E pari ra / The tide surges
In this sound clip Tānga Tomoana describes how his father Paraire Hēnare Tomoana came to write lyrics for the well known and popular waiata E Pari Rā. He wrote the song in 1918 at the request of his friend Maku-i-te-Rangi Ellison whose son, Whakatomo Ellison, died in the war. Paraire wrote it as a memorial and lament for all fallen soldiers. Speculation is that Tomoana used the tune from a German Waltz, the Blue Eye’s Waltz to base his song on. Many other popular songs were written by Paraire including Pōkarekare ana, Hoea rā te waka nei, Tahi nei taru kino, Hoki hoki tonu mai. These are still performed by New Zealanders to this day. E Pari Rā was adopted by the New Zealand Navy as their official song.
Year:1918 (Recorded in 1968)
E pari ra / The tide surges
In this sound clip Tānga Tomoana describes how his father Paraire Hēnare Tomoana came to write lyrics for the well known and popular waiata E Pari Rā. He wrote the song in 1918 at the request of his friend Maku-i-te-Rangi Ellison whose son, Whakatomo Ellison, died in the war. Paraire wrote it as a memorial and lament for all fallen soldiers. Speculation is that Tomoana used the tune from a German Waltz, the Blue Eye’s Waltz to base his song on. Many other popular songs were written by Paraire including Pōkarekare ana, Hoea rā te waka nei, Tahi nei taru kino, Hoki hoki tonu mai. These are still performed by New Zealanders to this day. E Pari Rā was adopted by the New Zealand Navy as their official song.
Year: 1918 (Recorded in 1968)
Length: 04:44
Source: Radio New Zealand Collection, Ngā Taonga Sound & Vision
Catalogue Reference: 40644 Taanga Tomoana talks about his father Paraire
People: Taanga Tomoana, Paraire Hēnare Tomoana (Ngāti Te Whatu-i-apiti, Ngāti Kahungungu)
Image Title: Sheet music for E Pari Rā
Listen to E Pari Rā sung by descendants and family members of both Paraire Tomoana and Whakatomo Ellison
Paraire Hēnare Tomoana was born in the mid-1870’s to highly regarded chiefly parents in Hawke’s Bay. He inherited shares in large areas of tribal land and became a farmer and manager of his family’s land interests.
Tomoana was the first secretary of the Tamatea Māori Council and helped organise the 1901 Royal Visit of the Duke and Duchess of Cornwall and York.
From 1918, Paraire Tomoana was a staunch supporter of the Eastern Māori Patriotic Association which raised money for the Māori Soldiers’ Fund.