The optional choral song item of a kapa haka competition: a short, non-aggregate waiata performed by the whole team inside a strict four-minute window.
Waiata Tira is the one kapa haka item a team may choose to enter or leave out. The seven compulsory items (whakaeke, moteatea, waiata a-ringa, poi, haka, whakawatea and te reo delivery) decide the placing; Waiata Tira sits beside them as an optional, non-aggregate item, so it does not count towards the overall result. It is a choral song: the team stands and sings together as a tira, a group, rather than performing action songs or weapons and poi items.
On eTalenter the item is installed once, on the New Zealand secondary schools kapa haka template. It is a team entry in te reo Maori for mixed teams in a single Kura Tuarua group, scored out of 100 with marks as the score type. The template allows four minutes, with a warning bell at three minutes. The national rules the template follows apply a two-point penalty if a Waiata Tira runs over, and that four-minute allowance is separate from the 25 minutes shared by the seven compulsory items.
Because it is optional, a team usually chooses it deliberately: a school with a strong choir, a new composition it wants to showcase, or a group that wants to give its singers a stage of their own. The words are lodged with the organisers before the day like the rest of the set, so the panel can follow the text while the team sings.
Organisers keep it as a separate item so that it can be judged and recognised without disturbing the main aggregate. The national model scores non-aggregate items with a smaller panel of three judges whose marks are added together, rather than the five-judge Olympic average used for the compulsory items; the secondary event does not publish its own rules, so check the programme your organiser issues.
Where Waiata Tira (Optional) is run
On eTalenter, Waiata Tira (Optional) is used in one template: the New Zealand secondary schools kapa haka template, where it is the eighth and final item and the only one marked optional. Kapa haka is the Maori performing art of Aotearoa New Zealand and is performed at school, community and national events. The template is built from the national event rules; the secondary event does not publish its own rules, so figures such as the age range are recorded as unverified.
- New Zealand (Aotearoa)
Key facts
- Team entry in te reo Maori, mixed teams, one Kura Tuarua group
- Optional and non-aggregate: it does not count towards the overall placing
- Scored out of 100 with marks as the score type
- Four-minute limit with a warning bell at three minutes; the national rules apply a two-point penalty for overrunning
- Separate from the 25 minutes shared by the seven compulsory items
- Idea, not a rule: choose a song that suits your strongest voices rather than your biggest team
On eTalenter, Waiata Tira (Optional) is filed under On Stage and typically scored with Marks. It appears in 1 ready-made event templates — each one can adjust its time limit, age-group assignment and scoring setup independently.
Across the templates that use it, Waiata Tira (Optional) is most often entered as an Team competition, typically scored out of 100, commonly time-limited to around 4 minutes where a limit is set.
The scoring method the templates attach to this item, and what that scale means. The category this competition is filed under when a template is installed. Others in this category: Dance, Music, Drama, Mimicry, Debate, Elocution, Story Telling, Group Song, Action Song eTalenter matches an item to its criteria on the words in its name, and creates exactly these when the template is installed. No criteria match this name, so none are created automatically — judges score it on the event’s own criteria instead.How it is scored
Where it sits
Judging criteria installed for it
What judges look at in Waiata Tira (Optional)
What a Waiata Tira (Optional) panel is actually weighing up, and where the marks are usually won or lost:
- Vocal quality: tone, blend and control across the whole choir, with no single voice standing out for the wrong reasons
- Tuning and pitch: the team holds its key from first line to last, including through the harmony parts
- Harmony and balance: each part is audible and the parts sit together instead of competing
- Pronunciation and clarity of te reo: the words are clear and match the lyrics lodged before the day
- Expression: dynamics, tempo changes and feeling follow the meaning of the song
- Time discipline: the song finishes inside four minutes, because an overrun costs points
Treat these as the judging focus, not a fixed rubric: publish your own weighted criteria for Waiata Tira (Optional) under Scoring Setup, or start from the judge scoring and tabulation guide.
How to prepare for Waiata Tira (Optional)
How entrants and their teachers usually get Waiata Tira (Optional) right on the day:
- Decide early whether to enter; a team that adds Waiata Tira late often rehearses it least
- Choose a song the team can sing in tune with confidence, and lodge the exact words you will perform
- Rehearse parts separately, then together, and record full run-throughs to check balance and pitch
- Time every run-through against the four-minute limit and plan the ending so the song stops cleanly before the penalty
- Teach the meaning of each verse so the team sings with intent and not only sounds
- Practise entering, settling and starting together, because a ragged opening costs more than a missed note
- After a loss, ask for the vocal feedback first and rework the weakest part before changing the song
Events that run this (1)
Ready-made templates that already include this competition. Installing one sets it up for you.
Frequently asked questions
Is Waiata Tira (Optional) judged individually or as a team?
Across eTalenter’s templates it’s most often run as an Team entry, though an organiser can set either participation type when assigning the item to an age group.
Is Waiata Tira compulsory?
No. It is the only optional item on this template. The seven compulsory items decide the placing, and a team may leave Waiata Tira out entirely.
How long can a Waiata Tira be?
Four minutes on the template, with a warning bell at three minutes. The national rules apply a two-point penalty if it runs over.
Does it count towards the overall result?
No. It is a non-aggregate item, so it is judged and recognised on its own and does not change the placing decided by the seven compulsory items.
Is it judged individually or as a team?
As a team. The whole choir is scored together out of 100.
Similar competitions
Items whose names share a word with this one — usually the same discipline in another form.
Want the full judging picture? Read the judge scoring and tabulation guide, or browse every on stage competition item.
Try Waiata Tira (Optional) in eTalenter
See every ready-made template that runs Waiata Tira (Optional), and install one as a live event — age groups, rules and scoring included.
