Māwai Hakona Display (Waitangi Day 2018)

Māwai Hakona (originally Māwai Akona and sometimes written as Mā-wai-hakona) had  its beginnings in the campaign to raise funds for the Māori Education Foundation in 1962. Ad hoc Māori concert parties were put together for fundraising purposes with some of the participants then deciding to create something more permanent. Upper Hutt’s Māori  population had begun to significantly increase in the Postwar period, due to migration  from more rural regions, but there was no Māori organisation in the area at that time to  address these cultural needs. Māwai Hakona, which took its name from the stream that  runs through Trentham Memorial Park, aimed to fill this gap. The club was also committed  to being inclusive, welcoming anyone with a genuine interest in Maori culture.  Significant numbers of local Pākehā and Pacific Islanders were always an important part  of its membership. As Jock McEwen, one of its important early leaders, noted in a local  newspaper article, Māwai Hakona was “simply for New Zealanders”.   

Māwai Hakona’s first practice rooms were in an old theatre building at Trentham Army  Camp. When the Army eventually decided to demolish this building the group needed  to find a new meeting place. Silverstream Hall became their new home and they met  there for practice every Sunday throughout the 1960s. Amongst former members’ fond  memories of their time at Silverstream Hall was the time a delegation of Native Americans  paid a visit, sharing their own music and dancing. Māwai Hakona’s final move was to  Ōrongomai Marae after this was constructed in the 1970s.  

Right from its very beginning Māwai Hakona was an active participant in local affairs.  The group performed and helped raise funds for numerous local organisations, including  schools, churches, sports clubs, the Plunkett Society, the RSA, Scouts, and the Hapai Club.  They became a fixture at big events in Upper Hutt, playing a prominent role on such  significant occasions as the official proclamation of Upper Hutt as a city in 1966 and the  opening of the Council’s new Civic Administration complex in 1969.  Māwai Hakona were  also much in demand from government departments in Wellington to welcome and  entertain visiting dignitaries. Official occasions of this kind included performing for the  Commonwealth Parliamentary Association, the South East Asia Treaty Organizations  conference, and the visit of the Canadian Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau.    

With the growth of the number of Maori cultural clubs in the Wellington area it was  decided to set up a Wellington regional competition. Māwai Hakona entered their first  competition in 1963 after only one year in existence: they came in last. Only two years  later, though, after considerable hard work, they won their first trophy, the Kingi Tahiwi  Memorial Cup. This was for best action song, the group using an original composition  about how Maui first brought fire to the world. Māwai Hakona went on to claim this cup  several more times, as well as winning awards for best poi, best ancient waiata, best  choral, best haka, and the Apirana Ngata trophy for highest aggregate points.  With the setting up of national competitions in 1971, Māwai Hakona  began competing  against the whole of New Zealand. They proved very successful, winning several national  trophies as well as also being declared overall winner or runner-up.

One of the things that made Māwai Hakona stand out from other Maori Concert groups,  especially in the early days, was its use of original compositions. Rather than simply  fitting Maori words to Western pop songs – as was the common practice at the time –  the club chose to compose a large number of its own songs and chants. Jock McEwen  and Hera ‘Aunty Dovey’ Katene-Horvath were the principle composers, although there  were also other important contributors, such as Tamati Kaiwai and Tua Delamere.  A number of these original compositions were subsequently included on the LPs that  Māwai Hakona released.  

One of Māwai Hakona’s greatest achievements was winning the highly contested national  championships at the 1973 New Zealand Polynesian Festival. This not only meant  recognition as the best Maori cultural performance group in the country; it also earned  them the right to represent New Zealand at the official opening of the Sydney Opera  House later that year. The win drew lots of attention from throughout the country and was  a big source of pride in their home town. On the eve of their departure for Australia  Māwai Hakona gave a farewell performance at the Upper Hutt’s Civic Hall. The he  enthusiastic crowd of over 1400 people were treated to what the Leader described as  “an unforgettable and moving experience”. It added that “Upper Hutt can indeed be  proud of the people in this local group “ and that “all who have followed the growing  fame of Māwai Hakona will wish them every success and a safe and happy return.” 

Māwai Hakona had a hugely successful visit to Australia in 1973 when they represented  New Zealand at the opening of the Sydney Opera House. They performed on the Queen’s  dais outside the Opera House after Her Majesty had officially declared the building opened  (this was one of many times that the group performed before royalty). The event was  televised live back in New Zealand, as well as around the world. Māwai Hakona also put  on several other performances in Sydney and Canberra during their time there, all of which  received enthusiastic reviews. One of the highlights for the members of the group was  meeting and establishing connections with the other South Pacific performers who also  attended the opening.

After their successful Sydney trip in 1973 Māwai Hakona toured overseas many times.  They were invited to perform at the Papua-New Guinea independence celebrations in  1974, where they put on dozens of shows throughout the country and proved very  popular. They also undertook several tours of Europe, visiting Czechoslovakia and  Germany in 1989, Finland and France in 1993, and Sweden and England in 1995,  appearing at major folk music festivals. Members also performed at the New Zealand  pavilions at both the 1988 International Expo in Brisbane and the 1992 International  Expo in Seville, Spain.

Māwai Hakona was very committed to encouraging children and young people to  become knowledgeable participants in Māori culture. A Junior Club was formally begun  in the late 1960s, with after school kapa haka classes being made available for children at  local church halls. . Later, Intermediate and Midget age grades were added as well. In 1978,  for example, there were nearly 100 children attending these classes. Many of those taking  part were children of Māwai Hakona members who later progressed to joining the Senior  Club themselves. Like the Seniors, Junior and Intermediate Club members participated in  local competitions and won many awards. They were also much sought after to provide  performances for local community groups.  [/size] [size=5]enthusiastic crowd of over 1400 people were treated to what the Leader described as  “an unforgettable and moving experience”. It added that “Upper Hutt can indeed be  proud of the people in this local group “ and that “all who have followed the growing  fame of Māwai Hakona will wish them every success and a safe and happy return.”

Members of Māwai Hakona played a major role in getting a marae established in  Upper Hutt. They were active participants in the fundraising campaign for a new  Marae Community Centre in Upper Hutt, highlights of which included a Queen  Carnival procession through Main Street in 1970 that was attended by well over  15,000 people. Once Ōrongomai Marae was completed and opened it became  Māwai Hakona’s new home, with the group moving there from Silverstream Hall in  September 1976. Considerably larger than their former premises, the Marae also  provided space for Māwai Hakona to display their many trophies. Members of the  group have had a significant input into the management of Marae and have performed  there on many official occasions such as the opening of Kahukura, the Marae’s carved  meeting house, in 1989.