haven’t seen any of the actors. I hope I come across as a unique person.” www.waiatamaoriawards.co.nz

NZ ON AIR LOVES

T I K I

T A A N E A N D

S T A N

W A L K E R

WINNERS OF THE NZ ON AIR RADIO AIRPLAY AWARD AT THE WAIATA MAORI AWARDS IN 2009 AND 2010

TUMEKE KORUA!

N Z

M U S I C

O N

N Z

R A D I O

W W W . K I W I H I T S . C O . N Z

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_ Tira Hanga Hotaka

Programme Production Team

BEHIND THE SCENES

The set of the 2010 Waiata Maori Awards,.

Te Rangi Huata, Robert Hagen, Howard Anderson and Nicola Marshal are four of the specialists working behind the scenes to make the Waiata Maori Awards a success when it comes to television production, set design, lighting and setting the atmosphere.

A

pplying “atmospherics” to a show is a new concept in New Zealand but one which Te Rangi Huata is fast becoming an expert in.

“Atmospherics is when you look at the event, look at the people that are coming along, the artists or the performers and you get a feel for how you could make the event warm and welcoming,” he says.

“That’s in terms of the way they hear and see the show, so my job involves working with the people in charge of the set design, with the lighting and sound to make sure the show is produced in a way that is interesting.”

This year artists performing at the awards are being asked to consider their on-stage wardrobe, not in terms of fashion, but more in terms of colour.

“Normally the dress for these events is black and you can’t do a lot if everyone is wearing black.

If they are wearing light colours we can do more interesting things with the light and background,” Te Rangi (left) says.

“And this year we are looking at the background, using more bold colours, Maori imagery, and motion to see how we can bring the performers’ songs to life.”

There will also be a focus on “warming up” the audience prior to the start of the show, with a question and answer presentation on the artists performing that night.

“If the audience becomes more animated we hope it will trigger something in the artist to give a bit more in their performance, and this will come through to the viewer at home watching on television,” Te Rangi says.

“To me it’s important people have a good night and think they would like to come back again. It’s about honouring those who have been awarded and nominated. My satisfaction is seeing something you’ve done come to life or that you have contributed towards making an artist’s presentation special for him or her.”

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Robert Hagen’s (below) work on producing this year’s Waiata Maori Awards started the day after the 2010 show finished.

“One of the reasons for that is the Rugby World Cup which will be on in September at the same time as the awards, and that has taken away a lot of resources.

“We’ve had to act quickly to get the crew booked, to get Maori Television booked and to make bookings for all the travel and accommodation,” Robert says.

He believes the awards, now in its fourth year, is progressing “extremely well” given the competitiveness for sponsorship and funding in the industry.

“This is a publicly funded project so it does present some challenges when it comes to trying to expand the budget.”

Separating the hip-hop and urban reggae award categories should encourage more Maori artists to put their work forward for consideration.

“We’ve listened to what people have said and opened up a separate category for reggae. It’s one way of improving the show and we are always looking at how we can improve.

“I think Maori artists can see now that this show is becoming more professional, it’s reaching a greater audience and creating a real groundswell.”

When it comes to setting the tone and theme of any show, lighting is a crucial contributor towards its success. Howard Anderson operates Accent On Production in Lower Hutt and will for the third consecutive year be in charge of lighting the fourth annual Waiata Maori Awards.

“I’m already thinking about what we can do differently with the lighting that’s going to make the show better than last year, and that’s the challenge,” Howard says.

“A lot depends on the performers and the music. We are motivated by the strength of

the performers. So if it is a strong performance, doesn’t matter whether it’s a solo performance or a group, if they are great, you have a better sense of what lighting to use.”

Howard has worked on Howard Anderson with shows such as Dancing Tamati Coffey (left) With The Stars, Howard of the set of Dancing Morrison and Friends, with the Stars.

One Night Only and What Now to name a few.

When it comes to lighting the Waiata Maori Awards he says it is important to “remember this is a Maori production”.

“I am not Maori but my lighting operator Mark Hakaraia is Maori, and he is also my son in law and has worked with Tama before so he gives me a Maori focus on my team. We want to create a look that is Maori in the way we colour the light and that is always a conscience decision, in terms of what light we put on the artists, on the stage and on the people.”

Nicola Marshall (below) has worked as a designer in the New Zealand screen industry for nearly 20 years and is an independent television design consultant in Wellington. For the past two years she has been the set designer for the awards.

“Last year there was a lot of effort put into rebranding the awards and as a result we came up with lovely design images which we took back to Wellington, to work on. We brainstormed and came up with designs for panelling for the set and ran them by Robert and Howard. The whole team was happy with the set.”

The set was built at Avalon Studios in Lower Hutt and transported to the opera house where the set was established and tested for its lighting capabilities.

“I have watched a bit of the awards on television. The feedback we got was pleasing, it’s a set that has to work well for the audience and also for television.”

www.waiatamaoriawards.co.nz

whakaaturanga Maori Music Expo

INDUSTRY LEADERS share knowledge The Waiata Maori Music Expo will begin this year’s two-day award event in Hawke’s Bay and an impressive line up of speakers from all areas of the music industry are being recruited to present at the Hawke’s Bay Opera House in Hastings.

T

he future of traditional Maori music is likely to be one of the topics to come up in a panel discussion at this year’s Waiata Maori Music Expo.

A leader of the Auckland Anglican Maori Club, John Tapene will be among a number of speakers heading the one-hour forum on traditional Maori music. John has been with the Anglican Maori Club for 44 years after joining the group when it was established by the late Sir Kingi Ihaka in 1967.

John represented Auckland roopu at the first national hui for kapa haka held at Waiwhetu in Lower Hutt and he was also named the first secretary for Te Whanau a Tamaki Makaurau, a committee set up at a meeting held in 1975 at Sir Kingi’s home in Kohimarama for adult kapa haka residents in Auckland at the time.

John is the principal of Northland College in Kaikohe but continues to ensure opportunities for people to hear the unique sound created by Sir Kingi over 40 year ago.

His experience in kapa haka, waiata composition, is much sought after which makes for a rare opportunity to hear his korero at the Maori music expo.

Maori showband greats Billy and Mahora Peters, who now live in Queensland, will be among those to present a one-hour forum of contemporary Maori music on the second day of the expo.

They will be joined by well-known entertainer Frankie Stevens, who now runs his Avenues Event Management business from Wellington.

Originally from Whakapara, Northland, Mahora is co-founder of the Maori Volcanics showband and she continues to manage and perform with the band today with Billy.

The band travelled extensively around Europe and like other showbands toured the SouthEast Asia circuit during the 1960s and 1970s.

“Being part of the band has for one thing given me life training, the ability to be able to get on with people of all classes and all cultures, travelling and meeting people, being able to relate and communicate with them,” Mahora says. www.waiatamaoriawards.co.nz

Presenters from the 2010 traditional Maori music panel: Tihi Puanaki, a music teacher and lecturer; Horomona Hoto, a master muscian who also tutored traditional Maori hand games at the expo last year and kapa haka expert Puti Mackey.

Frankie Stevens enjoyed a successful singing career in his 20s but accelerated as a performer when he joined the showband Mary and the Maoris, formerly the Maori Hi Five in 1972.

“It gave me the ability to get through an awful lot in life simply because it gave me discipline and focus,” Frankie says.

Originally from Upper Hutt, Frank was a teenager when he left for Australian to begin his professional career with the Castaways in Sydney. In the 1970s he lived in London and then Hawaii, performing in showrooms, recording records and appearing on television with performers such as Olivia Newton-John, Shirley Bassey and Sammy Davis Jnr to name a few. But he says the personal highlight of his career was when Sir Howard Morrison, whom he had met while working in Hawaii, asked him to tour New Zealand.

“We did two tours, the first tour I was the lead and he had to follow me, and then in the second tour, he was the lead. I made him work because he had to follow me and the challenge for him was to do better, and he did.”

Waiata Maori Music Expo The expo will include a mixture of kapa haka, performance, workshop, panels and exhibitors.

Opens Wednesday, September 7 & 8, 9am-3pm each day.

For information contact Joe-anne Walters, on email ladykiwius@yahoo.com

AWARD ENTRIES CLOSE FRIDAY, JULY 30, 2011 OPEN SECTION: Best Māori Traditional Album (Te Reo Māori) Best Māori Urban RAP/Hip Hop/RnB Album Best Māori Urban Roots Album Best Māori Pop Album Best Māori Male or Female Solo Artist Best Māori Song Best Māori Songwriter Radio Airplay Record of the Year by a Māori Artist in Te Reo Māori Radio Airplay Record of the Year by a Māori Artist

Download entry forms from the website below or call + 64 6 873 0041 for more information.

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NGA KAI WAIATA

Taisha Tari & Maisey Rika SINGING THEIR WAY TO SUCCESS Two leading ladies in Maori music tell their stories about what it takes to make it in the industry and why it’s never been a better time to be a Maori in music.

DISCOVER YOUR

T

hose who work in the music industry know you can’t be successful on talent alone.

You have to be a good self-promoter and be able to find opportunities to share your music and your brand with your peers in the industry and the market.

That’s why the Waiata Maori Music Awards is so important because it gives Maori artists a place where we can all come together to perform in front our peers, to listen to the advice of others, receive feedback and support from other people, whether it be the public, other musicians, producers or music directors.

I think what we saw at the 2010 awards is that there is so much new talent coming through and it’s getting stronger and I’m really looking forward to seeing some of the up and coming artists at this year’s awards.

This event really has the power to bring out all of that talent that’s sitting in the regions and smaller towns of New Zealand into a collective space and that’s what really inspired me when I performed at the awards last year.

We saw a space where we could all see what each performer/song writer was working on. In this business you can get too focused on your own work and it’s hard to get out there to see what others are doing.

It was an honour to be named the inaugural ambassador for the Waiata Maori Awards by the executive director of the show and I’ve been thinking about the awards and how we can grow Maori music.

It’s also about being able to grow the talent we have and as the ambassador I’m encouraging singers, song writers and artists to put their hands up and have a go.

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If you think you have talent, if you have a song to sing, a story to tell, don’t be shy about it.

Too often Maori are whakama about becoming involved in the music industry and I understand it can be daunting and you can feel slightly vulnerable about having your work out in the open for everyone to hear.

But sometimes you just have to put yourself and your work out there. As I said in the beginning of this column, talent is never enough. There is a lot of work to do around promotion and around achieving funding to move your work from the recording studio to release.

There are lots of funding options out there and if you’re not good at filling out applications forms, find someone who can help you.

If you don’t ask you don’t know. I’m quite honest about my downfalls and I’m not good at the paperwork but luckily I have a partner who is and so we make a good team together.

I’m currently working on a show which I will be taking over to the US next year, it will be a unique blend of bilingual songs, English and Maori, which I think the audience over there will enjoy. I performed in the US a few years ago and many of the songs in my set were in Maori and people embraced those songs with open arms. That is just one example of the opportunities which are out there for Maori music.

I am working in a number of other projects, such as with the Lady Killers and with another called The Wicked Wahine with Tina Cross but the main focus for me is on Maori music, that is where my future can flourish.

I was a Waiata Maori Award winner in 2009, a performer in 2010 and I’m excited that I’ve been asked to be part of this year’s awards again. The show has an amazing passion and energy.

LEFT: Waiata Maori Ambassador Taisha Tari and Maisey Rika.

Photos by Steven McNicholl.

www.waiatamaoriawards.co.nz

INNER taonga

I

’ve been really apprehensive about what it means to be awarded these taonga from the Waiata Maori Awards.

What responsibilities does it bring? What does it mean for my mahi in the future?

How can I step up now to do the awards and those who supported me justice?

Winning the awards was a lot to take in but I’ve decided to accept the responsibility.

It had been a busy few years leading up to the awards ceremonies in 2009 and 2010, there’s been a lot of mahi involved but it was awesome to see that mahi recognised, it meant a lot to have the support of the iwi.

If you look at the music industry today, a lot of the people doing well here and overseas are Maori, Stan Walker, Tiki Taane,Young Sid, Warren Maxwell, Ruia, Anika Moa and Bic Runga. Then there are members from groups like Katchafire, Kora, Fat Freddy’s Drop, Nesian Mystik, 1814 and Trinity Roots. There are also great artists and bands coming through, Sonz of Zion, Ria Hall and Majic.

So it is great to be Maori and a good time to be a Maori musician.

I am really proud of this fact and having the Waiata Maori Awards to showcase our work is awesome.

Following last year’s awards, I had been fortunate to perform overseas at concerts in Australia, Europe and Hawaii.

It was our first time in Europe for my brother JJ and I. Together alongside with Tama Waipara, we performed at the Leiden Museum in the Netherlands. They had poi,

www.waiatamaoriawards.co.nz

haka and weaving workshops during the day and in the afternoons and some evenings we performed more contemporary music in English and Maori.

The audience loved it; they were right into that alternative vibe, into that fusion of languages, of English and Maori, so much respect for our Maori culture.

In Hawaii we performed with four-time Grammy Award winner George Kahumoku and learned a lot from him. We were received well by the Hawaiian people; they are a lot like Maori, kei a ratou mo te manaakitanga mo te aroha. They connected with our songs and our culture.

We are keen to go back for another tour in the future. That’s how warm and true our reception and connection was over there.

We’ve had concerts in Melbourne and Sydney and we’ve played at some fundraisers for the Christchurch earthquake relief effort. Like I said, it’s been busy but I just love to travel the world, write and sing songs to anyone and everyone who is open to connect and listen.

I like working with rangatahi and those who are still finding themselves in life, to encourage them to realise their gifts and talents as we are all born with them – the problem is they go unnoticed, therefore, destinies are clouded.

I love to see people realise their potential, create a safe, encouraging environment situation for their gifts and talents to flourish and blossom into something beautiful.

The advice I give to others is just to go for it, kia kaha, kia manawanui I

roto I o mahi katoa, whether it be in music, art, academics or sport, find something you love and put that time in there to work hard, look after your taonga, your gifts you’ve been given and they will look after you in the future.

At home, my aunties always ring me up for a fortnightly check in on where I have been and what I’ve been doing. It’s a kind of debrief – a sharing of advice.

They are there to listen and encourage me, offer advice. And that’s what happened after last year’s Maori music awards, I was thinking, what the heck do all of the awards mean?

I was worried I had taken on something that I couldn’t handle, so that’s when I asked for advice.

I want to be satisfied in life; I want to do better; I want to do my songs justice; I want to put us on the map for the right reasons; I want my whanau and iwi to be proud of me. It’s a lot of mahi but I am willing to do it. That’s why I think this magazine is so important, to get the perspective of all the kai tito waiata and kai whakatangipuoro out there.

There are Maori musicians out there that are really shy about coming forward to show their mahi and this magazine is a good way to see their work and hear their stories and break it down for the coming generations.

I would like to send out a big mihi to everyone for their undying support on stage, off stage and behind the stage. I feel you. It’s like you are all on this journey with me.

If one of us succeeds – we all succeed – let’s share in the success of each other.

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www.waiatamaoriawards.co.nz

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PROFILE

Patu Colbert & 1814 THE BAND The name, 1814, was taken from the year the Gospel arrived at Oihi, in the Bay Of Islands.

Missionary, Samuel Marsden, held the first sermon there on Christmas Day, 1814.

Jah Rydem was the band’s debut Album and Patu describes the sound as having an up beat, funky, r’n’b, roots reggae feel to it. Song writing for the album was shared between band members with Patu’s nephew Darren Katene writing lyrics for several of the songs.

Northland reggae band, 1814, will be performing at this year’s Takitimu Festival.

RIDING THE ‘REGGAE WAVE’ What could be better than playing in a band with your whanau? Nothing, explains Patu Colbert from 1814, a winner at the 2010 Waiata Maori Awards. The band will feature at this year’s Takitimu Festival in Hawke’s Bay.

I

t began as an opportunity to play music with his sons Shaun and Jimmy around the country but now Patu Colbert and Northland reggae band 1814 receive requests to play at concerts around the world.

“Music has been a big part of my life. I’m 53 years old now and have never done anything like this before.

“It’s something I dreamed of setting up when I was younger but while raising a family the opportunity never arose and now I get to have a second go at it, how cool,” Patu says.

Patu was working as a music tutor in far northland schools, teaching the practical side of music, and the idea of forming a reggae band started to develop after attending a Black Seeds concert.

“The students I was teaching at the time were playing all types of music, I would learn what they liked and then teach them how to play it,” Patu says.

1814’s Darren Katene and Harmony Tepania at the 2010 Waiata Maori Awards.

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“From folk music to rap, metal to reggae, I found it quite hard as I was learning how to play the guitar myself after playing drums since I was 14.

“The boys and I sort of honed our skills playing at gigs around the far north and in church every Sunday. This was the beginning of our musical journey together.”

Patu says a “huge reggae wave” appeared on the music scene with bands such as Katchafire, House of Shem, Cornerstone Roots, 3 Houses Down playing all over the country. “… and I thought I’d like to be part of that and now, we’ve played with them all.”

Also, appealing was the fact those bands were examples of whanau working together in the music industry.

“Being able to play on these huge stages with my whanau is cool. I love it. Like many families, we have our ups and downs, but I say we’re a work in progress.

“When we’re together on stage, wow, what a cool feeling playing with my sons. It’s like a dream come true”, says Patu.

As well as sons Shaun and Jimmy, there’s also nephew Darren Katene on lead vocals and niece Harmony Tepania on vocals.

Patu also believes reggae appeals to a wider group of people, judging by those turning up to the concerts and gigs around New Zealand and Australia.

“At our show we have people 70 years of age and we have young people, that’s why I have a love for reggae because it goes across the ages.”

The band’s line up has changed over the years with nine on stage now plus a great sound man out the front. Musicians were hard to find in the beginning so Patu pulled in some friends to achieve that unique 1814 sound.

Although Patu played a big role in the last

album, Jah Rydem, song-writing duties for the next album are being shared so that everyone has an opportunity to bring their individual flavour to the fore.

“We have so much talent in the band, I’m looking forward to seeing what comes out in the studio”, Patu said.

The band was the recipient of Nga Reo Irirangi Radio Airplay Record of the Year Award by a Maori Artist in Te Reo, at the 2010 Waiata Maori Awards. It is an accolade Patu says will help develop 1814’s music.

“Receiving the award has helped open doors for us and as our fan base grows, opportunities arise to share our music with the world.”

New Category For Reggae Music Organisers of the 2011 Waiata Maori Awards this year introduced the Best Maori Urban Roots Album category to cater for the increasing number of reggae bands emerging onto the New Zealand music scene.

The category will be for solo artists and groups. Only album recordings released between July 2010 to June 2011 are eligible.

Artists must be working primarily within the urban genre of reggae to be eligible.

Albums can be in Te Reo Maori, bilingual or produced in English.

Waiata Maori Award entries close on July 30, 2011. Visit the website www.waiatamaoriawards.co.nz for more information.

www.waiatamaoriawards.co.nz

PROFILE

Moana Maniapoto

SINGING TO THE WORLD Moana Maniapoto will be one of the star performers at this year’s Waiata Maori Awards and she’s challenging all Maori artists to show their solidarity by “rocking up” the red carpet in Hastings.

Moana Maniapoto.

What have you been working on over the past year and what are your plans for the rest of 2011?

Last year we played at the Shanghai World Expo as part of the NZ Showcase for the NZ Day and this year we are planning a world tour which begins in Banff at the end of June. We spend two weeks in Canada performing then to the European leg that includes Norway, Germany and Czech Republic for another two weeks. We finish in Taiwan at the Global Indigenous Peoples Performing Arts Festival, which includes a formal dinner with President Ma. We also have invitations from Papua New Guinea and of course, the Maori Music Awards. We’re releasing a “best of collection” from recordings spread over 10 years and I’m also working on new compositions for a stage production called My Name is Moana. My husband Toby Mills and I are working on a documentary called The Russians are Coming about the 1820 Russian expedition to Queen Charlotte Sounds that will take us to St Petersburg and Kazan.

You are highly regarded in Europe, what is the response like to your music on the other side of the world?

Our manager Sol de Sully works hard to put together tours and gigs. Highlights include playing a club in Istanbul, performing on the back of a truck in Ouvea (Kanaky), singing in theatres in Russia and being part of an international line up that included Bob Geldof in Germany at a conference for the UN Convention on Biodiversity. We will be heading just shy of the Arctic Circle in July to play at a Sami Festival in Norway. For us, the response overseas has always been awesome which is why we continue travelling abroad despite the huge challenges of taking a big band overseas.

Many Maori artists say they have more interest in their music overseas than in NZ, what are your thoughts on this?

In my case, I had commercial success here in NZ with a cover of Black Pearl 10 years ago. However, I’m more proud of songs I’ve written that haven’t been commercially successful but have made a difference or connected to my audiences whether here or in NZ. Lots of NZ artists gain commercial respect and recognition without leaving these shores, Tiki Taane, Bic Runga, Katchafire. My experience is that artists like me can still gain traction if their music is seen as interesting to promoters and audiences offshore. People always seem to enjoy our concerts whether they come watch us in NZ or in Switzerland and for that I’m very grateful!

What advice do you give for Maori performers looking to showcase their work overseas?

Do a couple of tours in NZ. Prove you got what it takes. Sell out some venues here. Get creative, invest in yourself and learn the business side of music.

What are a few of the most important changes you have seen in the music industry over the years?

So much has changed since I began singing. The internet exists, can you imagine how we managed to organise tours etc using fax machines? How about mobile phones? Musicians can now set up their own studios in their bedrooms. Tribal radio stations and Maori Television are well established and play local music. www.waiatamaoriawards.co.nz

Select a song you have written and explain why it is important.

I really love TE APO because it ended up as I dreamt it up in the moment when I was inspired during the WTO street protests in Hong Kong. I heard the protest chants, the drums, I thought about the kaupapa, I wanted karanga to recall our spiritual connection to this kaupapa and haka to challenge the politics of globalisation. I wanted it to sound militant so I incorporated samples from the street and with the help of co-writers Mahuia Bridgman-Cooper and Scottie Morrison, it came just as I wanted.

What can Maori artists do to support the kaupapa of the Waiata Maori Awards, how important is it to have this event?

Maori artists across all genre should all be as visible at the Maori Music Awards, as they are at the Pakeha ones. All those famous Maori reggae bands, hip-hop artists, singer-songwriters that star at the NZ Music Awards need to be demonstrating their solidarity by not only rocking up the red carpet in Hastings, but taking their flash, famous pakeha musician mates with them.

RADIO KAHUNGUNU TE REO IRIRANGI O NGATI KAHUNGUNU Iwi radio broadcaster of the Waiata Maori Awards.

Supporting kaiwaiata throughout Aotearoa.

Listen online, Awards Night September 8, 2011.

Ph: (06) 872 8943 or 0800 TAONGA www.radiokahungunu.co.nz SKYPE: radio.kahungunu

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NGA whetU

Our Stars of 2010

Showband Aotearoa.

Mark Williams.

Melz Huata.

Waiata Maori Awards 2010 The stars of Maori music came out to shine at the Hawke’s Bay Opera House in Hastings, New Zealand for the third annual awards last year. Award nominees and guest artists performed for a capacity crowd of over 900 people, showcasing a unique blend of traditional and contemporary music, delivered in both English and Maori.

Adam Whauwhau.

Susan Rose.

Rim D Paul.

Tyna Keelan.

Toni Huata and Kirsten Te Rito (background).

Lisa Tomlins.

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Sons Of Zion.

Pieter T.

www.waiatamaoriawards.co.nz

NGÁ KAIWHIWHI TOHU Púoro Máori 2010 Toa Tamawahine, ko

Maisey Rika

He mea tautoko

www.waiatamaoriawards.co.nz

Toa Tamatáne, ko

Young Sid

www.tmp.govt.nz

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_ HOTAKA

Takitimu Festival 2011

Here’s a taste...

This page sponsored by Central Health.

of what’s to come at the Hawke’s Bay Opera House, Hastings

The Takitimu Indigenous Peoples Business Conference will be the first event at this year’s international Takitimu Festival. The conference will aim to generate new joint ventures between business partners with over 250 people expected to attend. Delegates will be transported to the Hawke’s Bay Regional Sports Park to see the mass powhiri which will officially open the festival. There will also be the Takitimu Indigenous Peoples Black Tie Ball event at the opera house, open to delegates of the business conference only. Delegates will also be treated to a tour of Hawke’s Bay to get a real taste of Maori culture in New Zealand.

THE POWHIRI The Takitimu Festival Powhiri will be a spectacle to see with more than 3000 people expected to be involved in welcoming international visitors to the festival. The powhiri will be held at the new Hawke’s Bay Regional Sports Park in Hastings and it will be hosted by Ngati Kahungunu. Various wananga have begun throughout the tribal area of Ngati Kahungunu to prepare people for the occasion, including lessons on songs and haka which will be used to welcome people to the festival.

Tutors are working in schools from Wairoa to Wairarapa to prepare students who want to be involved in the powhiri.

THE WORKSHOPS Over four days there will be workshops focusing on Performance, Visual and Oral Arts. It will include presentations from the four Takitimu Festival Taumata, which includes Dr Piri Sciscia who is a former trustee of the Maori and South Pacific Arts Council, was involved in leading initial work for the Te Maori Exhibition in the 1980s. He is an advisor to many national institutions such as Te Papa and The National Library. Dr Pita Sharples, co-leader of the Maori Party, deputy chairperson of Maori Arts Committee and is a leader in kapa haka. Rose Pere wrote the book, Te Wheke, a Celebration of Infinite Wisdom, and is considered an icon in education, having held every position of responsibility in the teaching profession.

Tama Huata is the former chairman of Te Matatini, chairman Ngati Kahungunu Arts and Culture Board and founder of Takitimu Performing Arts School and Kahurangi Maori Dance Theatre. The taumata work to support the promote and strengthen the use of te reo Maori, oral and written across all art forms.

Kia ora

TAKITIMU FESTIVAL,

SEPT. 2011

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Talofa

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60c HAWKE’S BAY OPERA

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HOUSE, HASTINGS,

NZ.

THE PERFORMERS On each evening of the Takitimu Festival there will be a performance spectacular, featuring the most unique dance performances from New Zealand, the Pacific as well as indigenous performers from the US and Canada.

Here’s a taste of what’s on offer: Ruia Aperehama, a gifted singer/ songwriter comfortable in traditional Maori or contemporary musical environments. Ruia’s style could be broadly categorized as reggae but has strong jazz and pop influences abound in his music.

Elena has a musical style that’s energetic, funky, passionate and fun. Elena (left) is classically trained at Schola Musica and Trinity College in London — but don’t expect her to give a traditional music performance when she appears at the Takitimu Festival this year.

The Laughing Samoans are still the Pacific’s favourite comedy duo and return to this year’s Takitimu Festival. Eteuati Ete and Tofiga Fepuleai are set to perform a range of family-friendly skits and routines from several of their hit shows.

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Ardijah performed at the inaugural Takitimu Festival in 2008 and are returning in 2011. Platinum selling Pacific Music Award Winners, Ardijah are the pioneers of polyfonk, the fusion of Polynesian roots, ukulele rhythms and melodies with inspired R&B, funk and reggae grooves.

Patea Maori Club, (above) some argue no

other Maori artist has come close to their No.1 hit, Poi E, released in the 1980s and released two years ago as part of the soundtrack to the movie, Boy. The group’s status was recognised when it was awarded a Maori Music Industry Award at the 2009 Waiata Maori Awards.

Taisha, the inaugural Waiata Maori

Ambassador will back up from this year’s Waiata Maori Awards to perform for the first time at the Takitimu Festival.

Takitimu Festival Pacifika Show.

Performers from Rarotonga, Fiji, Tahiti, Tonga and Hawaii will showcase their culture and language when they take the stage on the second and third night of the Takitimu Festival.

George Veikoso, better known as the singer Fiji, became one of most popular entertainers in Hawaii over a decade ago and is now one of the biggest Polynesian artists. Music commentators say his sound is a fusion of classic reggae, hip-hop, r’n’b and jazz. He makes his Takitimu Festival debut in Hawke’s Bay this year.

Cleo Parker Robinson Dance is described as one of the foremost cultural arts institutions in the Ricky Mountains region in the US. The international dance company will make its first appearance in New Zealand at the Takitimu Festival this year. The company is a cross-cultural, dance-arts and educational institution rooted in African-American traditions.

www.waiatamaoriawards.co.nz

NGA MIHI

Takiktimu Festival 2011 MIHI

www.centralhealth.co.nz THE ATTRACTIONS An international game of Kiao-rahi will be held between France and New Zealand, Kia-o-rahi is a traditional Maori ball game being revived in Ngati Kahungunu as well as in other parts of New Zealand.

The Takitimu delegation which hosted the Te Maori Exhibition in San Francisco in the mid-1980s will hold a reunion breakfast at the festival to share some stories and to acknowledge the unique collection of taonga which put Maori on the world stage.

A rare opportunity to hear stories of the Pacific, of its culture, its history and people will be available through a series of Takitimu Wananga, or learning sessions, during each morning of the festival. At the 2008 festival, stories were shared about the waka Takitimu, around its life in the Pacific before migrating to Aotearoa.

It is a chance for leaders from each country attending to share their genealogy which helps illustrate how Pacific people and cultures are related.

Visual art exhibitions will be led by well-known Ngati Kahungunu artist Sandy Adsett. Sandy (below) worked for the Department of Education as an arts and crafts adviser and served on committees for national art education policies, the Historic Places Trust, with a focus on Maori sites. He’s worked with art museums and tribal committees, specialising in traditional and customary art forms and architecture. He has been instrumental in promoting contemporary developments in Maori arts for community buildings, wharenui or meeting houses, churches and public sites.

www.waiatamaoriawards.co.nz

Tākina rā ki te timu o te rangi ko Takitimu Tākina rā ki te timu o te moana ko Takitimu Tākina rā ki te timu o te whenua ko Takitimu Te waka tapu o Takitimu E tū ana tēnei taumata kōrero i raro i te hononga mareikura o Takitimu, e tū tō tātou waka hei whakairi ai i ngā kōrero a te manu kua rere ki te pō a te manu kua rere ki te ao, mauri ora ki te rangi, mauri ora ki te whenua, mauri ora ki ā tātou.

Tihei Kahungunu.

Nei ra te reo, e tangi puoro ake ana ki nga rangi tuhaha, tau iho mai rereao, mai hau uruora, ki nga moka tawhito, ki nga pito tapu, huriwhenua atu, huri moana mai. Haere e taku karere, kawea atu te au tawhiri, tupou atu ki aku kahurangi

matahiapo, motoia ona taringa ki enei kupu aku: Tatau e, Takitimu waka e, Maranga mai. Koutou, nga kuru maramara te kowaewae noa na, anei ra taku tangi maioha: “Rurukutia anotia te waka tapu, Rurukutia te kei tapu o Tamatea Ariki, Rurukua te ihu tapu o Te Rongopatahi, o Ruawharo” He powhiri tenei ki a koutou kia hara mai ki waenga i a matau o Ngati Kahungunu, ki te ra whakanui i to tatau waka a Takitimu katahi, ki te whakanui hoki i tenei o ona tatai kahurangi e mahina nei te rangi hei mapuna, ko Nga Ariki o Te Moana nui a Kiwa, me nga rangatira o te motu ka rua. Ki reira tatau turou ai, rahirihiri noa atu ai, me te whakaaro aroha, tangi, tumanako, manawanui, ki nga koinga ngakau i te po, i te ao. Kaati ko tatau katoa e heke iho nei no nga taumanu tapu o te waka Takitimu.

Festival honours Pacific voyager What is the Takitimu Festival? It is the biggest reunion of people affiliated to the waka Takitimu, the sailing vessel which traded between the islands of the Pacific and eventually brought people to Aotearoa over 500 years ago.

A

spectacular five-day extravaganza of indigenous entertainment from across the shores of the Pacific Ocean awaits those visiting this year’s International Takitimu Festival in Hawke’s Bay, New Zealand.

It will be the second time the major event will be held and is expected to be just as popular as the inaugural festival in 2008 which attracted more than 10,000 people with a huge range of musical performers, as well as workshops and activities showcasing the uniqueness of each nation, through history, food, music art or craft.

Hastings is still the host city but it is the grand Hawke’s Bay Opera House which will be the new venue of the event from September 14 to 18.

Taking the festival indoors will give organisers some certainty over the weather and an opportunity to showcase one of New Zealand’s most historic buildings to international visitors.

Festival organisers will use several stages inside and outside the Hawke’s Bay Opera House, turning the eastern side of the city into a “Takitimu Precinct”.

And among those to perform, there is new interest from America this time around where new groups are planning to make their New Zealand debut at the festival.

It includes the Cleo Parker Robinson Dance company, which has its roots in African-American tradition.

Business is also going to be a new focus with the Takitimu Indigenous Peoples Business Conference to on September 14.

Those Pacific countries coming for the festival are being told not only to bring their performers, their singers and their culture but also their best business delegates to establish new joint ventures within the Takitimu region.

Another new venue will be used for this year’s Takitimu Festival, and that’s the Hawke’s Bay Regional Sports Park in Hastings, which will be where Ngati Kahungunu officially welcomes all visitors to the event through a mass powhiri involving up to 3000 people.

Also new, is the 25th reunion of the Takitimu delegation which acted as the caretaker of the famous Te Maori Exhibition in San Francisco during the mid-1980s.

There will be programmes dedicated to all age groups, tamariki, rangatahi and kaumatua as well as workshops of performance, visual and oral arts from around the Pacific.

He calls himself Fiji but he lives in Hawaii, George Veikoso will be among the singers to make their Takitimu Festival debut, as well as popular Northland reggae band 1814.

There will be concerts each evening of the festival, showcasing the best of Maori and Pacific talent, culminating in the poroporoaki, the farewell performance, to close the festival on Sunday, September 18.

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TAKITIMU FESTIVAL 2011 Powhiri

WORK BEGINS ON FESTIVAL POWHIRI Ngati Kahungunu is preparing one of the biggest powhiri New Zealand will see when thousands of people converge on Hawke’s Bay for the international Takitimu Festival in September.

I

n a world dominated by men there is one tradition in Maori culture which firmly throws the responsibility of power into the hands of the wahine.

That is the karanga. And on the marae nothing can begin until the karanga of the wahine is heard across the marae atea.

That will be the case this year when Ngati Kahungunu gathers a 3000-strong group to welcome Maori and Pacific iwi for the Takitimu Festival in Hawke’s Bay, New Zealand.

And the work has begun on selecting the kaikaranga for the mass powhiri which will be held at the Hawke’s Bay Regional Sports Park in Hastings on September 15.

Narelle Huata, from the Ngati Kahungunu Runanga Arts and Culture Board, is one of the organisers running wananga for the powhiri leading up to the festival.

Ngati Kahungunu kapa haka leader Raina Ferris will be overseeing Pg 22

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the karanga for the powhiri along with Narelle and there will be several kaikaranga selected for the important event.

Narelle says the idea is to have a kaikaranga for each manuhiri, or visiting group, at the powhiri.

“Raina has already started on wananga for karanga and has met with different kaikaranga from marae around the rohe. We would like to call upon as many kaikaranga throughout the iwi as possible,” Narelle says.

“You will have different styles and it depends on what is best for the wahine. The karanga comes from the manu, the bird, and so for example you have the style of the kaka which is aggressive.

“Or you have the huia which is said to be pretty, or there is the korimako which is tuneful. So it depends on the person who is performing the karanga and what their ahua is.”

Narelle hopes the karanga will be

a big feature of the powhiri for anyone involved or watching the historic welcome.

“We are going to choreograph the powhiri differently from the one at the last festival in 2008.

“We are using a different haka powhiri to start with. The idea is that we will have the manutaki go out, then the karanga will go down and then the putatara will sound, after that the haka will come in. It’s going to be quite dramatic.”

The karanga is just one element of the powhiri as there will also be a high priority on finding those capable of performing the wero to the visiting groups, people to perform the haka and waiata tautoko for the speakers on the paepae.

To achieve this task, experts on haka, waiata and karanga from around the iwi are putting forward their own nominations of people they believe should represent Kahungunu at the powhiri.

Regular wananga on putatara, wero, karanga, haka taua and waiata tautoko are being at Te Whare Tapere o Takitimu in Hastings leading up to two mass rehearsals in September.

Kapa haka tutors are also working

The powhiri at the 2008 Takitimu Festival in Hawke’s Bay, New Zealand.

in schools from Wairoa to Wairarapa to involve pupils in the mass powhiri.

“The karanga has gone out to Kahungunu to participate in the powhiri and to begin taking part on the various wananga leading up to September so everyone can learn the waiata tautoko we will be doing for the whaikorero,” Narelle says.

FESTIVAL POWHIRI Three songs have been selected for the powhiri, the full version of Pine Pine Te Kura, Tu Mai Awa and E Pari Ra. The two haka powhiri include Kia Kutia and Toia Mai and the two haka iwi include E Moho E and Tika Tonu.

There will be a mass powhiri rehearsal on September 4 and a dress rehearsal at the park on September 11. The official powhiri will be held on Thursday, September 15, 2011.

For more information on wananga, call Narelle Huata, (06) 873 0041 or narelle. huata@takitimu.ac.nz www.waiatamaoriawards.co.nz

Coming from what could be considered New Zealand music royalty gave Kaitapu Monga the best possible grounding in music performance and production. Kaitapu’s parents are both founding members of Ardijah and Kaitapu has played bass guitar for the band since 1999. He has also performed with Moana Jackson, King Kapisi and The Herbs.

Kaitapu had a desire to teach music and has been teaching the Certificate in Māori Performing Arts at Te Wānanga o Aotearoa since 2010. His music experience is ‘ground roots’; he brings extensive knowledge of recording and sound production along with vast performance experience to his role.

‘I want to give tauira a broad spectrum of musical production knowledge, starting with the basics and working their way up. I challenge myself with what I want to teach so I’m always motivated and striving to improve so I can pass on my knowledge to my students’, he says. ‘The

Certificate in Māori Performing Arts gives my students the confidence to perform. I enjoy seeing them when they first start and watching them grow’.

Kaitapu wanted to work with youth, to give back to the community. ‘It’s awesome to be working with our Māori people and helping our youth get back in touch with their culture. I want to help our rangatahi in a positive way through music’.

Kaitapu – affiliated with Ngāpuhi, Ngāi Te Rangi, Ngāti Ranginui and Tainui through his mother and Ngāti Whātua, Tākitumu (Rarotonga) and Tahiti through his father – lives with his partner and their three young children. He is still performing with Ardijah who put out an album - The Best Polyfonk – last year.

‘Te Wānanga o Aotearoa has core values which align with my family values. This empowers me to be the best example I can be to the students of Te Wānanga o Aotearoa’.

0800 355 553 I www.twoa.ac.nz www.waiatamaoriawards.co.nz

JUNE 2011

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Indigenous Peoples Business Conference

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nternational tourism is likely to be just one of the big deal breakers when Pacific nations descend on Hawke’s Bay for what is being touted as New Zealand’s first “Indigenous Peoples Business Conference”.

The three-day conference will open the international Takitimu Festival at the Hawke’s Bay Opera House in Hastings, in September, and will include business delegates and heads of state from the major Pacific countries.

It will also include business leaders from iwi affiliated to the waka Takitimu and invitations have also gone out to indigenous business groups in Canada and the US as well as in Australia.

In total, 40 speakers are in the pipeline and organisers are setting up a number of workshops where delegates can meet one-on-one to generate new joint ventures.

Festival organisers want the business conference to generate meaningful business activity and not just be a “talk fest”.

The festival will welcome the case studies but it is the business opportunities the conference is looking for.

HUI INFO The Indigenous Peoples Business Conference will open the Takitimu Festival at the Hawke’s Bay Opera House in Hastings, New Zealand.

The three-day conference will run from September 14 to 16, 2011, and will include business leaders from Pacific nations and Maori organisations which are connected to the ancestral Takitimu waka.

Organisers expect 250 people to attend the conference.

It was hoped the conference would lead to the establishment of a Takitimu business network for future ventures and commercial opportunities.

The conference will include the Takitimu Indigenous Peoples Business Conference Black Tie Ball, prime position to watch the historical Takitimu Festival Powhiri open the international event and tourism visitors to prime locations around the Hawke’s Bay region.

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Dr Pita Sharples.

The concept of a Takitimu business network could be one of the outcomes from New Zealand’s first conference involving commerce leaders from the Pacific and Aotearoa affiliated to the waka Takitimu.

Let’s korero And with the Pacific nations involved, the popular island tourism industry will be one of the main topics at the conference.

Tourism is an industry the Pacific excels at, in terms of the way the accommodation sector is managed, hotels and visitor experiences.

Invitations for the conference have been sent out to Tonga, Fiji, Samoa, Tahiti, Rarotonga and Hawaii.

And in New Zealand iwi likely to attend include Ngati Kahu in Northland, Ngati Ranginui in the Tauranga/Bay of Plenty region, East Coast tribes of Ngati Porou and Te Aitanga A Mahaki, Ngati Kahungunu and Ngai Tahu from the South Island.

But conference organisers are leaving the door open for other groups to also be involved with the aim of generating interest from a range of other sectors such as farming, fisheries and the creative arts industry.

Land-use businesses, which are areas Maori and Pacific people are involved in, are also being encouraged to join the conference. The Federation of Maori Authorities, which promotes the economic development of Maori organisations, and the Maori Trustee, which administers or manages Maori freehold land, are two more organisers are keen to see at the conference.

JOINT VENTURES Te Puni Kokiri, the Ministry of Maori Development in New Zealand, is also putting its weight behind the conference, offering its time and resource as support.

Its Takitimu office business facilitation service account manager Henry Heke is helping to set up the conference programme, organising workshops which have the potential to generate joint ventures at the historic hui.

“We have economic summits and conferences involving Maori business but this is where under the banner of Takitimu waka, we have an the opportunity to really focus on the kaupapa, which is joint ventures not just for Maori, but for all indigenous people.

“And if there is indigenous business that is looking for investors, whether it be pakeha or other, the conference will provide that opportunity.

“It could be European or nonMaori looking for investment, whether it be from the Canadians, Americans, Maori or Cook Islands and so on.”

Henry says the conference is “right up there” with the Federation of Maori Authorities annual conference, which aims to form strategic alliances for commercial and economic development. www.waiatamaoriawards.co.nz

“So it shows we have got so much entrepreneurship, initiative, we are innovative and it’s a matter of people realising we can achieve”

hence why we are having this joint venture opportunity.”

POLITCAL POWER

business “It is by invitation only. We are expecting about 250 people. About 50 of those will be heads of state and we’re looking for about 200 more, it’s high level, it’s targeted at first tier management, the chief executives, the owners, the general managers,” Henry says.

The conference could also give Te Puni Kokiri an opportunity to network with its counterparts working in other countries.

“There is the Pacific Island Trade Investment Commissions, which is involved in economic development in the islands and we have a relationship with them in terms of the tools we use to assist business.

“There’s also the Pacific Business Trust operating here in New Zealand that has similar role in supporting Pacific Island people in business but there’s also the Koru Business Network which is the aboriginal business network in Australia.”

Henry says Te Puni Kokiri has had contact in the past involvement with indigenous business organisations in the US and Canada, and their possible involvement in the Takitimu hui could prove beneficial.

“They are cash rich but culture poor, whereas we are culture rich but cash poor but soon to change,

The Prime Minister John Key, who is also the Minister of Tourism, has been invited to speak while invitations have also gone out to the Minister of Pacific Island affairs Geogina Te Heuheu and the Minister of Maori Affairs Dr Pita Sharples.

“We have already set up a Maori Economic Trust for people to network an so the ground work has been done but Takitimu is so inclusive, involving other iwi, it is the ideal place to have an indigenous peoples business conference,” Dr Sharples says.

“We live in an idyllic country with resources other countries don’t have and I don’t think we realise that. I’m hoping to bring some of that korero out at the conference.”

Dr Sharples says he also wants to use his time at the conference to encourage development of Maori micro businesses which are shaping up to be major contributors to the economy.

“We all thought the Maori economy was worth $16.4 billion in iwi hands but we’ve done research into business and innovation and revealed that it’s actually worth $36b, and over $24b of that is in the hand of small businesses and family businesses.

“So it shows we have got so much entrepreneurship, initiative, we are innovative and it’s a matter of people realising we can achieve.

“Three years ago Maori women were third in the OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development) review of entrepreneurship where they were recognised for leaders in starting small business, so it shows we have the world at our finger tips.”

At the end of the first day of the conference, attendees will be treated to the Takitimu Indigenous Peoples Business Conference Black Tie Ball at the Hawke’s Bay Opera House in Hastings.

It will be an opportunity for delegates to relax, for some unofficial networking if they wish, and to sample some award winning Hawke’s Bay wine.

On the second day of the conference, people will be taken to see the opening powhiri of the Takitimu Festival at the Hawke’s Bay Regional Sports Park in Hastings.

There will also be an international match of kia-o-rahi, a traditional Maori game, between France and New Zealand at the park.

On the third day and final day the conference, tourism will be the theme of an excursion where conference visitors will have a chance to see some of the iconic sites around Hawke’s Bay. Initial draft plans include a visit to the Waimarama Maori Tours at Hakikino Pa, a trip to the longest place name in the world in Central Hawke’s Bay, visits to wineries, perhaps a ride of the waka, Nga Tuke Mata o Kahungunu and visits to Heretaunga and Ahuriri.

TAKITIMU INDIGENOUS PEOPLES BUSINESS CONFERENCE

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To register your interest: p:+64 0800 TAPERE e: tama.kahurangi@xtra.co.nz Venue: Hawke’s Bay Opera House, Hastings, NZ. Sept. 14-16, 2011.

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TAKITIMU FESTIVAL Reunion Event

LEFT: The cultural group of Te Tira o Takitimu performing outdoors in the grounds of the University of California Berkeley.

RIGHT: The Takitimu contingent at the Te Maori Exhibition outside the De Young Museum.

TE MAORI: 25 YEARS YOUNG An ‘exploratory’ collection of taonga which put Maori on the international map a quarter of a century ago will be celebrated by the Takitimu contingent which was its kaitiaki in the United States during the mid-1980s.

T

he famous Te Maori Exhibition was unveiled in America 25 years ago inspiring a new industry and generation of Maori museum professionals.

And this year the exhibition will be recognised with an anniversary hui as part of the Takitimu Festival in Hawke’s Bay, New Zealand, in September.

One of those who was at the

ABOVE RIGHT: Mere Karaka Ngarimu (far right), leader of the women of Te Tira Takitimu. This photograph was taken during the opening of exhibition on July 9, 1985, at De Young Museum.

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forefront of the exhibition’s journey to the US was Victoria University’s Professor Piri Sciascia from Porangahau, Central Hawke’s Bay. He plans a breakfast event at the festival for about 100 people to celebrate the remarkable exhibition.

“Twenty five years ago I was the executive officer for the exhibition and I was working with a committee led by (Waiwhetu leader) Kara Puketapu.

“We set up the exhibition and I would have to say it was exploratory.

“We didn’t have any clear paths to follow and it was a matter of meetings with American registrars, foreign affairs, museums and conservators,” Piri says.

It was also his job to travel the country to ask each iwi to approve the involvement of their taonga in the exhibition.

“There was a lot of anxiety, iwi were worried about their taonga going away, who was going to look after them, how would they be cared for, would they be returned?

“But we had people like Kara and (Sir) Kingi Ihaka on the committee and their leadership and influence was powerful at the time, they helped to get people to participate with enthusiasm and acceptance.”

Only Wanganui did not want to

participate but since those days have been heavily involved in showcasing their taonga, Piri says.

“Kahungunu had originally said no to letting Te Kauru o Te Rangi but it was such an important piece we had a meeting at Waiohiki and at the end of it they said yes .

“So it was boxed up and took pride of place in the exhibition which opened in New York in September, 1984.”

The exhibition showed at five locations in the US. In New York it was hosted by iwi from Northland down to Wellington; the St Louis leg was hosted by the Mataatua region; San Francisco by Takitimu and as a result of its popularity a fourth venue was agreed for at Chicago.

It arrived home to national acclaim and toured the main centres.

“So the Te Maori Exhibition made such a big impact overseas that people here in New Zealand had to sit up and take notice. It came back a famous child.

“In Maoridom, we all knew the value of our taonga but this collection was the first time taonga from all iwi stood together in one place, that became quite a tauira for the future.”

The collection changed the way New Zealand approaches Maori taonga when it is exhibited nationally and internationally.

“We opened the exhibition overseas with dawn karakia so we

needed to find karakia experts and now we have tremendous growth in that area and in protocol.

“We’ve now have Maori museum professionals, curators, conservators, Maori in governance in museums like Te Papa.

“Everything has moved forward and we are having far more say about how our taonga are exhibited, where they are exhibited and why.

“I believe that can all be attributed to Te Maori,” Piri says.

It was agreed that each iwi which hosted the exhibition in the US hold an anniversary hui to mark its 25th anniversary.

“So in 2009 people met at Waiwhetu in Lower Hutt, in 2010 a breakfast celebration was held in Whakatane and this year it will be recognised at the Takitimu Festival.

“We have asked that in 2012 the final 25th reunion be held in Waikato, because that’s where the exhibition ended it’s New Zealand tour, in September 1986,” Piri says.

25th REUNION Were you involved in the Te Maori Exhibition and want to attend the Takitimu reunion?

To register your interest contact Pam Wiki: wikip@tmp.govt.nz www.waiatamaoriawards.co.nz

Te Koanga

ON THE CATWALK

Fashion Show

MAORI & PACIFIC fabulous fabrics WELL-KNOWN ENTERTAINMENT PRODUCERS DUANE AND TUTEVERA WICHMAN-EVANS WILL HEAD TWO FASHION SHOWS FOR THE WAIATA MAORI AWARDS AND THE TAKITIMU FESTIVAL.

Rising model and television presenter Ruby Higgins will return to her home town in Hastings to star in Te Koanga Fashion Show. Ruby burst onto the New Zealand modelling scene when she was one of the top-four contestants in season one of television show, New Zealand’s Next Top Model in 2009. Since then she has built a career in the television industry, appearing in advertisements and hosting events. Ruby is signed to the 62Models and Talent agency in Auckland but now lives in Wellington.

This garment was designed by Kui Tomoana from Hastings, her tribal affiliations are Rongomaiwahine, Ngati Kahungunu, and it is modelled

by Heather Te Au at the 2010 Te Koanga Fashion Show. Kui is a contemporary weaver and has been contracted to create many garments for shows and galleries. She is a past finalist at the World of Wearable Arts.

T

he Hawke’s Bay Opera House offers Duane Wichman-Evans a mouth-watering challenge as he and partner Tutevera begin planning the Te Koanga Fashion Show.

“It’s quite exciting, a new venue, a new challenge for us. The Opera House Assembly Room has a lot of character, it is a room with great architecture and a wonderful dome.

“And we’ll use that character to develop the theme of the show which is Te Koanga.”

Te Koanga represents new beginnings and the start of the spring season as the show will be held in September.

“That fits in well with what we’re www.waiatamaoriawards.co.nz

doing, a new beginning. Te Koanga can represent new life, a new born baby which is sometimes represented by the eye of the koru, which happens to also be the logo for our company.”

Duanne and Tutevera run Oyster Entertainment in Auckland and together they have worked in the entertainment industry for over 40 years.

In April they produced the inaugural Bridal Fashion Week show in Auckland where international designers Ruben Perlotti and Cymbeline launched their 2012 collections.

The couple met with organisers of the Waiata Maori Awards at the Opera House in Hastings soon after Bridal Fashion Week to start planning Te Koanga.

“It’s now about finding the

designers throughout the country who want to be part of this and getting the right mix of wellknown New Zealand Maori designers and local up and coming designers,” Duanne says.

“And of course the other part to that is finding the clothing labels, the people interested in purchasing the work of the designers, to make sure they are part of the show.”

Duanne says he wants to build on the success of Bridal Fashion Week but add a unique flavour to Te Koanga.

“With Perlotti and Cymbeline launching their 2012 collection at the Bridal Fashion Show, it meant they had to use videos and photos from our show to launch their collections everywhere else in the world.

“And we want the same thing to happen at Te Koanga, it’s a good opportunity for Maori designers to launch their collections, use videos and photos from the show to promote their work, and at the same time promote Te Koanga.”

Although it will be their first time producing a show at the Opera House, Duane and Tutevera are no strangers to Hawke’s Bay, having run a soul review show at the Black Barn Vineyard amphitheatre in 2004.

Over the next few months they will be putting together a script plan for the show and working through a final programme with the Waiata Maori Awards.

“The big thing now is getting together the designers, looking at who we get for models, if we can bring in someone local to do the hair and make up.”

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NGA RONGO KORERO Te Waka Takitimu

This story of the waka Takitimu is according to the traditions and research from Rarotonga and was reaffirmed at the 2008 Takitimu Festival. A great deal of Pacific waka history was researched by the former Prime Minister of the Cook Islands, the late Sir Tom Davis, who died in 2007 at the age of 90.

Epic waka voyage reaches Aotearoa

T

he origin of the waka came out of Upolu in Samoa around 1060.The ariki in Upolu at that time was Vatonga, also known as Atonga. Maori call him Whatonga.

It was the desire of Orokeu and Oronaino, the brothers of Whatonga to leave Samoa so they decided to build a waka.They went into the forest of Rata which remains in Samoa today.They found a tree and cut it down and began to fashion the waka over a long period of time.

In a skirmish while they were building the canoe, they were killed.

Their brother Whatonga when he went back into the forest where his brothers were working and where they were killed, saw the waka and took on the project. He ordered the waka to be brought back to the shore. A waka house was built there so it could be completed.

Whatonga gave the waka its first name:Tarai Po. It means fashioned in the night.That was the name for the incident which took place and so it was commemorated through that time.

When Whatonga ordered it to be moved down to the beach, he enlisted the help of a hapu, small people, Maru aitu.They moved it through the night and when the people awoke it was sitting there.

When they asked how did it come there, Whatonga replied, “te manu karere”, the birds flew it in.

So that became its second name: Te Manu Karere.

When it was launched, the son of Whatonga, Arutanga, wanted to take the captainship of the waka but he was sure his father wouldn’t consent.

So he asked his wife to go and see his father. She visited Whatonga and stayed the night and by the next day permission had been granted for her husband to take possession.

So when they launched the waka it took its third name:Te Pori o Kare.

The wife, her name was Kare and

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Te Pore o Kare means the beauty of Kare.

They launched the waka into the Pacific under that name. It was the largest waka of its kind, it was a waka hourua, a double-hull vessel.

It was loaded with whariki, mats, supplied for trade.The waka visited the next island,Tonga and there were exchanges, trading, with all the ariki lines in the Pacific, which maintained the hierarchy structure.

Then the waka landed in Fiji, where they took the vessel out of the water.

It was here it took its fourth name: Te Orau Roa Ki Iti, the long house in Fiji.

The waka stayed there for 10 or 11 years. During that time a fight started between people from Samoa and Fiji.

The Samoans used short clubs and Fijians long spears.The Samoans, with their short clubs, proved victorious because it was all hand-to-hand combat.

Arutanga and the crew of the waka decided to settle in Fiji and there were cases of intermarriage between the two previously warring groups.

The family of Arutanga was still in Samoa, so his son Kaukura decided to sail to Fiji to bring the waka back to Samoa. When they got into Samoa, the waka had been out of the water for a long time, so a decision was made to cure the wood and the vessel was sunk in a lagoon.

And it took its fifth name: Te Tuna Moe Vai. The eel that slept.

And then after it was repaired so it could resume trading between the Pacific Islands.

From there it took its sixth name: Numiao. The seeker. It was given this name because of its movements throughout the islands, maintaining the linkages with people.

The waka came into the hands of Tangiia. He was given the captainship of the waka over some say his brother or cousin,Tutapu.They were at least very close cousins.

Tutapu thought he deserved to be in charge of the waka but it was given

to Tangiia, a decision which made way for one of the biggest sea pursuits in the Pacific.Tutapu wanted to take the waka off Tangiia,and chased him over the Pacific.The sister of Tangiia provided information on how to avoid Tutapu.

And through this story the waka takes on its seventh name: Te Tika a Te Tuaine. The right of the sister. She gave Tangiia the stories or information of where Tutapu was likely to come from next.

Finally Tangiia landed at Borabora.

The waka had been in and out of these islands many times. In Tahiti they looked out into the ocean and saw an armada of waka under the command of Tutapu.The alarm was raised,Tangiia got into the waka and because of its size and speed, managed to out run Tutapu.

The waka takes on its eighth name: Te Takipu. It means to leave in haste.

They made their way to Rarotonga.

On the way Tangiia come across his cousin Karika.They have a sailing jostle at sea.The result was Tangiia won.

They formed an alliance and Tangiia explained to Karika that Tutapu was chasing him. Both of the waka made their way to Rarotonga where they decided to make a stand against Tutapu.They prepared for battle.

And the outcome was that Tutapu and his party, his warriors, were defeated.Tutapu was killed by Tangiia.

In line with their rituals of that time, Tangiia plucked Tutapu’s eye out and held it up into the air.

Tangiia then exclaimed,Takitumu, and that became the final name of the waka.

Taki means to lift. And in Rarotonga, tumu is the enduring part inside of the coconut palm tree which can withstand storms, hurricanes. It is known as the burden. By announcing taki tumu,Tangiia was saying, the burden has been lifted. (In Aotearoa Taki tumu became Takitimu).

Tangiia had decided to settle in Rarotonga after defeating Tutapu.

After 300 years the waka Takitumu

HISTORY Morning wananga will be held at the Takitimu Festival to share history and knowledge from each Pacific nation and to discover or reaffirm connections between cultures. was on its last legs but when it came to the great migration in 1350, all of the people of the other waka asked for Takitumu to lead the fleet.

All of the waka came from the outer islands,Tahiti, Mauke and Aitutaki and others.Tangiia had settled into being the head of his clan. His main priority now was as chief of his people, determining how they survived and providing for them.

And at this time Tamatea Arikinui came on the scene and picks up the tohunga, Ruawharo.They prepare the waka for what is to be its final voyage.

They led the fleet out of Rarotonga and then when close to Aotearoa, to the north,Tamatea gave the command, to let all of the waka go.

First landing place of the waka was Kaitaia, Awanui.The second place was Tauranga and this is where Tamatea Arikinui left the waka.

Takitimu travelled around the East Coast and set up its first wananga at Waikawa, Portland Island, where all of the traditions of the people were taught. With the departure of Tamatea Arikinui at Tauranga,Tahu takes over as captain on the waka.

He sailed it down the coast, through Te Matau A Maui and Wairarapa, stopping at various points where people left the waka to settle.

Tahu took the waka on to the South Island to pursue the greenstone which voyager Kupe had talked about in previous stories.

The waka arrived at Te Anau, via the Wairau River where it met a number of different rivers. It was here the waka found itself in a whirlpool.

It gave rise to the proverb: “Ko nga wai e patoto mai te ata ki te po”, that the waters pulsate from morning to night. And when it got into the whirl pool, the waka broke up.

There is a cave in Te Anau which was the final resting pace of the waka Takitumu and it is commemorated by naming the mountains above, the Takitimu Ranges, which look down on that site. www.waiatamaoriawards.co.nz

M A O R I M U S I C AWA R D S

FRIDAY SEPTEMBER 8, 2011

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