Maori Music traditions are founded in a creation story where ‘The Gods sang the Universe into Existence’. The musical instruments are therefore parts of the families of the Gods. Tunes are named Rangi after the Sky Father and rhythms come from the heartbeats of Papa, the Earth Mother. From one of their children, Tawhiri Matea, God of the winds, we get the family of wind instruments. From Tangaroa, God of the seas, we get the instruments made from shells. Tane, God of the forest and its creatures, and two of his daughters, Hine pu te Hue and Hine Raukatauri are the ancestors of most of a wide range of musical instruments. Some instruments are a union of these families and in today’s world new materials become substitutes for endangered or extinct ones.
The Rangi or tunes can be heard on CDs, produced by Rattle Records
and available from
www.rattle.co.nz TE KU TE WHE by Hirini Melbourne and Richard Nunns
Hine Raukatauri is a goddess who loved her flute so much that she chose to live inside it. She is personified as the Casemoth which hangs in its bag from the branches and becomes the shape of the unique flute called a Putorino. Her tiny but sweet song becomes the touchstone for flute music.
Flutes are the most common of the large range of Maori instruments and there are many different types made from a variety of materials. Traditionally they are considered as treasures and used for entertainment and also as a medium for a variety of spiritual rituals from healing to communication with the divine.
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