Story: Popular music

New Zealand's first piano

New Zealand's first piano

On 8 February 1840 Englishman George Hunter and his family landed on the beach at Petone to start a new life in New Zealand. The well-to-do Hunters brought many of their possessions with them, including a square piano made around 1825. It is likely that this was the first piano to arrive in New Zealand. It was donated to the National Museum by a Hunter family descendant in 1956. 

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How to cite this page:

Chris Bourke, 'Popular music - Early settlers, 18th and early 19th centuries', Te Ara - the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, http://www.TeAra.govt.nz/en/object/42573/new-zealands-first-piano (accessed 19 March 2024)

Story by Chris Bourke, published 22 Oct 2014