October 24, 2019
Waterfall gives clues to origin of lost waiata
One of the Victoria University academics behind a short film to be premiered at Wellington’s Rā Maumahara ceremony next Monday says it uncovers a story of hope and resilience among his Ngāti Hauā iwi.
The film is based on a manuscript of waiata and other material collected from prisoners captured at the Battle of Rangiriri in 1863.
Mike Ross says his colleague Arini Loader from Ngāti Raukawa found the manuscript in Auckland Library’s Sir George Grey Collection and alerted him to a waiata from his Ngāti Hauā people.
The waiata probably dates to the end of the 1700s when its composer Rangiparia was in a depressed state and went to sit under a waterfall in the Piako River.
"At the back of our marae at Kai a te Mata the Piako flows by and there is a swimming hole the family still use and in that swimming hole there's a waterfall and a cave you can sit under. There's nowhere else along the river that has those features and so I thought this definitely must have been written by one of our own whānau at that time," Dr Ross says.
He shared the waiata with whānau at Te Wharekura o Te Rau Aroha in Morrinsville, and when he heard the children singing it he had the idea for the film to celebrate Ngāti Hauā’s history and resilience.
The film of the waiata E Whiti E Te Raa: Shine will premiere at Wellington’s City Gallery on 28 October.
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