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Hirini Melbourne

From HitStory, the pop encyclopedia of School of Rock · Artist

Hirini Melbourne, also known as Sid, was a Māori composer, singer, teacher, poet and writer. He was born on 21 July 1949 in Te Urewera, of the Ngāi Tūhoe and Ngāti Kahungunu tribes, and died on 6 January 2003. He is known for his contribution to the development of Māori music and the revival of Māori culture. He became a teacher, but did not enjoy it, and became an editor of Māori texts at the Ministry of Education in Wellington. From 1978 he worked at the University of Waikato, where he became a professor and dean of the School of Māori and Pacific Development.

Music and breakthrough

Melbourne began writing waiata, songs, early on, often with Māori proverbs. His song E Kui e Koro contains the saying that you should have a second home in case the first fails. He also played the traditional instruments, ngā taonga pūoro. In 1985 he met the ethnomusicologist Richard Nunns. Together they performed on marae, in schools, galleries and concerts, and gathered knowledge about the instruments. Their recordings Toiapiapi from 1991, Te Kū Te Whē from 1994 and Te Hekenga-ā-rangi from 2003 have breathed new life into the use of these instruments. He recorded the last album weeks before his death.

Influence

Melbourne was a member of the protest group Nga Tamatoa. Many of his songs have been sung by others, including Hinewehi Mohi, Moana Maniapoto and the Topp Twins. He received a royal honour from New Zealand for his services to Māori music.

Listening

Listening tip. Listen to Toiapiapi. Notice the soft sounds of the old instruments, such as flutes of bone and wood, and how they sound at once like natural sound and like music.

Discography

Studio albums

Categories: Artists