Music

Te mauri o te awa

Vocal duets and ensembles

For two women’s voices

Text by the composer

The first performance, by Ana Good and Ramonda Te Maiharoa Taleni, was in the middle of the bridge over the Waitaki, on State Highway 1, on Waitangi Day (6 February) 2004 at a festival celebrating the river and the Waitaha people of the area.

About the work

The text of Te mauri o te awa is in te reo Māori and celebrates the Waitaki River in Otago — this work is sometimes called Waitaki.

It describes the journey of the river from the first drop of rain, the first flurry of snow high in the Southern Alps to the dissipating of the force of the river in te moana-nui-a-kiwa, the Pacific Ocean.

Score and recording

Buy or borrow the score from SOUNZ.

Te mauri o te awa — SOUNZ

An archival performance on CD was released in 2004.

Pakiwaitara o te Pouakai; Te heke o te Maiharoa — CD