Can Maori Chant Survive? by Mervyn McLean In almost every tribal area the traditional songs or waiata of the Maori people are now being heard less and less, and competent performers are becoming fewer. One is constantly told, ‘When the old people were alive it was different, but now there's hardly anyone left.’ At tangis and huis it sometimes happens that none of the old songs is performed at all, and it is left for action songs to fill the gap. Why should this be so? And can anything be done about it? This article will examine some of the reasons for the current decline of the traditional songs, and will try to suggest remedies. At the conclusion of the article, new means will be described which are becoming available to aid the revival of the songs. That the songs are worth saving there can be no doubt. Their literary merit has been attested again and again. And it is beginning to be realised also that their musical merit is just as great.
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Te Ao Hou, June 1964, Page 34
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173Can Maori Chant Survive? Te Ao Hou, June 1964, Page 34
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The Secretary Maori Purposes Fund Board
C/- Te Puni Kokiri
PO Box 3943
WELLINGTON
Phone: (04) 922 6000
Email: MB-RPO-MPF@tpk.govt.nz
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