Mai Music & SAE Awards Scholarship

PANUI PAPAHO / MEDIA STATEMENT
Te 18 o nga ra o Whiringa-a-rangi 2003

MAI MUSIC & SAE INSTITUTE AWARDS HE TAONGA WAIATA SCHOLARSHIP

Maori record label Mai Music and the world's largest audio engineering educational institute - SAE - has announced the second winner of the music industry scholarship, He Taonga Waiata.

Havilah Taukolo, 24, of Glenfield, will begin studying for the Studio Sound Certificate at the Auckland branch of SAE early next year.

SAE Institute Academic Co-ordinator Dr John Reynolds says the part-time six-month theoretical and practice course will provide Havilah with a broad knowledge of electronic theory, and the skills and knowledge necessary to plan, record and edit digital sound recordings.

During this time, he will have access to state-of-the-art recording studios and equipment.

Last year's inaugural He Taonga Waiata Scholarship winner, Josh Lloyd, will complete his nine-month full-time audio engineering diploma with the Auckland branch of SAE at the beginning of 2004.

"The first winner of He Taonga Waiata is progressing very well in his studies and is likely to graduate with distinction," Dr Reynolds says.

"Both SAE and Mai Music regard this scholarship as a fantastic opportunity for a young person with the potential to realise their dream of making a career in a constantly expanding, creative industry."

A New Zealander whose parents are Tongan, Havilah is an administration officer in a financial company based in Takapuna and has a one-year-old daughter with his partner, Julie Anne.

He says music has long been his passion and he has been developing his musical ideas by composing and recording R'n'B and rap music over the past five years.

"This is a wonderful opportunity for me to fulfil a dream of making a career in an area that I really enjoy."

SAE is the largest audio and multimedia network of institutes in the world with 40 campuses in 20 countries. Its graduates are employed by industry leaders such as Kog Transmissions, York Street Studios, Revolver Studios, College Hill Productions, Lab Studios, Sky TV and TVNZ.

Mai Music is part of Ngati Whatua-owned Mai Media Limited which also runs Mai FM 88.6 in Auckland, Mai FM 96.7 in Rotorua and Mai FM 97.8 in Whangarei as well as the national Maori language radio service, Ruia Mai.

ENDS

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