A bit na ta Source of the sea

An art project of the Queensland Art Gallery

By MICHAEL PHILIP
A BIT na ta meaning source of the sea in the Tolai language of East New Britain, is also the title of a project commissioned for the Queensland Art Gallery exhibition No 1 Neighbour: Art in Papua New Guinea running from 1966 to 2016.
Comprising of music video installation and performance event, the project featured newly commissioned songs by leading Australian and Papua New Guinean musicians including George Telek. The project has drawn from the rich oral histories of the Tolai people, transposing into contemporary beats, personal stories of the period between 1875-1975.
In 2016, Australian musician David Bridie was in Rabaul for six weeks engaging with a whole range of Tolai musicians filming and illuminating the stories that the late local historian Gideon Kakabin has noted as being important.
Kakabin at that time was writing a book on the extraordinary history of Rabaul, finally told from a local Tolai perspective and was a key participant in the ‘A bit na ta’ project.
During the week they had been down to Sulphur Creek via the eroded pumice roads of old Rabaul town with Melki, an ex-army man, who is the last of the Wup (fishing basket) makers.
These fishing baskets work in a very simple way – the fish swim into them and get so confused they can’t get out. They look rather beautiful also, they will have one as part of the ‘A bit na ta’ exhibition.
In his outside wind haus, (shelter) Melki is in the process of building a new one.
Melki was in the army from the 1950s stationed at Manus, Vanimo and Wewak.
He told a great story about when Tolai musician and songwriter George Telek’s father who was the leader of the Rabaul brass band. Telek senior died when George was two years old.
The next day they were joined by Garret Low, the son of Glen Low from the Barike Band who passed away some years back. Glen toured with Telek and David all over the globe, so to them it was great to have Garret along as an audio assistant and an extra camera man. The wantok system was at play when they met.
They have set up a makeshift studio at the Late Gideon’s house at Vunaulul ward in Nangananga Village.
It works best when the neighbours aren’t blasting Bon Jovi or the man from the Haus Lotu is not moving the grass! They’ve been having some great recording sessions at night when the heat drifts and the noises die down.
The late Gideon suggested recording this Tumbuan Kinavai song called Oaga Na Pipi to open ‘A bit na ta.’
Basil and his nephews and Tobing came and sang the singsing tumbuna. They’ve been marking around with background ambiences from the Late Gideon’s recordings of kinavai ceremony at Matupit in 2015.
They also drove down to Gaulim in the Baining to meet with Lazarus whose wantoks (family) are the people making 20 pieces of Baining tapa cloth that will work as the textured screen for projections in the installation space in the exhibition in the Queensland Art Gallery.
On their way they stopped at Tungnaparau (hole of the ship) near the old WW2 Japanese airport where the 4 missionaries were killed that sparked off the 6day war between Talili and the missionary and trader George Brown.
The filming of their tour will be played the next day in Mioko-Duke of York Island where they will film and record a Tumbuan Ceremony and also they will start the writing process with the Gilnata Stringband.
On their way back to Kokopo town, Late Gideon adamant that Rabaul should still be the centre of activity. David agreed with him. Kokopo(Kopex) has a beautiful view down to the Duke of York but it’s basically one very long trip that goes for 5 miles so you can’t walk to places and of course it pails into mud compared to the old jewel of the Pacific that was Rabaul with Mango and Casuarina Avenues in full bloom.
Garret and David are with Late Gideon for six weeks. They have plans to record the Moab Stringband, Gilnata Stringband, The Matupit John Wesley Lotu choir, and George and David are coming up with a ‘A Bit Na Ta’ song and two old singsing tumbuna tracks, Marinata and A tungu Nana.
They have been searching for a midi – the shell money grand necklace that the luluai, important figures wore back in the day.
Lisa Hilli, their other collaborator has made one herself in Melbourne and has done important research into its significance and inherent power. It’s somewhat of a shame there is not one here in Rabaul itself.
Tamang (brother) came into the studio last night to record the tutupele (tinduk), a Tolai percussion instrument, kind of like a two note vibraphone but played in a unique fashion.
The next week was full of boat trips… Duke of Yoke, Watom Island and Tol Plantation.
Telek at that time he was still in Port Moresby after the Wantok Band was launched.
After the project was commissioned David left for Australia leaving behind a statement: “I shall leave you with a photo of a bicycle in the water at Bita Paka, the site of the first action in WW1”.