Te Rangi Pai

Fanny Rose Howie ( or Poata; 11 January 1868 – 20 May 1916), also known by her stage name Te Rangi Pai, was a New Zealand singer and composer. Of Māori descent, she identified with the iwi of Ngāti Porou and Te Whānau-ā-Apanui. The lullaby "Hine E Hine" is her most famous composition, and she was well known in Britain as a singer of opera and popular music from 1901 to 1905.

Early life She was born in Tokomaru Bay, New Zealand, on 11 January 1868, the daughter of Thomas William Porter and Herewaka Porourangi Potae (also known as Te Rangi-i-pāea). She was the eldest of their nine children. Her mother was the daughter of Tama-i-whakanehua-i-te-rangi (a high-ranking Ngāti Porou chief and signatory to the Treaty of Waitangi) and Mereana Tongia, and held high rank in Te Whānau-ā-Apanui, Te Whānau-ā-Ruataupare and Ngāti Porou. From her mother, Howie would inherit the title of ariki tapairu, meaning first-born female of a family of rank. In December 1900 she travelled to England where she embarked on concert, oratorio and ballad training with (amongst others) the baritone Charles Santley. Her vocal range was from mezzo soprano to contralto and allowed her to cover many styles. She sang before the King and Queen on several other occasions, and was able to perform a number of Māori songs for British audiences including many of her own compositions, of which the most successful was "Hine E Hine".

In 1908, she retired from performing and moved to Gisborne to live with her husband, who had recently been appointed collector of customs for the Poverty Bay area. In 1910, after her health deteriorated further, she went to live in a house built for her by her husband and adopted son on her ancestral land at Maungaroa, near Te Kaha.