New Zealand Songbook He Iere Waiata: "Everyone who likes to sing can have a go"

Wouldn't it be great if we as a nation had a book of common songs that, whenever we get together, we could sing.

The New Zealand Song Book He Iere Waiata is a new online resource enabling Kiwis to do just that, and learn how to sing some of their favourite songs in harmony.

Choirs Aotearoa Chief Executive Arne Herrmann spoke with Bryan Crump about the free resource, which includes learning tracks and PDF scores as well as warm-up videos and singing tips.

Brent Stewart has arranged four iconic Kiwi songs: “Tūtira Mai Ngā Iwi”, “Sway”, “Six Months in a Leaky Boat” and “Slice of Heaven”.

Arne says the resource is aimed at the average New Zealander - you don't need to be a confident singer or sing in a choir.

"Everyone who likes to sing can have a go at it."

"Being the trust that looks after our national choirs (including the New Zealand Youth Choir and NZ Secondary Students' Choir and Voices New Zealand), we are super-passionate about people coming together to sing."

"We see on a daily basis the benefits of communal singing. It's hugely about the wellbeing: wellbeing is generated when people get together and start singing with each other."

"And the fact that as a nation we don't have that 'go to' book, we decided it would be great if we could create a choir-like arrangement of ... songs that are regarded as iconic and make them available for everyone to sing and to practise, whether that's in your living room with your mates or whether you want to record all the parts yourself, or whether it's a primary school teacher in Invercargill. That was the vision, the starting point behind creating this resource."