Have the APRA Silver Scroll Awards always been a living chronicle of New Zealand's musical heartbeat?

The APRA Silver Scroll, established in 1965 by the Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA), does certainly occupy a unique position in the nation's cultural landscape. The award exists not to honour our performers, but instead our songwriters — those whose words and melodies have indeed shaped our original music landscape.

The kaupapa was then, as it is today, steeped in the desire to elevate songwriting to an art form worthy of national recognition. The creation of the APRA Silver Scroll marked a turning point: an assertion that New Zealand stories, told through song, deserved to be celebrated on their own terms. At the time, original pop music in Aotearoa was very much the exception, not the rule. Airwaves and record stores were often dominated by local versions of well-known British or US pop songs. The introduction of the Silver Scroll in 1965 signalled an important change in intention.

However, to appreciate the award's list of winners perhaps requires an understanding of the nature of its shepherd: a relatively conservative organisation that, for 40 years or so, had focused more upon the "light orchestral music and modern serious composition" side of music, rather than the burgeoning popular music that was then growing in appreciation.

The award required registered APRA writers to enter their work themselves: providing a record of the song, in those days on vinyl, with both the A and B side therefore often entered into competition, as rules allowed multiple entries. This kind of self-confident administration is rarely a songwriter's strongpoint, and as the organisation itself was then based in Wellington, contact with many songwriters was limited – especially the newer pop writers in Auckland and the regions. This is perhaps reflected in the relatively narrow number of songs and songwriters initially entered and, ultimately, the Award's initial winners.

Therefore, our list of winners is interesting not only for who is on it, but also for who isn't. No Jordan Luck, no Graham Brazier, no Jenny Morris. No Tim Finn, and no 'Don't Dream It's Over' — with Neil Finn first appearing in 2001, with their lesser known (but still beautiful) 'Turn and Run'. No Martin Phillipps, no Graeme Downes. A disappointingly poor historical representation of female nominees and winners, at the time probably matched by the representative make up of APRA's membership — yet Lea Maalfrid, Shona Laing and Bic Runga blazed a trail and shone through. A distinct, but perhaps not surprising, lack of waiata Māori — no 'Poi E' or 'E Ipo' — no doubt a reflection of APRA's previously poor engagement with ngā kaitito waiata.

The APRA Silver Scroll has always been a songwriting award judged by songwriters, but historically this had been a small panel of anonymous members, perhaps narrowing the award's outlook. More recently, voting has become an online process — a process open to all 15,000 registered APRA NZ members.

The APRA Silver Scroll is now an award that chooses to forefront the fullness of our membership — allowing for bolder choices and a more eclectic, representative range of winners. Growing in scope as the audiences of Aotearoa do the same, shedding that once firmly held historical 'cultural cringe'. Now a greater reflection of the music communities the organisation serves, the award has grown to embrace songwriters from indie upstarts to seasoned veterans; from Lorde and Joel Little, to Rob Ruha and Ka Hao.

From slightly murky processes and equally murky presentations in questionable restaurants, to an award that now signifies the beauty, strength and diversity of music in Aotearoa — the APRA Silver Scroll proudly reflects its community, its changing times, and its country's culture.

— Anthony Healey is Head of NZ Operations at APRA AMCOS, a rights management organisation that represents over 110,000 songwriters, composers, and music publishers across New Zealand and Australia.