A lifetime of insights on Māori performing arts told in te reo Māori by one of our luminaries in the field.

Tīmoti Samuel Kāretu QSO, KNZM (Ngāti Kahungunu, Ngāi Tūhoe) is this country’s leading exponent of te reo Māori – from leading the Māori Language Commission to producing a new generation of language experts through his teaching at Te Panekiretanga. He is also an unrivalled creator of waiata and haka, composing songs and judging at Te Matatini and other events. In this book, Sir Tīmoti shares his extensive experience in the artforms of haka and waiata – from Māori songs of the two world wars to the rise of kapa haka competitions, from love songs to action songs, from Sir Apirana Ngata to Te Puea Hērangi, and from Te Matatini to contemporary hui on marae. Throughout the book, he draws on exemplars of Māori song and haka, explaining form and meanings, maintaining his stance that First is the Word! Written in superb te reo Māori by a leading expert, Mātāmua ko te Kupu! will become a taonga of Māori knowledge and language.