Te Vaka (English: ''The Canoe'') is an

Oceanic Oceanic may refer to: *Of or relating to the ocean *Of or relating to Oceania **Oceanic climate **Oceanic languages **Oceanic person or people, also called "Pacific Islander(s)" Places * Oceanic, British Columbia, a settlement on Smith Island, ...

music group that performs original contemporary Pacific music or "South Pacific Fusion". The group was founded in 1995 by singer and songwriter Opetaia Foa'i in New Zealand. They have toured the world consistently since 1997 and have won a number of awards including the "Best Pacific Music Album" award from the

New Zealand Music Awards The Aotearoa Music Awards (previously called the New Zealand Music Awards), conferred annually by Recorded Music NZ, honour outstanding artistic and technical achievements in the recording industry. The awards are among the most significant that ...

for their albums '' Tutuki'' (2004) and '' Olatia'' (2007) and "Best Pacific Group" in the 2008

Pacific Music Awards The Pacific Music Awards are an annual New Zealand music award ceremony since 2005 that honours excellence in Pacific music in New Zealand. The awards honour musicians who primarily work in the Pacific Island style of music from the Cook Islands, ...

According to the BBC, they are "the world's most successful band playing original contemporary Pacific music."

History

Te Vaka is a group of musicians and dancers with origins from various Polynesian backgrounds (including

Tokelau Tokelau (; ; known previously as the Union Islands, and, until 1976, known officially as the Tokelau Islands) is a dependent territory of New Zealand in the southern Pacific Ocean. It consists of three tropical coral atolls: Atafu, Nukunonu, a ...

Tuvalu Tuvalu ( or ; formerly known as the Ellice Islands) is an island country and microstate in the Polynesian subregion of Oceania in the Pacific Ocean. Its islands are situated about midway between Hawaii and Australia. They lie east-nor ...

Samoa Samoa, officially the Independent State of Samoa; sm, Sāmoa, and until 1997 known as Western Samoa, is a Polynesian island country consisting of two main islands ( Savai'i and Upolu); two smaller, inhabited islands ( Manono and Apolima); ...

and

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

) that formed in 1997, under the leadership of award-winning songwriter, Opetaia Foa'i. That year, they released their eponymous debut album through

ARC Music ARC Music is a world music and folk music label based in West Sussex, England, that was established in 1976. Naxos acquired ARC in 2019. Film and television ARC Music has been used in the films ''Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crysta ...

, a UK/European record company. The album gained immediate success and recognition, being distributed to over 80 countries. Their follow-up album, '' Ki Mua'', was released through Warm Earth Records, and went #1 on world music charts and mainstream radio in the South Pacific. In 2002, the band released their third album, '' Nukukehe''. The album gained the group a nomination in the

and the

BBC Radio 3 Awards for World Music The BBC Radio 3 Awards for World Music was an award given to world music artists between 2002 and 2008, sponsored by BBC Radio 3. The award was thought up by ''fRoots'' magazine's editor Ian Anderson, inspired by the BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards. Un ...

. Their next albums entered the European World Music Charts, as well as winning numerous awards. Through their career, Te Vaka has performed extensively around the world, performing in London’s Royal Festival Hall and

Ronnie Scott's Jazz Club Ronnie Scott's Jazz Club is a jazz club that has operated in Soho, London, since 1959. History The club opened on 30 October 1959 in a basement at 39 Gerrard Street in London's Soho district. It was set up and managed by musicians Ronnie Sc ...

, as well as headlining music festivals throughout Europe like

WOMAD WOMAD ( ; World of Music, Arts and Dance) is an international arts festival. The central aim of WOMAD is to celebrate the world's many forms of music, arts and dance. History WOMAD was founded in 1980 by English rock musician Peter Gabriel, w ...

. They have also performed at the

APEC The Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC ) is an inter-governmental forum for 21 member economies in the Pacific Rim that promotes free trade throughout the Asia-Pacific region.

ministerial dinners and America's Cup events in

Auckland Auckland (pronounced ) ( mi, Tāmaki Makaurau) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. The most populous urban area in the country and the fifth largest city in Oceania, Auckland has an urban population of about ...

, the

Commonwealth Games The Commonwealth Games, often referred to as the Friendly Games or simply the Comm Games, are a quadrennial international multi-sport event among athletes from the Commonwealth of Nations. The event was first held in 1930, and, with the exce ...

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...

, the Rugby World Cup in Paris and the Olympic Games in Beijing. In 2010 and 2011, the band completed two tours in North America. That same year, Te Vaka released their seventh album, '' Havili''. In 2015, the band was selected by

Walt Disney Pictures Walt Disney Pictures is an American film production company and subsidiary of Walt Disney Studios, which is owned by The Walt Disney Company. The studio is the flagship producer of live-action feature films within the Walt Disney Studios unit ...

to contribute to the soundtrack of the 2016 animated film '' Moana''.

Musical style

Te Vaka uses traditional musical instruments from the

Pacific The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the contine ...

region like pate (single and double

log drum A slit drum or slit gong is a hollow percussion instrument. In spite of the name, it is not a true drum but an idiophone, usually carved or constructed from bamboo or wood into a box with one or more slits in the top. Most slit drums have one slit ...

s), pa'u (indigenous goat skin conga), and bass drums. Most of their songs are written in

Tokelauan language Tokelauan is a Polynesian language spoken in Tokelau and on Swains Island (or Olohega) in American Samoa. It is closely related to Tuvaluan and is related to Samoan and other Polynesian languages. Tokelauan has a co-official status with Englis ...

, reflecting the heritage of band founder, singer, and main songwriter, Opetaia Foa'i. Foa'i was born in

Western Samoa Samoa, officially the Independent State of Samoa; sm, Sāmoa, and until 1997 known as Western Samoa, is a Polynesian island country consisting of two main islands ( Savai'i and Upolu); two smaller, inhabited islands ( Manono and Apolima); ...

, to a

an father and a Tuvaluan mother, and raised in a Tokelauan community in

. He has said that the inspiration for his music comes from his multi-cultural upbringing. However, some songs are also written in Samoan and Tuvaluan languages, which are the native tongues of most of the other band members. As a result of this mixture of sounds and diversity of influences, their music has been referred to as "a truly pan-Pacific sound".

Current lineup

*Opetaia Foa'i: vocals, guitar, percussion *Olivia Foa'i: vocals, dance *Matatia Foa'i: percussion *Sulata Foai-Amiatu: vocals *Douglas Bernard (a.k.a. D.Burn): vocals, keyboards, percussion *Joe Toomata: electric guitar, percussion *Neil Forrest: bass, flute, percussion *Etueni (Edwin) Pita: dance *Dave Kuresa: dance

Awards and nominations

, - , style="text-align:center;", 2002 , ,

, , - , rowspan="2" style="text-align:center;", 2003 , Te Vaka , BBC Radio 3 Awards for World Music - Audience Award , , - , '' Nukukehe'' ,

- Best Roots Album , , - , style="text-align:center;", 2004 , '' Tutuki'' , New Zealand Music Awards - Best Pacific Music Album , , - , style="text-align:center;", 2005 , Opetaia Foa'i , Senior Pacific Artist , , - , rowspan="3" style="text-align:center;", 2008 , Te Vaka ,

- Best Pacific Band , , - , Te Vaka , Australian Songwriters Association Awards - Best Live Performance of the Night , , - , "Tamahana" , Australian Songwriters Association Awards - International , , - , rowspan="3" style="text-align:center;", 2010 , '' Haoloto'' , New Zealand Music Awards , , - , Te Vaka , Pacific Music Awards - Best Pacific Group , , - , ''Haoloto'' , Best Pacific Language Album , , - , style="text-align:center;", 2011 , ''Haoloto'' , Hawaiian Music Awards - Polynesian , , - , rowspan="2" style="text-align:center;", 2012 , '' Havili'' , Pacific Music Awards , , - , "Lovely World" , ISC Awards - World Music , , -

Discography

Studio albums

* 1997 ''

Te Vaka Te Vaka (English: ''The Canoe'') is an Oceanic music group that performs original contemporary Pacific music or "South Pacific Fusion". The group was founded in 1995 by singer and songwriter Opetaia Foa'i in New Zealand. They have toured the wo ...

'' * 1999 '' Ki Mua'' * 2002 '' Nukukehe'' * 2004 '' Tutuki'' * 2007 '' Olatia'' * 2009 '' Haoloto'' * 2011 '' Havili'' * 2015 ''Amataga'' * 2017 ''Te Vaka Beats: Percussion Album Vol. 1'' * 2020 ''Te Vaka Beats Vol. 2''

Compilations

* 2017 '' Greatest Hits: Songs That Inspired Moana''

DVDs

* 2003 ''Live at Apia Park'' * 2007 ''Live in Concert 2006''amazon.co.uk
Retrieved 30 September 2009.

Singles

*"Lakalaka"

References

External links

*
Opetaia Foa'i official websiteOlivia Foa'i official website
{{Authority control Tokelauan musicians New Zealand musical groups Musical groups established in 1995