2004 Music
Hinetekakara
Works with taonga pūoro, Voice and instrumental ensemble, Collaborations
For kaikaranga, taonga pūoro, flute, alto flute and bassoon
Text by Aroha Yates-Smith
This version of Hinetekakara was arranged for a taonga pūoro workshop at which both Alexa Still and Ingrid Culliford were present.
About the work
Hinetekakara is an ancestress of Aroha Yates-Smith, whose own composition is embedded in mine. The interpretation of her chants is as follows:
- The singer invokes the spirit of her ancestress beside the rippling waters of Lake Rotorua.
- Tuhohomatakaka conducts the tapu-raising ceremony over Ihenga.
- Hinetekakara, participating in the ceremony, meets Ihenga and they fall in love.
- Hinetekakara’s lullaby welcoming her new-born son, Tuariki.
- Ihenga discovers the murdered body of Hinetekakara at the lake.
- The singer farewells her ancestress.
There are 3 other versions of this work.
Hinetekakara for kaikaranga, taonga pūoro and flutes
Hinetekakara for kaikaranga, taonga pūoro and ensemble
Hinetekakara for kaikaranga, taonga pūoro and bassoon
About Hinetekakara
Many years ago, Hinetekakara lived with her husband (or father, according to some traditions) Ihenga on the edge of Lake Rotorua. Returning from a hunting trip, Ihenga discovered the body of his beloved Hinetekakara by the lake, murdered, and sang his mournful lament. The settlement at Ohinemutu is named for her (meaning ‘the end of the woman’).
Instrumentation
The taonga pūoro played in this piece are, in order:
- pūtatara — conch shell trumpet
- pūtōrino matai — wooden pūtorino
- pūmotomoto — shakuhachi-like wooden flute
- pūpūharakeke — flax snail
- pūkaea — war trumpet, and
- nguru rākau maire — wooden nose flute.
Score
Buy or borrow the score and parts from SOUNZ.
Hinetekakara
Works with taonga pūoro, Voice and instrumental ensemble, Collaborations
For kaikaranga, taonga pūoro, flute, cello and bassoon
Text by Aroha Yates-Smith
The first performance of this version of Hinetekakara was given by Aroha Yates-Smith (kaikaranga), Richard Nunns (taonga pūoro), Ingrid Culliford (flute), Ashley Brown (cello) and Ben Hoadley (bassoon) at the Hei Tiki Gallery, Whakarewarewa in late 2004.
About the work
Hinetekakara is an ancestress of Aroha Yates-Smith, whose own composition is embedded in mine. The interpretation of her chants is as follows:
- The singer invokes the spirit of her ancestress beside the rippling waters of Lake Rotorua.
- Tuhohomatakaka conducts the tapu-raising ceremony over Ihenga.
- Hinetekakara, participating in the ceremony, meets Ihenga and they fall in love.
- Hinetekakara’s lullaby welcoming her new-born son, Tuariki.
- Ihenga discovers the murdered body of Hinetekakara at the lake.
- The singer farewells her ancestress.
There are 3 other versions of this work.
Hinetekakara for kaikaranga, taonga pūoro and bassoon
Hinetekakara for kaikaranga, taonga pūoro and flutes
Hinetekakara for kaikaranga, taonga pūoro, flute, alto flute, and bassoon
About Hinetekakara
Many years ago, Hinetekakara lived with her husband (or father, according to some traditions) Ihenga on the edge of Lake Rotorua. Returning from a hunting trip, Ihenga discovered the body of his beloved Hinetekakara by the lake, murdered, and sang his mournful lament. The settlement at Ohinemutu is named for her (meaning ‘the end of the woman’).
Instrumentation
The taonga pūoro played in this piece are, in order:
- pūtatara — conch shell trumpet
- pūtōrino matai — wooden pūtorino
- pūmotomoto — shakuhachi-like wooden flute
- pūpūharakeke — flax snail
- pūkaea — war trumpet, and
- nguru rākau maire — wooden nose flute.
Scores and recordings
Buy or borrow the scores from SOUNZ
The work was released on CD in 2007.
An excerpt was filmed for a DVD you can borrow from SOUNZ and there’s also an archival CD recorded by the group Tūhonohono.
Hinetekakara
Works with taonga pūoro, Voice and instrumental ensemble, Collaborations
For kaikaranga, taonga pūoro, and concert flute, piccolo and alto flute
Text by Aroha Yates-Smith
This version of Hinetekakara was arranged after a bomb attack near the Australian Embassy in Jakarta on 9 September 2004 and premiered there shortly after that. After the attack, not all the players were prepared to continue the trip to Indonesia, so I rearranged the work so the bassoon part could be played by 1 flute player.
About the work
Hinetekakara is an ancestress of Aroha Yates-Smith, whose own composition is embedded in mine. The interpretation of her chants is as follows:
- The singer invokes the spirit of her ancestress beside the rippling waters of Lake Rotorua.
- Tuhohomatakaka conducts the tapu-raising ceremony over Ihenga.
- Hinetekakara, participating in the ceremony, meets Ihenga and they fall in love.
- Hinetekakara’s lullaby welcoming her new-born son, Tuariki.
- Ihenga discovers the murdered body of Hinetekakara at the lake.
- The singer farewells her ancestress.
There are 3 other versions of this work.
Hinetekakara for kaikaranga, taonga pūoro and bassoon
Hinetekakara for kaikaranga, taonga pūoro and ensemble
Hinetekakara for kaikaranga, taonga pūoro, flute, alto flute, and bassoon
About Hinetekakara
Many years ago, Hinetekakara lived with her husband (or father, according to some traditions) Ihenga on the edge of Lake Rotorua. Returning from a hunting trip, Ihenga discovered the body of his beloved Hinetekakara by the lake, murdered, and sang his mournful lament. The settlement at Ohinemutu is named for her (meaning ‘the end of the woman’).
Instrumentation
The taonga pūoro played in this piece are, in order:
- pūtatara — conch shell trumpet
- pūtōrino matai — wooden pūtorino
- pūmotomoto — shakuhachi-like wooden flute
- pūpūharakeke — flax snail
- pūkaea — war trumpet, and
- nguru rākau maire — wooden nose flute.
Score
Borrow or buy the score from SOUNZ.
Ngā Hā O Neherā
For bassoon
Ben Hoadley commissioned Ngā Hā o Neherā with funding from the Becroft Trust.
About the work
Ngā Hā o Neherā, which translates from Māori as ‘a breath from the past’ is a 5-movement suite, written after a taonga pūoro wananga at Ohinemutu on the shores of Lake Rotorua.
The first movement is ‘Ngā Hā o Neherā’, (a breath from the past), the second ‘puna wera’, which suggests the continual welling up of hot water from a spring at the edge of the lake, and the third, ‘Mokoia’, suggesting the soundscape of Mokoia Island which, as well as being a major historical site, is also a bird sanctuary. The fourth movement, ‘He pūrakau’ recounts a folk story — not a specific tale, but suggesting the elements of all strong stories.
The last movement, ‘Ohinemutu’, locates the piece in place, and reflects on the story of Hinetekakara, ancestress of the Te Arawa people, whose untimely death gave the place its name.
Scores and recordings
Buy or borrow the score from SOUNZ.
Atoll CDs has released a recording by Ben Hoadley.
The Resound project has made 2 video performances available — one of the whole work and one of the final movement.
Taiohi Taiao
For SATB choir, 2 soloists and taonga pūoro
Text by Aroha Yates-Smith
Taiohi Taiao was commissioned by Tower Voices New Zealand with funding from Creative New Zealand. They gave the first performance at the Otago Festival in October 2004 conducted by Karen Grylls.
About the work
Taiohi Taiao sets a waiata written in 2004 by Aroha Yates-Smith.
koropupu ake ana
nga wai o te matapuna
he wai matao
he wai reka ki te korokoro
he wai tohi i te punua
waiora waimarama wairua
te puna o te tangata
te putanga mai o nga reanga
hei poipoi I nga taonga tuku iho
pukenga wananga
manaaki tangata
tiaki whenua
tamaiti taiohi taiao
Bubbling upwards rise
the waters from the spring
cool, refreshing water
fluid delighting the taste buds
blessing the young
water — life-giving, clear — the spirit.
The springs of humankind
producing generations
who will nurture their inheritance
learning from the storehouse of knowledge
hospitality/generosity to all
guardianship of the land
Child Youth Universe.
The waiata acknowledges the vital role natural springs have in providing clean, delicious drinking water, which nourishes humankind and the wider environment. The water is also used in traditional and contemporary forms of blessing our young. The line ‘waiora waimarama wairua’ refers to the life-giving force of the water, its clarity and purity, and the spiritual essence which pervades it and every life force.
The second verse focuses on the importance of generation after generation preserving all that is important. ‘Te puna o te tangata’ refers to the fountain of humankind, that is, the womb which produces the future progeny of our people. From woman is born humankind — generations of people who continue to nurture and maintain those treasures passed down through eons of time: knowledge and wisdom, the importance of caring for others and looking after the environment.
The final line, ‘tamaiti taiohi taiao’ creates a link between the (tiny) infant, youth and the wider environment, and ultimately the universe.
Instrumentation
The piece is devised so that it can be performed with or without the taonga pūoro — kōauau ponga ihu and kōauau koiwi kuri. In the event that it is sung with the taonga, there can be considerable flexibility to allow the weaving of soloist and kōauau. The kōauau ponga ihu, a nose flute, used in the first verse is a very quiet instrument, while the koauau koiwi kuri has a much stronger voice.
Accidentals refer throughout the bar. Sometimes cautionary accidentals are used. In the sustained pedal sections, staggered breathing should be used to ensure continuity of sound.
Scores and recording
Buy or borrow the score, hire the parts or buy the CD from SOUNZ.
Tower Voices New Zealand have recorded this work.
Two Frame songs
For mezzo-soprano, violin and piano
Texts by Janet Frame
I set these 2 poems for performance at Janet Frame’s memorial service in February 2004 in the Dunedin Town Hall. They were sung by Ana Good, with Sandra Crawshaw (violin) and Joyce Whitehead (piano).
About the work
The poems in this work are: ‘The Place’ and ‘When the sun shines more years than fear’.
Scores
The score is available from SOUNZ.