Lead vocalist Emily Hermon in the recording studio.
Lead vocalist Emily Hermon in the recording studio.
Cherry Hermon has written several songs over the years then tucked them away in a drawer never to see the light.
But Beating Hearts Northland, her lockdown-inspired song, featuring the unusual mix of Scottish bagpipes, Māori haka and children's choir, never made it to the drawer; instead it's been pumping its way through radio airwaves and over the internet, warming proud locals' hearts.
It was while scrolling through Facebook, housebound, that former Whangārei District Councillor Hermon came across a joyful dance video called Step Up Taranaki to the soundtrack of Poi E showcasing the region.
"We were all sitting in our lounges in lockdown experiencing social distancing and it really struck a chord. I shared the post and got comments back saying we need one for Northland with that same positive buzz, and I thought, 'Yeah we do', but the logistics of it all coming together sounded too hard."
Still, with the idea it could motivate and inspire Northlanders through the difficult times, along with the added benefit that it could be used for a promotional video of Northland, Hermon began penning a song then sat down at the piano and started tinkering out some notes.
"I'm not a songwriter by any means but I do like to write. We had all heard the Prime Minister talk to us about being 'at war' against the virus and so thoughts and feelings of a bygone era of the soldiers coming back from war were filtering through my mind as I sat down to write words of encouragement to share," explained Hermon.
"I wrote it, then thought, 'Well what do I do with it?' The words needed a tune and I can't play the piano but I do know where the notes are, so I wrote down some notes and sent it to Lachie McLean."
From there the idea snowballed into a collaboration of community talent. McLean, an award-winning director of musical theatre shows, suggested she get in touch with musical guru Ray Palmer who transposed the piano notes into sheet music with guitar chords. Hermon's husband Joe subsequently played the music on the guitar and sent it to their Auckland-based daughter Emily, who has a background in musical theatre.
Lead vocalist Emily Hermon in the recording studio.
"There was now something the other artists could actually listen to as they all added their collaborative work to the song."
Between their contacts, the project gathered momentum to include the internationally performing Hatea Kapa Haka lead performer Joby Hopa, who guided them on cultural and artistic input and presented his own complete interpretation of an aspirational haka for Te Tai Tokerau.
"This humble and gentle man gave generously with his advice and support around the project, and his performance on the song is hauntingly beautiful. It was such an honour to work with him. Joby brought his own artistry and collaboration to the project and his performance had us transfixed during the recording," said Hermon.
Palmer's role working with schools led them to use five students from the Whangārei Intermediate School (WIS) choir - Manea Harrison, Rangianana Tito Heremia, Waimarama Kaka Nisbet, Justin Jay Tiare and Peowhairangi Witana, to accompany Emily and Hopa with the vocals.
"The students from WIS were such a talented bunch and when they arrived at the studio to record, I was blown away by the beauty of their waiata, and what they had prepared for the backing vocals. Te Morena Peita – the superb music teacher at Whangārei Intermediate, has the ability to inspire his singers to create their own harmonies, thus allowing each child their own creativity. He gave the song to the choir and helped them develop the work."
Whangārei Intermediate School students in the recording studio.
Hermon said Emily's pure tones contrast beautifully with WIS students' seemingly effortless harmonies.
"These children are only 11-12 years old, and already making music to move the soul," Hermon said, adding that it brought a tear to the eye.
The talented musicians, making up the 11-member band called The Collaboration Project, also included well-known Northland music identity Roland Schwarz, of Wards MusicWorks, on guitar, Whangārei Girls' High School violinist Lauren McClean, drummer Jared Broughton and, on bag pipes, Bain McGregor of Northcal (former Whangārei Pipe Band).
"Bain is one of the finest pipers in Aotearoa, who played the pipes in a key that was definitely not designed for the bagpipes," said Hermon. "A true master, and he may well be the first person to pair the Scottish bagpipes with Māori haka."
Bagpipe player Bain McGregor and Hatea Kapa Haka's Joby Hopa meet at the recording studio.
McGregor is no stranger to playing alongside kapa haka groups but said, after playing the bagpipes for 50-odd years, playing in the different note had been a first.
"It was very unfamiliar. The pipes are tuned to B-flat and the chords on the piano were played in G so I had to play a note down in A. It all had to be done by ear but I've got a pretty keen ear," he said, adding that he enjoyed the "spine-chilling" experience.
Hermon described the end result as "very powerful and stirring when you've got the bagpipes with their drones in full flight and the Māori warriors are doing their haka".
During the last week of July and, by then post-lockdown, each artist, individually went to the Big Red Door studio above Wards MusicWorks and recorded their tracks.
"Maybe 'The Band That Never Met' should have been the name of the band," mused Hermon. "There was some overlap of times, and so some artists got to meet other artists as they came and went. It was an exciting day!"
Audio-engineer Brendon White, also of Wards MusicWorks, then worked his magic, and the recording was made. The accompanying video, written and directed by Hermon, was put together by videographer Sam Johnston, who used a combination of Whangārei District Council (WDC) stored video film and new footage he filmed locally, as well as recording provided by Big Fish Creative of the current camera obscura project.
It was WIS principal Hayley Read who sparked a last-minute discussion around the ending of the song, which saw the team head back into the recording studio.
"There, the team of Joby Hopa and Te Morena Peita evoked some meaningful te reo messages for the students to call out over the chorus. The result speaks for itself… a powerful and beautiful ending. As such, Hayley is now an honorary member of the Collaboration Project," said Hermon.
Five months after Hermon put pen to paper, the song Beating Hearts Northland was launched in September, and has had more than 55,000 views on Facebook.
Cherry Hermon said she was overwhelmed with the support in seeing her idea come together.
"It's been quite surreal," said Hermon, reflecting on how her idea came to fruition. "I'm overwhelmed by it. I was out walking the dog and got a call from the radio station to say they were playing my song. I listened through the phone and had another teary moment. There I was on the side of the road and all these cars were going past me. Everybody involved brought magic. I'm super grateful to them all, and totally thrilled with the result and with the way Northlanders have embraced the song!"
Hermon said the name of the band – The Collaboration Project - is important because without the collaboration of others it would never have happened.
"The thing is, you do these things, then you put them in the drawer or cupboard. This isn't about me, it's about all the people who collaborated and gave it their time and to have the support was amazing. But there have been some lessons learned in the process; When you need help, don't be afraid to reach out – there are so many great people out there willing to reach back and lend a hand; Keep an open mind – it allows some great ideas to come in from outside and; 'Just do it!'. It took a lot of confidence from me and courage to approach an artist to collaborate with me.
"You instil confidence into your children and Emily reflected that confidence back on me so I thought I'd better prove her right. Now, 55,000 people wouldn't have heard that song if I'd just put it back in the cupboard."
Hermon said she has a lot of music in her head and her new-found confidence has inspired her to pull some of her past scripts out from where she'd hidden them away.
Beating Hearts Northland can be viewed on YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-G-no_8vo-0) and downloaded on Bandcamp, both under the name Beating Hearts Northland.
It was produced as a gift for Northland with any potential proceeds going to the I Have a Dream charity. The video is freely available for charities and sports groups or district/regional promotions to use for promotion and is currently being used to make a promotional video for Northland celebrating the natural beauty of our people and places, advertising Northland as a great place to live, work, and play.
The video was funded by both WDC and Hermon and she hopes it will become an anthem for Northland to be used for the likes of sporting events with the scenery footage updated every few years.
