<
https://theconversation.com/her-song-features-in-ryan-goslings-hit-movie-but-erima-maewa-kaihau-was-once-a-star-too-279326>
"Hollywood science fiction blockbuster
Project Hail Mary, starring Ryan
Gosling, opened to generally positive reviews and strong box office receipts,
but in Aotearoa New Zealand it made news for another reason.
Local audiences were surprised, and seemingly delighted, by the movie’s
soundtrack featuring a song in te reo Māori, alongside tracks by the Beatles
and Harry Styles.
The waiata (song) in question is a version of
Pō Atarau, sung by the Turakina
Māori Girls Choir, a bittersweet song of farewell. In a film about a human and
an alien learning each other’s language and coming to care for each other, it
is also remarkably fitting.
Known and loved by many,
Pō Atarau first appeared in the mid-1910s when Māori
words were added to the tune of a popular piano piece known as the
Swiss
Cradle Song composed by Australian Clement Scott.
The waiata circulated within Aotearoa as
Pō Atarau or
Haere Rā and was
often included in cultural performances for tourists. Visiting Rotorua in the
1940s, British actress and singer Gracie Fields heard the song sung at the home
of tourist guide Rangitīaria Dennan.
It soon shot to worldwide fame, performed in English as
The Māori Farewell or
Now is the Hour, recorded by various artists including Fields, Bing Crosby
and Vera Lynn. But despite the song’s extraordinary popularity, most people
know little about the woman credited with its lyrics and adapted tune, Erima
Maewa Kaihau (1879–1941)."
Share and enjoy,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
