Here's one for the kids! RNZ is proud to be the first to share the new song from te reo Māori teaching resource, Te Kōtare. ‘E Ta Tohorā’ features vocals from Warren Maxwell (Trinity Roots, Little Bushman), and is a song about whales (tohorā)!
Te Kōtare is a te reo Māori music education project made up of 10 songs including ‘E Ta Tohorā’.
The project is a tribute to Jenny Shearer, māmā (mother) and kaiako (teacher), who died in 2015. Jenny had a passion for te reo Māori and education, and wrote a bunch of Māori songs for the kids she taught in her role as an early childhood teacher.
Her husband Grant created Te Kōtare to continue her legacy.
‘E Ta Tohorā’ was written by Jenny, Grant and musician Matiu te Huki. Warren Maxwell’s vocals on the track are backed by Matiu on guitar, ngā taonga pūoro practitioner Al Fraser and a chap called Murray Hewitt on percussion.
The Te Kōtare education packs are currently being distributed to early childhood education centres, kura kaupapa Māori, and primary schools via the Ministry of Education.
Listen to Te Kōtare on Spotify
For more information on Te Kōtare, visit www.tekotare.org.
