Language Preservation and Māori: A Musical Perspective By Robert Wiremu

“Humanity today is facing a at worst can elicit a fi erce response. will return to this. In the meantime, massive extinction: languages However, in her article “Why we we should look at a highly publicized are disappearing at an unprec- need to pause before claiming example of alleged appropriation, edented pace. And when that cultural appropriation,” Ash albeit one that appears to have had happens, a unique vision of Sarkar explains: “The appropriation a positive outcome. the world is lost. With every debate peddles a comforting lie that A legal dispute arose over the Ger- language that dies we lose an there’s such thing as a stable and man band Enigma’s use of a song enormous cultural heritage; authentic connection to culture that sample by two aboriginal Taiwan- the understanding of how can remain intact after the seismic ese singers in the band’s (ironically humans relate to the world interruptions of colonialism and mi- named) song “Return to Innocence.” around us; scientifi c, medical gration.”3 Enigma saw the song reach number and botanical knowledge; and The questions then arise. Can one in four countries and the top ten most importantly, we lose the appropriation be positive? Can the in six others. Producer Michael Cre- expression of communities’ apparent benefi ts outweigh the neg- tu claimed that he believed the sam- humor, love and life. In short, atives? Western music faces similar ple was in the public domain, while we lose the testimony of centu- questions. Is it appropriation or ar- the original singers, Difang and Igay ries of life.”1 tistic theft? Appropriation or cultur- Duana (Chinese name Kuo), were al pastiche? Appropriation or valid initially unaware of this use of their To a young and inexperienced, arrangement? Appropriation or def- recording. Enigma denied them any classically trained musician, the erential homage? If we extrapolate recompense, forcing them into liti- practice of Māori kai-tito waiata from our second quotation at the gation. Eventually the case was set- (songwriters) borrowing from west- start, appropriation is when mem- tled out of court for an undisclosed ern music seemed illicit, rule-break- bers of a powerful (often fi rst-world) amount, and all further releases of ing, taboo. Appropriation, which culture exploit those of a subordi- the song were credited, with royal- is defi ned as “the taking or use of nate (often third- or fourth-world) ties, to the Duanas. another culture involving a power culture, with negligible benefi t to the Another example of appropria- diff erential, in which the powerful latter. According to this defi nition, tion, and a very high-profi le one in appropriate from the subordinate appropriation cannot be commit- the New Zealand context, has not people,”2 is not usually seen in a pos- ted by third- or fourth-world parties been resolved so cleanly. The All itive light; it’s awkward at best and against fi rst-world groups, but we Blacks, the national rugby team, are

CHORAL JOURNAL March 2020 Volume 60 Number 8 41 Deadline: October 1 • visit acda.org/brock for more information and to apply Language Preservation and Māori: A Musical Perspective

famous not only for their winning Property Offi ce has since declined ELP also identifi es a shift from a fo- record but also for the “haka” they every application. Ngati Toa says cus just on church and marae (the tra- chant before every game. It begins their aim is acknowledgement, not ditional meeting place for a tribe or somewhat ominously with the words restriction or commercial gain. This extended family) for language pres- “Ka mate! Ka mate!” (To die! To is appropriation writ large with text, ervation to educational facilities, and die!). It was composed in about 1820 meaning authorship, “ownership,” projections of decline are in stark by the great chieftain Te Rauparaha and cultural signifi cance all neglect- contrast to a swing toward revitaliza- as part of a longer chant4 that makes ed or deliberately ignored. Some tion in recent times. Adult learning the context clearer, but despite its Māori composers have contributed classes for Pākehā (European New universal familiarity amongst New to the preservation of their language Zealanders) and Māori have wait- Zealanders, few would know what it by means of reverse appropriation ing lists for te reo courses,8 and news means or even who wrote it. Worse, through the adaptation of Western announcers on radio and television the haka’s popularity has led to melodies to new Māori texts. use Māori greetings regularly. Un- its unsanctioned performance all fortunately, the census will no longer around the world, notably by young monitor Māori language profi ciency expatriates in the UK who use it An Endangered Language indicators. during their annual ANZAC (World The Māori language (known in As the urbanization of the War veterans) pub-crawl and by oth- New Zealand as “te reo Māori” or mid-twentieth century brought er international sports teams, often just “te reo”) has had a problemat- many more Māori and Pākehā into in parody! ic history since colonization. Lan- close proximity, the speaking of te According to the All Blacks web- guage transmits knowledge, history, reo was often discouraged. Policies site, “Many sports teams and indi- and culture. Loss of language means to prevent its use in schools were viduals travelling from New Zealand loss of all these.6 This is particularly implemented, and corporal punish- overseas tend to have the haka ‘Ka true of cultures that are orally trans- ment against children who spoke it mate’ as part of their programme. mitted and have no written record. (even in the playground) was widely The sports team that has given the Māori knowledge, history, and cul- administered. Māori themselves be- haka the greatest exposure overseas ture were all transmitted orally; they gan to question the relevance of te has been the All Blacks, who per- were not recorded in writing until reo in a Pākehā-dominated world; form it before their matches. It has the late 1700s. Māori language pres- some Māori leaders even advocat- become a distinctive feature of the ervation is crucial in preserving all ed for the full adoption of western All Blacks.”5 This may be true, but three of these human constructions, culture and the English language at it was used by the team for nearly a and music— globally and locally—is the expense of their own. By 1980, century years without the consent of one of the most important vehicles fl uency in their own language, and Te Rauparaha’s Ngati Toa tribe who for their preservation. the sense of pride that would have owned it or, more correctly, were its The Endangered Languages Proj- accompanied it, had been denied to guardians. The All Blacks fi rst per- ect (ELP) defi nes the Māori language entire generations of Māori people.9 formance of the chant was before a as endangered.7 Statistics from the In 1982, Kōhanga Reo (language match against Scotland in 1905, but 2013 New Zealand Census show nests) were introduced, with the pur- it was not until the mid-2000s that that most fl uent Māori-speakers pose of immersing infants in te reo Ngati Toa reached out and off ered a are sixty-fi ve or older. Of 600,000 prior to attending primary school. formal arrangement between them- people who identify as Māori, just Kura Kaupapa Māori (language selves and New Zealand Rugby. In- 127,000 speak te reo either as their immersion schools that included sec- cidentally, the fi rst attempt by Ngati fi rst or second language. For the next ondary school programs) appeared Toa to trademark “Ka mate” was fi fteen years or so, the statistics off er in 1989. This has provided a full refused in 1988, and the Intellectual worsening projections. However, the schooling plan for linguistic and cul-

42 CHORAL JOURNAL March 2020 Volume 60 Number 8 tural continuity and has brought a end William Williams, that gained The simplest defence of reverse decided improvement in attitudes to primacy with his Māori Dictionary appropriation as a method of lan- te reo, certainly among Māori and of 1844.10 Williams’s volume was an guage preservation is survival. Te to an extent in the wider community. impressive achievement for its time, reo Māori is not likely to be adopt- (These initiatives are in stark con- but it is remarkable that it took 150 ed globally, or even nationally, and trast to the native schools of the ear- years (during which time scholar- will therefore remain a marginal ly twentieth century, which can be ship had, of course, advanced con- language. With 417 languages on regarded as assimilation institutions, siderably) for the fi rst such work by the verge of extinction (according even though they were considered Māori scholars to appear: the 1993 to UNESCO’s Atlas of Languages in unduly important by native commu- English-Māori Dictionary by H. M. Danger of Disappearing), the suprem- nities; often the school principal was Hgata and his son, Whai. acy of the major languages (Man- the most politically powerful person in such places.) While Pākehā acceptance of te reo has warmed noticeably, there Glossary of Māori Terms are still areas in which the European majority is tone-deaf. Many places Māori: Ordinary, normal, plain, usual, common, natural, indigenous in New Zealand have retained their traditional Māori names, while other Kai-tito waiata: Composer names have been lost or memorial- -“kai” as a prefi x indicates the person doing an action ized only in historical records. How- - “tito” is to create, fabricate, and compose ever, the names that continue to exist - “waiata” can be used as a verb and/or as a noun for “singing” are very often subject to unintention- or “song” al or deliberate mispronunciation by non-speakers, which can render Marae: the traditional communal space of the family/subtribe/tribe them unrecognizable to those who with buildings for meeting, eating and cooking, food storage, and speak the language. Despite the sta- sleeping tus of te reo as one of the two offi cial spoken languages of New Zealand, it Kohanga reo: Language nest, pre-school level is incomprehensible to many Māori that its pronunciation is problematic Kohanga: nest for most New Zealanders, especially Reo: language since it was fi rst transcribed phonet- ically by English speakers and is en- Kura Kaupapa Māori: Māori Immersion School tirely consistent in the pronunciation - “Kura” is a transliteration of the English “school” of its vowels and consonants. - “Kaupapa” is agenda, topic, policy Early attempts at transcribing the - “Māori” is indigenous Māori language date back to Captain James Cook’s journals of 1769, but Haka: posture dance it wasn’t until 1815 that missionary Thomas Kendall, with the support Ngati Maniapoto: a tribe in the Tainui Confederation of Tribes in the of chiefs Hongi Hika and Titore, western central region of the North Island made eff orts to discern a vocabulary and grammar. However, it was the Waikato: a western central region of the North Island work of another missionary, Rever-

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darin, English, Hindi, Spanish, and Māori pop singer Hinewehi Mohi tic products such as poetry, painting, Arabic) increases. The predicament also swapped the verse order. The and carving, and the act of perform- of te reo is unsurprising: language reaction was immediate and intense. ing, as in singing, playing instru- and culture are organic, the Māori Debate raged in the community and ments, and dancing. It also includes language is not useful economically, the media; Mohi was targeted as a the preparation and sharing of food. and there are too few Māori to have troublemaker and subjected to bully- What may be strange to non-Māori a signifi cant eff ect on global markers ing and threats of physical violence. is that this concept of divinity can of success. Consequent rejection of Eventually the furore died down, also extend to children as the most the language by Māori themselves and today Hinewehi Mohi’s version sacred creative product of all. Such because of its perceived lack of rele- has become the norm.11 products and activities elevate the vance is virtually its death knell. While this may not quite be an ex- mana (dignity) of the producer/per- Perhaps the greatest boost to the ample of reverse appropriation, it is former and the recipient/audience, health of te reo Māori, at least with- clear evidence of how a tune import- through sharing and inspiration. in the wider New Zealand setting, ant to the colonial majority can be Creativity is a corporate concept. came from an unexpected source. used as a vehicle to popularise, and This might be seen as “having it New Zealand has two national an- perhaps help preserve, the indigenous both ways”: that members of a third- thems: “God save the Queen,” language. Recently, the twentieth an- world culture or colonized people which is shared throughout the niversary of that controversial event object to having their culture misap- British Commonwealth, and “God was celebrated with the release of an propriated and yet are prepared to Defend New Zealand.” The latter album of New Zealand pop classics justify their own borrowings on the anthem, the only one still regularly performed in the Māori language by grounds that art is communal prop- performed, is very much of colonial the original bands and singers, some erty. We can, however, return here to origin—it came from a poem by Irish of whom are not Māori and do not our original defi nition of appropria- immigrant Thomas Bracken, with a speak te reo. New Zealand seemed to tion, which presupposes that any act hymn-like tune later composed for have healed that 1999 wound and in- of appropriation must happen with- it by Australian-born John Joseph deed transformed it into something in the context of a power imbalance. Woods. Even its translation into positive. Most Kiwis now sing the The use of the term reverse appro- Māori was done by English-born fi rst verse of the anthem with gusto, priation would, therefore, imply that Thomas Henry Smith, a judge in the and all under the age of about forty it confers some benefi t on the less Native Land Court. know it by heart. powerful party. Such a context out- For most of its life, “God Defend In Māori traditional thinking, one come might generally be perceived New Zealand” was sung only in En- belongs to one’s creative work as as positive, even in the fi rst world, glish, with the Māori verse (not a much as the creative work belongs given that it is more likely to promote direct translation) occasionally ap- to its creator; it is like belonging to greater third/fourth-world self-de- pended. Perhaps the fi rst time this a place as opposed to owning it. In termination, monetisation, creative was reversed in public was when the cases where the individual creator ownership, cultural expansion, and NZ National Youth Choir performed is anonymous or where the creative potential for collaboration. the anthem with its Māori verse fi rst work has been made corporately, at- A practice that certainly could at their 1982 recital in London’s tribution is assigned to the collective. be termed reverse appropriation is Wembley Concert Hall with Kiri Te Creativity of all sorts is considered the way Māori composers have con- Kanawa. For reasons no doubt fa- sacred (or “tapu,” from which we get tributed to the preservation of their miliar to choral readers, this was not the English word taboo). Creativity is language through the adaptation widely publicised. Seventeen years rooted in the “divinity” of the per- of Western popular songs to new- later, before an All Blacks match son and is therefore considered a de- ly composed Māori texts. Bradford at Twickenham (also in London), ifi ed product. This can include artis- Haami defi nes this process in his

44 CHORAL JOURNAL March 2020 Volume 60 Number 8 book Ka mau te wehi: Taking haka to that it was reverse-appropriated but the other hand, “hokowhitu” (the the world: “The art of adaptation by also that it alluded to the sacrifi ce of number 140 in the song) is a relic kai-tito waiata [composers] was the many Māori for a distant war in a of a now archaic numbering system skill of knowing how to fi t an old place that had no cultural historical based on 20. (Hoko means “a score” song or tune to new settings to im- signifi cance for them. or 20, and “whitu” 7, so “hokow- press an audience; there was no such Another song in similar vein, hitu” is 20x7.) The dominance of the thing as copyright. Paraire Tomoana, though with a less involved backsto- Western decimal system would have Kingi Tahiwi, Tuini Ngawai, Ngoi ry, is “Arohaina mai” (“Show com- subsumed this pre-colonial form had Pewhairangi, Tommy Taurima, Bill passion”). In 1940, composer Tuini it not been for songs like this. Kerekere, and various known and Ngawai was asked by the prominent unknown collectives adapted foreign New Zealand statesman Sir Apirana songs and tunes from their era, ei- Ngata to write a song for families to Conclusion ther translating them into Māori or sing at the dock as more young men The more examples we study of rewriting the words to create new sailed off to yet another European such borrowings, the more it be- songs which would appeal to the war. As its tune, she chose George comes clear that there was never people.”12 Gershwin’s “Love Walked In” from an intention to off end the original The Goldwyn Follies for its familiari- composer or to consider them a ty, immediate appeal, and aptness quid pro quo in retaliation for colo- Compositions of mood. Gershwin’s original was nization. But whatever a particular Clement Scott’s “Swiss Cradle about driving away shadows and writer’s motives were at the time of Song” (published in Australia by unspoken love; the lyrics here asked composition, the results have been W.H. Paling13 in 1913) was originally for a blessing of protection over the mostly positive: the preservation of written as a piano solo. It became a young soldiers. The song became the certain language patterns and words, song with words, called “Pō atarau,” unoffi cial anthem of the country’s the retention of signifi cant histori- when the boys of Te Aute College in 28th (Māori) Battalion and remains cal and institutional knowledge, the New Zealand’s Hawkes Bay sang it popular today. promotion of te reo within the wider as a farewell to fellow students and In her “E te hokowhitu a Tu,” Tu- community. We will never know how graduates departing for war in 1914 ini Ngawai adapted not a fi lm song much of the language had already and 1915, although the source of the this time but a chart-topper, Glenn been lost and of the knowledge, his- Māori lyrics has been lost. Original- Miller’s “In the mood” of 1940. This tory, and culture that went along with ly a cradle song in 4/4, it was trans- song exhorts the young men to brav- it, but songs undoubtedly helped halt formed into a sad waltz in 3/4 and ery when fi ghting for God, King, the slide. was given an English translation by and Country in a war that, again, Kai-tito waiata like Ngawai, Pe- Maewa Kaihau, who also altered may have seemed unconnected to whairangi, Taurima, Tahiwi and the tune slightly and added another them. The main section glorifi es the others used familiar pop songs as Māori version. Because of its global 140-strong troupe of the War God, hooks and fi lm soundtracks to appeal success following the release of re- Tu, and tells them that success relies to younger Māori to keep their per- cordings by Gracie Fields, Bing Cros- heavily on their ability to stay united. formance groups going. They used by and many others in its best-known An additional verse commemorates the most readily available and plen- version, “Now is the hour (when we the fallen hero Moana-nui-a-Kiwa tiful resources, “western” songs—the must say goodbye),” “Pō atarau” has Ngarimu, whose posthumous award music that just happened to be pop- enjoyed consistent popularity, partic- of the highest military honor, the ular in an increasingly marginalized ularly among New Zealanders. It is Victoria Cross, gave great pride to minority. Māori culture had been worth remembering, however, that all Māori and provided a model of systematically isolated, the language its complex history includes the fact citizenship to other Māori men. On was stagnating, and pride in being

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Māori was waning in the face of ag- Орлин Вълчев (July 5, 2014) The accessed January 20, 2020. https:// gressive modernisation. All these had Glenn Miller Orchestra -- (1941) In www.rnz.co.nz/news/te-manu- to evolve to survive. To date, music the Mood [High Quality Enhanced korihi/351351/hundreds-on-wait- has played its part. Sound] [video fi le]. Retrieved lists-for-beginner-reo-classes from https://www.youtube.com/ 9 NZ History, “Te Wiki o Te Reo Robert Wiremu is a professional watch?v=6vOUYry_5Nw Maori – Maori Language Week,” teaching fellow at the University of accessed January 10, 2020, https:// Auckland and highly regarded New Ridpath, Ian (Feb 23, 2019) Wow!!! nzhistory.govt.nz/culture/maori- Zealand composer. He studied at te reo Māori rendition of Bohemi- language-week/history-of-the- Victoria University, the University an Rhapsody [video fi le]. Retrieved maori-language. of Auckland, and Queensland Con- from https://www.youtube.com/ 10 “Maori Language,” from An servatory of Music. watch?v=mKCrrTuYnmU Encyclopaedia of New Zealand, ed. A. H. McLintock, originally published in 1966. Te Ara - the Encyclopedia Video Resources NOTES of New Zealand, http://www. TeAra.govt.nz/en/1966/Māori- gf1001 (June 19, 2010) Gracie 1 “The Endangered Languages Project,” language (accessed 29 Nov 2019). Fields Now Is The Hour 1947 (The accessed January 10, 2020, www. 11 Lana Andelane, NewsHub, “‘It Original) [video fi le]. Retrieved endangeredlanguages.com/about/. caused a sensation’: Hinewehi from https://www.youtube.com/ 2 What is Music of Fourth World; Mohi refl ects on singing national watch?v=jeVI1apgT0w “Appropriation vs. Reverse anthem in Maori,” October 9, Appropriation” (April 18, 2011), 2019; accessed January 20, 2020, Howard Morrison Quartet – Topic accessed January 10, 2020, https://www.newshub.co.nz/ (September 26, 2017) Po Atarau - https://esquible.wordpress. home/new-zealand/2019/09/ Now Is The Hour [video fi le]. Re- com/2011/04/18/appropriation- it-caused-a-sensation-hinewehi- trieved from https://www.youtube. vs-reverse-appropriation/ mohi-refl ects-on-singing-national- com/watch?v=gzQgyBzNi6E 3 Ash Sarkar, “Why we need to anthem-in-m-ori.html. pause before claiming cultural 12 Bradford Haami, “Ka mau te wehi: Members of the 28 Mäori Battal- appropriation,” in The Guardian taking haka to the world, Bub and ion—Topic (March 17, 2015) Aro- (April 2019). Nen’s story,” published by The haina Mai [video fi le]. Retrieved 4“New Zealand in History,” accessed Ngapo and Pimia Wehi Whanau from https://www.youtube.com/ January 10, 2020, http://history- Trust (2013). watch?v=CCaUpdp2w8Q nz.org/rauparaha.html. 13 Language historian Max Cryer notes 5 All Blacks; “The Haka,” https://www. that Paling created the pseudonym GoldenAgeMovies (May 7, 2011) allblacks.com/the-haka/ Clement Scott but refused to reveal Kenny Baker sings Love walked in 6 For more information on Endangered his real identity. In 2000, family (1938) [video fi le]. Retrieved https:// Languages, visit: http://www. of the late Albert Saunders sued www.youtube.com/watch?v=7W- endangeredlanguages.com Paling for failure to acknowledge kbu12-cU 7 Endangered Languages Project, “Language Albert’s 300+ contributions, and metadata” http://www. particularly the “Swiss Cradle Howard Morrison Quartet – Top- endangeredlanguages.com/ Song”—unsuccessfully, as it turned ic (September 26, 2017) E Te Ho- lang/3571 out. However, the Australian kowhitu [video fi le]> Retrieved 8 Te Aniwa Hurihanganui, “Hundreds National Library now holds a copy from https://www.youtube.com/ on wait-lists for beginner reo of “Now is the Hour,” “composed watch?v=XMlknVHerm8 classes,” RNZ (February 28, 2018), by A.B. Saunders.”

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