1. |
Pīpī Manu E
02:58
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Pīpī pīpī manu e
Pīpīwharauroa
E pī pī pī ana e
Mō Pāpā Māmā wharauroa
Kei whea kē koe e Pā e?
Kei whea kē koe e Mā e?
Kimi atu, kimi mai
Kei whea kē kōrua e?
Kūī kūī whio!
Korowhiti korowhiti
Kūī kūī a!
Chicks of the
Shining cuckoo
Calling for their
Parents
Where are you Pa?
Where are you Ma?
We search here and there
Where are you both?
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2. |
Tīrairaka
05:04
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Tīrairaka wero taiaha
Tei! Tei! Ti ti tei!
Whakatekateka ana ki mua
Tei! Tei! Ti ti tei!
Tïoioi, piupiu, parehe,
Whēkokikoki, pekapeka
Tūpekepeke
Te rere a te tīrairaka
Te rere a te tīrairaka
Tei! Tei! Ti ti tei!
Fantail wielding a taiaha
Tei! Tei! Ti ti tei!
Darting cheekily forward
Tei! Tei! Ti ti tei!
Feinting, swaying, parrying,
Dodging, prancing,
Bouncing,
Tei! Tei! Ti ti tei!
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3. |
Pīpīwharauroa
04:37
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Pīpīwharauroa
Nau tō mai te mahana
Kia puāwai ngā rākau
Kia rere te kakara
Tioro tioro tioro Te kōanga
Kūī kūī kūī
Te raumati
Kūī kūī kūī
Whiti whiti ora
Sweet singing bird, Pīpīwharauroa
You bring the warmth
That sets the forest to bloom
Like a flower’s scent, Spring rises with your song
We bloom when you sing, and
You call us on to a new day
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4. |
Tūī (ft. Vashti Bunyan)
04:37
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Listen to that sound, Tūī!
Whakarongo mai, Tūī!
Like a flute it seems to me
Kia kōauau, Tūī!
Will we ever hear another like Tūī?
I wonder, will there ever be a song so free?
To the world you call “Morning!”
Ki te ao koe karanga “Ata mārie!”
From the lungs, your voice is honey
Tō reo waihonga, e Tūī
Will we ever hear another like Tūī?
I wonder, will there ever be a song so free?
Will we ever hear another like Tūī?
I wonder, will there ever be a cry so clear?
Tuia!
Listen to that sound, Tūī!
Whakarongo mai, Tūī!
Thank you for your proud beauty
Kia ora rā tō ātaahua nui
We may never hear another like Tūī
I wonder, will there ever be a song so free?
We may never hear another like Tūī
I wonder, will there ever be a cry so clear?
Tuia!
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5. |
Ruru
04:14
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Ruru! Koukou!
Listen to the Ruru koukou
As he tells us what we need to know
To make it through when the moon is high
And the cold comes in through
A crack in the sky
And yet the dark of the growing night
Means nothing to the keeper of the golden eyes
He knows all the shadows that exist between
The world we know and the ones unseen
The koukou is a warning from the one
Whose work begins when the day is done
And as the Earth is deep in sleep
His signal will her safety keep
But one night from his tree hollow
Ruru clocks something in the bush below
He feels a sudden shift in the pūkohu leaves
It’s the foul approach of thieves!
Ruru! Koukou!
Putting on his uniform
Brown of bark and grey of storm
(and when it’s worn)
He is the ghost undetectable
With the call that is meant to protect us all
And in stealth he makes his swoop
All to get a better view (uh huh)
Ruru’s seen these robbers before
Digging down into the depths of the forest floor
As he’s done since the mud grew trees
And the birds climbed up into the canopy
Ruru summons up the ancient call
To banish the greedy, once and for all
And from the cry the scoundrels run
But Ruru believes they’ll be back for some
(and he waits)
Yet tonight it’s just him and the echo of
A lonely koukou
Ruru! Koukou!
Kaumātua – show us how to koukou
He’s brooding, planning, preparing
He’s listening...
Ruru! Koukou!
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6. |
Pūngāwerewere
02:57
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Pūngāwerewere hanga whare tukutuku
Hei hopu ngārara rere parihau
Whare tukutuku
Miro hāpiripiri
Hirahira
Mau herehere
Pūngāwerewere haere ngoingoi
Ki te hopu ngaro mau herehere
Whare tukutuku
Miro hāpiripiri
Hirahira
Mau herehere
Spider with house made of sticky thread
For catching insects on the wing
House of
Silky sticky
Silver
Entangling thread
Spider crawling
To catch an entangled fly
House of
Silky sticky
Silver
Entangling thread
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7. |
Kiwi
10:03
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Kiwi ngutu roa
Torotoro ngārara kai
Roto ngāherehere
Rite ki te kāpō
Mau tiripou
Torotoro hīkoi haere
Kāre koe e rere
Ko tō reo anake
E rere nei i te pō
Kiwi! Kiwi! Kiwi!
Kiwi with a long beak
Searching for food
In the forest
Just like a blind man
With a stick
Prodding as he walks
You cannot fly
Only your voice
Flies in the night
Kiwi! Kiwi! Kiwi!
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Dudley Benson Dunedin, New Zealand
I'm a queer independent artist based in Dunedin, New Zealand. I make music about nature and nationhood. Thanks for listening!
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