We asked each MENZA Board member the following questions to help you get to know them better: “Ngā Kete o te Wānanga” (The Baskets of Knowledge)
- Kete Aronui: What do you hope to bring to the board? (Your unique skills/instrument).
- Kete Tuauri: What do you hope to learn? (Professional growth).
- Kete Tuatea: What is the legacy you want to leave for music education?
Kat Daniela – Chair
Kete Aronui
I bring over 20 years of experience in secondary music education, alongside leadership across curriculum development in Music and Health, national advisory work, and professional learning. I have a strong commitment to equity and access, particularly for students and teachers in under-resourced and geographically isolated contexts. My background spans classroom teaching, community music-making, governance, and sector advocacy, and I value building strong relationships and collaborative networks. As a musician, my foundations are in piano, flute, violin and voice. I have led a number of community choirs and participated in ensemble work, which shapes my holistic view of music education.
Kete Tuauri
I continue to grow my understanding of governance at a national level, particularly in how we can sustainably support and strengthen music education across Aotearoa. I want to deepen my knowledge of bicultural partnership in practice, ensuring te ao Māori is meaningfully and authentically embedded within our work. I am also interested in learning from others across the sector, expanding perspectives on curriculum design, access, and innovation in music education.
Kete Tuatea
I want to contribute to a future where all young people in Aotearoa have equitable access to high-quality, meaningful music education that is relevant to them, regardless of their background or location. A legacy where music is valued as an essential part of the curriculum, not an optional extra, and where teachers are supported, connected, and recognised for the complexity of their work. Ultimately, I hope to help build a strong, inclusive, and sustainable music education community.
Stephen Garton – Treasurer
Kete Aronui: Alongside a contemporary music degree, I bring complementary qualifications and experience in audio production and digital multimedia, which I hope to use collaboratively to support the development of resources for MENZA. I have eight years’ experience in secondary music education across a range of kura, which has given me a clear understanding of how differences in funding and access to resources affect teaching and learning across schools. As a musician, I mainly play piano and drums, and my two favourite composing programs are Dorico and Logic Pro.
Kete Tuauri:I aim to deepen my understanding of what it means to be an effective partner under Te Tiriti o Waitangi, and to apply this in my practice in ways that uphold equity and improve outcomes for all ākonga.
Kete Tuatea: The legacy I hope to leave for music education in Aotearoa is one that advances the creation of safer, more inclusive, and equitable environments, where all rangatahi have meaningful access to high-quality music education.
Ben Lau – Past MENZA Chair
Kete Aronui: I have over 20 years of experience in Music Education as an Itinerant Violin Teacher, Classroom Music Teacher at Wellington College, and as an HOD of Music at Newlands College. I am also a Taonga Puoro practitioner and carver. I am currently the Head of Careers at Newlands College after 10 years as the HOD of Music.
Kete Tuauri: It has been a pleasure to serve on the MENZA board as a Board Member and as Deputy Chair and Chair for over five years. I have learnt that people’s voices are important and Music Education is underrepresented in education in Aotearoa New Zealand. I have learnt, and continue to learn, about the intricacies of Music Education in Aotearoa, and it has been great connecting with our Membership and learning from them.
Kete Tuatea: As I near my time as a Board Member, I hope that I have left it better than it was before me. I stand behind great pou in Music Education and I hope Music Education in Aotearoa will finally be equally respected and all curriculum areas are treated equally.
Christian McDonald – Ngāti Kahu
Music has always been about more than just sound—it’s about tuakiritanga (identity), honongatanga (connection) and whakawhānaungatanga (genuinely relating to others). I’m humbled to take on the role of tangata whenua representative for Music Education Aotearoa board, MENZA. My goal is to support our kaiako by ensuring our Akonga (student) and Te Ao Māori remain at the heart of how we teach and share music. Nō reira, tēnā ra koutou katoa.”
Leaaesola Vuna – Pasifika Representative
Ngā Kete o te Wānanga – The Baskets of Knowledge
Kete Aronui – What I Bring
I bring to the board a practitioner’s voice grounded in cultural integrity, educational leadership, and lived experience. As a NZ‑born Tongan musician, teacher, and choral director, I work at the intersection of Western classical music, Māori and Pasifika knowledge systems, and contemporary education.
My strengths include curriculum design, choral leadership, composition, and culturally sustaining pedagogy, supported by formal training and deep knowledge of Lea Fakatonga, Tu’ungafasi Fakatonga, Wesleyan hymnody, and indigenous performance traditions. I bring strong advocacy for Māori and Pasifika learners, ensuring cultural knowledge is authentically embedded, resourced, and valued. I offer practical insight, relational leadership, and a commitment to collective, learner‑centred outcomes.
Kete Tuauri – What I Hope to Learn
Through board service, I seek to deepen my understanding of governance, strategic leadership, and policy decision‑making, particularly in relation to equity, resourcing, and sustainability in music education. I value learning from others’ expertise and strengthening my ability to influence systems‑level change.
Kete Tuatea – Legacy for Music Education
The legacy I hope to contribute is a music education system where cultural identity and excellence are inseparable—where Māori and Pasifika knowledge, leadership, and sound worlds are normalised, sustained, and celebrated for future generations.