Tihei, mauri ora ki te ao marama!
Ka mama rà tara ki uta,
Ka mama rà tara ki tai,
Ka mama rà kai ariki;
Tihei, tohe ora!

Breathe, life spirit in the light of day!
There is plenty inland,
Plenty in the sea,
Enough food even for a chief;
Breathe, living soul!

Anon. – an ancient chant, thought originally to be part of the ‘tohi’ or baptismal rite, it has been incorporated into many other chants. This is a simple, but exuberant two part setting, the only one in which the clarinet is silent.

E tama i whanake i te ata o Pipiri,
Piki, nau ake, e tama,
Ki tòu tini i te rangi;
E puta rànei koe, e tama, i te wà kaikino nei?
Taku tamaiti, hohoro te korikori
Kia tae atu koe ki te wai ahupuke i ò tìpuna,
Kia wetea mai ko te tòpuni tauwhàinga
Hei kahu mòhou ki te whakarewanga taua.
Ko te toroa uta, nàku i tautara ki te akerautangi,
Ko te toroa tai, nàku i kapu mai i te huka o te tai,
Whakangaro ana ki ngà tai rutu ì.

Son, born on a winter morning,
Climb up, ascend my boy,
To meet your many ancestors in heaven;
Will you survive these evil times?
My child, go quickly
So you may reach the sacred waters of your forefathers,
And they may pass on to you the black dogskin cloak of war
To wear when the expeditions set forth.
I have bound the red kaka feather to my weapon,
I have caught the albatross feather from the foaming waves,
Just as it was sinking in stormy waters.

Noho-mai-te-rangi – high chief of Ngàti Kahungungu (Hawkes Bay) in the mid-18th century, composed this for his son, Te Hauapo. As with many ‘oriori’ it exhorts the child to seek the knowledge of his ancestors in order to rescue his tribe from misfortune as his father has done in the past. ‘Te toroa uta’ – the land albatross, is a poetical term for the kaka (a bush parrot). This setting is for double choir with tenor and bass soloists. It incorporates rhythmic spoken and whispered passages.

E patu ana ahau, e patu ana koe!
Taku ràkau tohe ki te riri,
I nawhea ia rà? I ngà pàhake!
E hau ana taku patu, ko Poroku!
I tuituia i te hinapòuri,
I whakawhetù ai aku kanohi!
Auè! Ka ao te rà, è!

I strike, you strike!
My weapon is strong in battle,
Where does it come from? From ancient times!
My club moves swiftly, it’s called Poroku!
Its thong was tied in darkness,
So my eyes would be like stars!
Oh! It is day, ah!

Anon. – in this very ancient song the image of daylight conquering darkness is associated with success in battle. Darkness is also an image for ‘the mists of time’. For double choir and incorporating pitched, rhythmic speech and body percussion.

Kapokapo kau ana te whetù i te rangi;
Ko Meremere anù tàku e hiko atu,
Tauhòkai ana Kòpù i te ata;
Ko taku teina tonu tènei ka hoki mai!
Taku tau kahurangi ka makere i ahau;
Nàku i tuku atu i te hinapòuri,
Ngà tìtahatanga i waho Te Tahua,
E whano ana rà ki te kaweàriri,
Kia tù mai koe i mua i te ùpoko
I te whana tukutahi, i te nui ’Àti Tahu,
Kia pùhia koe te ahi a te tipua,
Kia whakamuraia te paura o tawhiti;
Haehaea koe ki te mahi a tipua,
Kia rewa tò hinu ki roto o Kaituna;
Kia whakataukì au, è, he mamae nà ì!
Iri mai, e pà, i runga i te atamira,
Kupa mai, e te hoa, kia rongo atu au
I te tàkiritanga o te ata, nà ì!
Me whakahoki koe ngà matatàhuna
I waho o Tauranga; Ma ò pòtiki
Koe e hurihuri iho ki te papa o te waka,
Kia tirohia iho tò kiri rauiti,
Tò mata i haea ki te toroa-à-tai,
He toroa tatakì nù runga Karewa, nà ì!

The stars flash brightly in the sky;
I see the evening star shining,
And the morning star floating up at dawn;
It is my brother returning!
My dearest treasure was abandoned by me;
I allowed him to go, in darkness,
Down the winding paths beyond Te Tahua,
Going forth to battle,
Charging at the head
Of the multitude of Ngati Tahu,
The demon’s fire was hurled at you,
The powder was set ablaze from afar;
You were slashed with the demon’s weapon,
And your blood floated down Kaituna river;
And I grieve for you, what pain, oh, alas!
Lie there on that funeral platform,
Or soar away, my friend, so I may hear you
At the break of day, alas!
They will take you back to the beaches
Beyond Tauranga; Your sons
Will turn you about in the bottom of the canoe,
To gaze on your beautiful body,
Your face tatooed with the albatross bone,
An albatross from Karewa, alas!

Hòri Tupaea (ca. 1800-81) – high chief of Ngàiterangi in the Tauranga district composed this lament for his younger brother, Te Korohiko. The term ‘tipua’ – demons, often referred to Europeans. This musical setting shares many features with the original chant, including the displacement of natural word stresses and the incorporation of a break in the middle of a phrase or word, both devices serving to heighten expressive power. For TTBB with tenor and bass soloists. Contains simple passages of sustained, three-part whistling.