Travel of Georg Forster
Queen Charlotte Sound - New Zealand (Tōtaranui)
Title
Some considerations and examples of New Zealand music
Short description
Georg Forster mentions that they heard the natives singing on the shore. He also makes some observations about the quality of New Zealand music, including some musical examples.
Text on source
We frequently heard him and the rest of the natives singing on shore, and were sometimes favoured with a song when they visited us on board. Their music is far superior in variety to that of the Society and Friendly Islands; and if any nation of the South Sea comes in competition with them in this respect, I should apprehend it to be that of Tanna. The same intelligent friend who favoured me with a specimen of the songs at Tonga-Tabboo, (see vol. I. p. 429), has likewise obligingly communicated to me another of the New Zeeland music, which will be sufficient to give an idea of the taste of the people. He did not visit the island of Tanna, but assured me that there appeared to be some display of genius in the New Zeeland tunes, which soared very far above the wretched humming of the Taheitian, or even the four notes of the people at the Friendly Islands.
Of this tune they continue to sing the two first bars till the words of their song are at an end, and then they close with the last. Sometimes they also sing an under-part, which is a third lower, except the two last notes, which are unisons.
English translation
Folios/Pages
pp. 476-477
Date
1774 11 06
Observations on the events description
Talking of his "intelligent friend", Georg Forster is referring to James Burney (see also event 54, 110 and 127). See also Dessì 2017, "Oltre il Mediterraneo".
The dots on the map indicate the places where sound and music events were described. They don't represent travel stages.
Participants
Name
Role
Notes
Edit
Delete
Cook, James
Travel fellow
Burney, James
Teller
How to quote
Fabbrocino A. P., "Some considerations and examples of New Zealand music" (Event description), Echos. Sound Ecosystems in Travelogues. Published 2024 04 07.
doi: 10.25430/echos.travels.76
This work is licensed under CC-BY-SA 4.0 
