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International Students Love Learning Kapa Haka
Wednesday, 23 July 2008
Kapa Haka is a traditional Maori performance art involving singing, chanting and dancing. The introductory course offered at the University of Auckland is very popular, attracting mainly international students keen to learn about New Zealand culture.
(via New Zealand Herald) In a class of 87 this year, there are students hailing from Russia, Japan, the United States, Brazil, Taiwan, Hong Kong and the Pacific islands.
Angela Smith, a 30-year veteran, teaches the course with champion exponents Dr Ngapo Wehi and Richard Wehi. All are part of the premier Te Waka Huia group.
"Most of them see something on the plane coming over here and make up their minds. They've got no hang-ups. They just come prepared to be respectful of another culture. They really want to know something about it," Ms Smith said.
After 12 weeks the students were assessed at a performance in front of whanau [family] and friends, but for some one semester was not enough. They were bitten by the haka bug.
"In 2007 we had this Japanese boy Atiu. He ended up being the kaea [leader] for the haka. He was invited down to Ruatoki and just immersed himself in it. He was amazing. The next time I saw him he was performing at regional competition in the second row. I thought to myself, 'Oh my God, there he is'. No one [new to performance] does that."
Hiromi Sakamoto, 46, the university's first dance doctoral student, has had a career spanning 20 years in dance and television directing in the United States and Japan.
Last semester's introductory course was his first taste of Maori culture and he plans to continue with higher level study.
"You talk about iwi, you talk about tribes and images of ancestors going back generations. I'm still reminded I'm connected to them even if I'm Asian. You are connected to the earth, you feel the energy from the ground. It has its own sophistication and depth."
Learning in a "Maori" way opened his eyes, he said. "Repetition was the main thing. Using your senses such as hearing, watching and vocals without writing things down. Maybe 200 years ago Japanese learned like this, but we kind of forgot it. We look down on it but it is a very strong way of learning."
There were benefits of sharing culture, he said. "If you want to build a cohesive society, you have to make an effort to know each other. As a newcomer to New Zealand I want to know."
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