The kaitātaki tāne loses his voice three days out
A kura rōpū of 19 is three days from a regional festival. Its kaitātaki tāne, aged 17, has led the haka taparahi for two years; the kaumātua who composed the haka named him as its leader at the composition hui. He now has laryngitis, and the doctor has ordered absolute voice rest for at least ten days - no singing, no shouting, no whispering. In this rohe, a haka taparahi of this type is conventionally led by a tāne. The rōpū's options, as they see them: he performs anyway and 'pushes through'; a 14-year-old who has learnt every call and led once at practice takes it; or the kaitātaki wahine leads the haka as well as her own items. The kaumātua is 500 km away but reachable by phone. The venue sound check is at 8am, the performance at 1pm, and travel takes three hours.
1. Decide who leads the haka and justify the decision, separating what is fixed by tikanga from what is a matter of preference, habit or convenience.
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Three separate questions are tangled here.
- Medical fact: he cannot lead at full voice. This is not negotiable and not a character test. The voice is a performer's instrument; a 17-year-old who damages it is damaged beyond this one performance, and a kura has a duty of care that outranks a festival placing.
- Tikanga: in this rohe a haka taparahi of this type is conventionally led by a tāne. That is a convention with real weight, but it narrows the field - it does not decide between the remaining candidates.
- The composer's mana: the kaumātua gave the role to this ākonga. His view must be sought, not assumed, because handing the role on touches his gift as well as the rōpū.
Ranking the options:
- 'Push through' is rejected on medical grounds before tikanga is even reached.
- The kaitātaki wahine leading changes the character of the item and runs against local convention, and doubles her load if she also leads her own items.
- The 14-year-old keeps both the convention and the composer's intent, provided he knows every call and can be rehearsed.
Decision: call the kaumātua today. If he releases the role, the 14-year-old leads, with the 17-year-old standing in the line in support. If the kaumātua cannot be reached in time, the conservative default is the tāne line, because that keeps convention and composer intent intact. That the 14-year-old has led only once at practice is a rehearsal problem with three days to solve, not a reason to choose the wrong leader.
2. What conversation should happen with the kaumātua, and how should the handover be managed on the day so the new leader is actually supported?
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The conversation. Phone or video, not a message. Explain the medical position plainly, say what the rōpū proposes, and ask what he wants - including whether the calls, the ending, or the final 'hī' should be adjusted for a younger voice. Then ask him to speak to the 14-year-old directly. A short call from the composer is a transfer of mana, not just information, and it changes how the rōpū looks at the new leader. Record what was agreed in writing so the rōpū can repeat it accurately later.
On the day.
- Announce the change to the whole rōpū at the start, not in the wings.
- Make the handover visible: the outgoing kaitātaki offers a short mihi to the rōpū and to the new leader, and stands at his shoulder for the first item.
- Then step back. A former leader mouthing the calls from the line splits the rōpū's attention and undermines the new leader's voice.
- Confirm the small things in advance: who starts, who gives the cue into the last section, who calls the final 'hī'.
- Protect the 17-year-old from being asked to 'just do the loud bit' by anyone, including well-meaning whānau.
Why the ceremony matters: a technically correct substitution with no visible handover leaves the rōpū watching the old leader and the new one unsure who is being followed. The performance risk is real, not symbolic.
3. What does this episode expose about the rōpū's planning, and what would you put in place for next season?
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The exposure: the rōpū has one leader per item and no named successor. Everyone learnt the calls by following him rather than by learning them. That is a single point of failure, and it was invisible while nothing went wrong.
What to put in place:
- Two leaders per item. A named understudy for every item, known to the rōpū, who leads at least one full rehearsal each term. Understudies only develop if they actually lead, not if they watch.
- Teach the calls to everyone. Written call sheets, learnt by the whole rōpū. A rōpū that can carry an item without one voice is resilient and also performs better, because the response is informed rather than reflexive.
- A documented process for when a leader is unavailable: who decides, who is consulted (the composer, the whānau, the kaiako), and what the default is. A written tikanga saves an argument at 8am on competition day.
- Voice care as part of training, not a lecture after the fact: warm-ups, hydration, no shouting at the venue, and a rule that no one sings through illness.
- Succession as mana, not replacement. Frame understudies as inheritors of the item rather than backups, or kaumātua and senior ākonga will read the plan as a demotion of the current leader.
The wider point: kaitiakitanga of an item includes making sure the item can be stood after you. A rōpū whose repertoire depends on one throat is holding the item too tightly.