Tamarii Tipaerui

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

Tamarii Tipaerui is a vocal group from Tahiti. Its name appears on a recording of a himene tarava, made in Papeete, the island's capital. A himene is a sung song in the Polynesian choral tradition, and tarava is the name of the Tahitian variant, which is performed by groups of singers. The recording was made by the English composer and explorer David Fanshawe, who recorded and preserved a great deal of the islanders' singing and music in the South Pacific.

Music and breakthrough

The singing of such a himene is polyphonic and unaccompanied. Several voices sing at once, each with a line of its own, so that a broad, rolling sound arises. This has nothing to do with Western choral singing from a book, although the Christian mission in the region did play a part in the development of the himene. It is above all a living tradition of the islands themselves.

Influence

Little has been written about this group, and that is really the point. The music of Tamarii Tipaerui reached pop history through other people's recordings. Fanshawe's material was later used by the Australian band Gang of Youths, who in 2022 worked fragments of Tahitian himene tarava into their album Angel in Realtime. In this way an old Tahitian choral tradition now resounds in pop music.

Listening

• 
  Himene tarava · Tamarii Tipaerui, 1986

See also

• Himene tārava