'From the weathered tree a flower will bloom': waiata for a tough year

Tuesday, 13 October 2020

Rangatahi from Ngāti Apa ki te Rā Tō have celebrated their five-year milestone with a catchy new waiata.

A waiata starring rangatahi from Ngāti Apa ki te Rā Tō is lifting spirits near the end of a tough year.

The music video ‘He Pito Mata’ was composed and recorded last year to celebrate five years of the top of the south iwi’s cultural revitalisation programme for youth, Mana Rangatahi.

Ngāti Apa ki te Rā Tō cultural advisor Kiley Nepia said the waiata was about celebrating the success of the programme, while recognising the history of the iwi.

“He pito mata is part of a proverb, and translated into English it means ‘from the weathered tree a flower will bloom’.

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The recently released ‘He Pito Mata’ from Marlborough rangatahi has been well received (pictured: Mareikura Nepia)

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The song was composed by Māori musician Tawaroa Kawana (right, pictured with Manaia Bird).

“Ngāti Apa ki te Rā Tō, like most iwi, have been through a horrific ordeal in terms of loss of language, loss of cultural identity, loss of land, and that’s all had an effect on us.

“The first verse talks about how we’ve had our land taken and our language has been taken, but we still need to dig deep and help to revitalise our culture.

Ngāti Apa ki te Rā Tō cultural advisor Kiley Nepia said Mana Rangatahi was about a revitalisation of culture.

“The second verse goes on to celebrate this kaupapa of Mana Rangatahi … and then it encourages again all of our rangatahi to learn who you are, learn about your culture, stand proud and be proud of who you are.”

The song was written by Māori musician Tawaroa Kawana last year, and had been intended to be released earlier in 2020.

Around 10 rangitahi took part in the recording of the video (pictured: Ohomairangi Tawaka).

Nepia said the onset of the coronavirus pandemic had not felt like the right time to release the video.

“Covid kicked in just before we were about to launch it, and just as we were coming out of lockdown we decided that people needed to have some happy vibes.”

The iwi’s cultural revitalization programme for youth, Mana Rangatahi brings together rangatahi from across the rohe for a wananga twice a year.

Nepia said the wananga was about enhancing te reo Māori and cultural practices, and forming strong relationships.

“We know that the bringing together of our youth in a cultural sense, and the teaching of te reo and tikanga cultural practices doesn’t naturally occur.

“They learn how to stand up and do their cultural pepeha, they learn Te reo Māori, they learn how to do waiata.

“One of the most important things they learn is how to build a relationship with each other because we’ve been so disenfranchised that some of those rangatahi don’t have a connection with each other.”

After five years, Mana Rangatahi had helped to foster strong relationships and a pride in their cultural identity, which was celebrated through He Pito Mata.

“We now have a group of rangatahi that are now well connected to their tribe, they know their tribal narratives, they know their pūrākau stories, they’re confident in who they are.

“They’re proud of being Māori, but specifically they’re proud of being Ngāti Apa as well.”