Music in the park January 2015 David I'm calling this a retrospective but David was just a bit tardy posting it! *** On Barrier Radio Janet caught a brief ad 'Music in The Park at Okiwi. Bring your own instruments.' This sounded like us. What clinched it was Loma, from whom we had hired a car, who was intending to go and offered us a lift. Loma, large as life and well into party mode, roared into the Port Fitzroy parking lot not much more than an hour late. Janet and I and our instruments piled in.
We soon learned that Loma is one of eleven. She has six of her own, eighteen grandchildren and a couple of great-grandchildren. She looked about sixty, if that. But not much about her said Maori. She appeared bottle blond, light skinned, a little ditsy at first meeting, voluble, irreverent and great fun to be with. We took to her immediately. In describing her lack of sea legs she quipped, ìBefore Iíll take the ferry to Auckland itís got to be calm enough for me to apply lipstick in my reflection.î She turned out to be foundation tangatawhenua. The length of time your family have been on the island, as elsewhere, is defining, third and fourth generation conferring unparalleled status. ìWe moved back to the island about four years ago,î Loma said as she negotiated the narrow, winding road to Okiwi. ìBut weíve been here more than seven hundred. Weíre Ngatiwai. Just the one iwi which makes things simple although thereís two hapu.î Thatís about thirty generations of continuous occupation.
"Iím not that familiar with my tikanga,î Loma confessed, a little wistfully. ìSome of my grandkids who have grown up in kohanga come and speak to me and I have no idea what theyíre saying,î she laughed. Sheís tried learning. ìIt goes in and then goes out. But Iíve enrolled again.î Loma eased the car along a near invisible track, overhung with trees that momentarily blocked most of the sunlight. Once inside, the space opened out to reveal a cosy glade, a small grassy clearing enclosed by native bush thick with ferns and nikau palms. There were people gathered on rugs under a huge spreading Puriri tree and others standing around barbeques and chili bins of beer. As the sun slid across the sky small groups moved to occupy other patches of shade. A stage had been set up, complete with amps, mikes, speakers, even a fold-back speaker so that the musicians could hear themselves.
Loma found us a space under the Puriri and settled into her chair where she held court with family and friends all afternoon. She had a constant flow of grandchildren making requests and waiting on her. It slowly became clear that she is a much revered kuia, related, one way or another, to every Maori on the island, many of whom were at the park. There was always much banter and laughter emanating from around her spot.
It was an intimate group of no more than forty with people coming and going. We felt we had gate crashed a large family gathering but, attached to Lomaís coat tails, we were soon absorbed into the fold. Elaine, a diminutive copper-haired woman with an arresting, effortless, Aretha Franklin voice, played MC. She provided backing vocals and took the stage herself from time to time, supported by her husband Opo, on guitar. Remarkably she and Opo live on remote, exposed Mahuki, the outermost of the aptly named Broken Islands. They are the unofficial custodians of the islandís gannet colony. A dozen or so musicians, including the two of us, performed solo or in varying combinations. Elaine joined us during our second set which was a treat. There were several performers who would have been well received on much larger stages, especially a trio of gorgeous, young sisters from one of the two Katherine Bay marae. One guitar, three voices, sublime harmony. And Elaine could rival any diva. Janet and I rowed back to the boat in the lengthening shadows, warmed through with music, people, food, beer and sun and with a pocketful of invitations in the anchorage and across the island.