Lost Songs Found On Māori Television

Scholar, author, farmer, churchman, developer of Māori farming, builder of meeting houses, first Māori university graduate, father of the Māori Battalion, supporter of Māori sport, promoter of the Māori cultural revival, teacher, promoter of Māori broadcasting, developer of Māori education, fundraiser, Ngāti Porou rangatira, member of parliament, cabinet minister, son, husband and father.  And, creator of the action song. Māoridom’s most prolific advocate and embodiment of all things Māori, Sir Apirana Ngata, is remembered in song this week on Māori Television. REMEMBERING THE LOST SONGS OF SIR APIRANA NGATA screens on Wednesday September 29 at 9.30 PM, capturing what takes place when a group of elderly ex-students and descendents gather at Ruatoria.

Produced by director, writer and radio presenter Libby Hakaraia and Blue Bach Productions this year, the documentary pays moving tribute to some of the songs penned to commemorate all things from the opening of the Ruatoria Dairy Company to the heart-wrenching death of his wife and son within the space of a week.

He mahi kai anō, Haere mai rā e te Kāwana, Kia ora rā koutou and more are all performed with honour by the group of kaumatua and kuia, interspersed with archival footage courtesy of New Zealand Television Archives and beautiful cutaway shots of Porourangi Marae. Grandson Henare te Ua also adds dignity and credibility as narrator.

Sir Apirana Ngata filled an extraordinary need for leadership amongst Māori, almost from his birth in 1874 and most certainly until his death in 1950. His contributions to the rehabilitation of Māori language and culture through his art and his encouragement of the rebuilding of tribal meeting houses are considered his greatest.

Discover why on Māori Television this week on REDISCOVERING THE LOST SONGS OF SIR APIRANA NGATA, Wednesday September 29 at 9.30 PM.

PROGRAMMES COMING UP

NGĀ PŪRĀKAU O TE WAO TĀPUNUI – The Great Escape Operation – Monday September 25 at 4.30 PM

Join Mowgli and his jungle friends each day at 4.30 PM in the Jungle Book series, reversioned into te reo Māori. Today, Mowgli is sold by Garo and John to an intermediary who supplies animals for circuses. During the night, he manages to escape from the cage he is being held in.

THE HOLIER IT GETS – Tuesday September 26 at 9.00 PM

When a family of three Indian children raised in the United States return to Mumbai to scatter their father’s ashes, they discover why he had to emigrate and the racial tensions mount. Spritiruality and reflection abound in this American documentary, screening on Māori Television.

RANGATAHI – Wednesday September 29 at 7.00 PM

Presented by Kawariki Morgan and Kihi Ririnui, join tonight’s news-based discussion show for rangatahi. A one-hour studio-based special taking an honest look at ‘Being Māori’, from a rangatahi point of view.

WILD SOUTH – Those Mangroves – Thursday September 30 at 7.00 PM

A mangrove estuary – swamp of greasy, sucking mud, or place of abundant life and hidden beauty? A mangrove estuary in northern New Zealand is explored, revealing it as a fascinating location full of life. (Māori language with English language sub-titles).

BEST OF COAST (PART THREE) : Takutai Wicked Wāhine – Friday October 1 at 9.30 PM

Tonight, it’s all about the ladies! The third instalment in the ‘best of’ COAST series features Anika Moa, the T-Sistaz, Ill Semantics, Emcee Lucia, Nat Rose, Mahinarangi Tocker, Lucid 3, Sara Jane, K’Lee, Kat Theo and Aaradhna. COAST presenters B-gurl Sheeq and Shavaughn also catch up with When the Cat’s Away and pop down to Queenstown to see Girls on Decks.

BLOSSOMS OF FIRE – Saturday October 2 at 3.00 PM

Settle in for a Saturday afternoon documentary film about the legendary women of Juchitan, Mexico. The beauty and strength of the southern Mexican women of Juchitan have inspired legends and songs for centuries and this delightful documentary sets out to separate fact from folklore and uncover the real society.
(Spanish language with English language sub-titles).

TE HĪKOI MĀHANGA – Taranaki – Sunday October 3 at 9.00 PM. - PREMIERE

Te Kauhoe and Wharehoka Wano are identical twins from Taranaki. These cheeky te reo Māori-speaking waxheads have dedicated their lives to surfing. Now, fuelled by a mid-life crisis, the twins decide to embark on a surf hīkoi around coastal North Island marae. In the premiere episode, old age is creeping up on the boys and, in their birth place Taranaki, they decide to pack up the four-wheel drive while they are still capable…. and hit the road!

Getting to Air

Our daily schedule is:

Tuning in to Māori Television

Viewers can tune in to Māori Television in five ways:

To receive Māori Television via the UHF frequency, viewers need to have a UHF aerial and be within the coverage area.

Via Satellite

If viewers are not within our UHF coverage area, they can access Māori Television via satellite by purchasing a satellite dish and receiver from their local television aerial installation service.

SKY Digital subscribers will find Māori Television on Channel 33 of their SKY remotes. They can tune in to Channel 33 now to catch highlights of programmes on Māori Television.

SKY UHF subscribers will find Māori Television on button 6 of their SKY remotes.

Via Saturn TV
If you receive Saturn TV, you can tune into Māori Television through channel button 33. Saturn Customers please: leave your decoders switched on to be able to receive this channel.

For More Information

Check our website www.maoritelevision.com or for guidance on how to tune-in call 0800 MA TATOU ( 0800 62 82868 )

Issue 31, September 27 - October 3

1. Lost Songs Found On Māori Television
2. Programmes Coming Up
3. Getting To Air
4. Tuning in to Māori Television
5. More Information

PROFILE: RAMON TE WAKE

She has toured New York promoting her own independently-created album. She is Māori. She considers the work she has done on Māori Television to be the most significant she has ever done. And, she was born a he.

Meet the fabulous Ramon Te Wake – one of three presenters on Māori Television’s gay, lesbian and transgendered series, TAKATĀPUI.

TAKATĀPUI is a magazine styled programme about Māori, with a queer focus, currently screening on Māori Television on Thursdays at 9.30 PM. Co-presented by Tanya Simon and Taurewa Biddle, Ramon’s addition to the Takatāpui team is a coup.

Ramon’s background is in the music industry, most notably having toured in R&B / Funk band Pure Funk throughout New Zealand during 1995 and 1996. She also holds the prestigious honour of the first transgender girls in New Zealand to appear in music video clips and a Coca Cola commercial!

Although her role on Takatāpui is her first television presenting role and all she knew of the show when she signed up was that it was “gay and a Māori magazine style show”, Ramon has taken to the series like the proverbial duck to water.

“As the programme has progressed, I have gotten to experience a lot of heart, passion and talent that exists within the Takatāpui community. I’m really excited that this community has a light shining on them. And that our stories will be heard,” she says.

On the programme so far, Ramon has interviewed singer Maree Sheehan and talked to Takatāpui about their personal lives, but with the light comes the dark. This week, Ramon and the Takatāpui team tackle the devastating subject of HIV / AIDS and talk death with a Takatāpui funeral director. And, Ramon will be chatting to a hairdresser that coifs and clips hair for charity.