Story: Otago places

Roadside Stories: Dunedin's bards

Scottish poet Robbie Burns is remembered by a statue in Dunedin – but the city has also been home to many other bards, including Thomas Bracken, who composed the words to New Zealand’s national anthem, and the counter-culture poet James K. Baxter. A host of latter-day musical bards are responsible for the ‘Dunedin sound’ – jangly guitars and thoughtful lyrics, mostly associated with alternative music label Flying Nun.

Listen to a Roadside Story about the bards of Dunedin. Roadside Stories is a series of audio guides to places around New Zealand.

Using this item

YouTube: Manatu Taonga's channel

This item has been provided for private study purposes (such as school projects, family and local history research) and any published reproduction (print or electronic) may infringe copyright law. It is the responsibility of the user of any material to obtain clearance from the copyright holder.

All images & media in this story

How to cite this page:

Malcolm McKinnon, 'Otago places - Dunedin', Te Ara - the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, http://www.TeAra.govt.nz/en/interactive/35353/roadside-stories-dunedins-bards (accessed 13 May 2024)

Story by Malcolm McKinnon, updated 1 Jul 2015