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Story: Arts festivals

Canterbury Centennial Music Festival, 1940

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Canterbury Centennial Music Festival, 1940

In 1940 New Zealand celebrated its centenary with a variety of arts events. Each of the main centres held its own centennial music festival, and this souvenir programme marked the Canterbury festival in May and June. The programme featured performances of Faust, Carmen and Elijah, as well as a Highland band concert and the National Centennial Symphony Orchestra. 

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Alexander Turnbull Library

Reference: Eph-B-MUSIC-1940-01-cover

Permission of the Alexander Turnbull Library, National Library of New Zealand, Te Puna Mātauranga o Aotearoa, must be obtained before any re-use of this image.

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How to cite this page

Marguerite Hill, Arts festivals – Celebrations and centenaries, 1930s to 1950s, Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, https://teara.govt.nz/en/ephemera/45217/canterbury-centennial-music-festival-1940 (accessed 4 June 2026).

Story by Marguerite Hill, published 13 May 2014, updated 1 August 2016.