Modern Maori Quartet
Glenroy Auditorium
Friday, October 10
Clever meddling with songs and lyrics had the crowd laughing and singing along from haere mai to haere ra.
Actor singers Maaka Pohatu, Matariki Whatarau, James Tito and Francis Kora all pay tribute to the suave and debonair Sir Howard Morrison using imitation, that sincerest form of flattery, with a twist of mockery to keep it real.
Highlights include numbers made famous by Roy Orbison and Elvis Presley, alongside traditional numbers Pokarekare Ana and Now Is the Hour in te reo, the Cupid medley, the audience hula which should be going viral on Facebook by now, Stay with Me, Waiting in Vain, made famous by Annie Lennox, and the Maori version of Lorde's Royals.
Especially funny was the rendition of the garage party where all personalities necessary to make the event come alive, including that one guy who just has to be better than everyone else, getting a brotherly wake-up call.
The only disappointment would have to be the second audience row's attempt at the hula, saved only by one exceptional lady. Bravo to her.
Without exception, all their voices show a fine degree of honing and a wide range of good sound, including universally strong falsetto. The show was superbly polished while the presentation retained the air of being improvised.
Traditional accompaniment on guitar using the tried and true strum was augmented with bass and bongos. Wonderful stuff, infectiously funny and sounding, as they say, like ''golden syrup on fried [Maori] bread''.
The audience welcomed the quartet to the south with wholehearted warmth and we look forward to their second trip down south. Ka pai.
- by Marion Poole
