English Folk Dance and Song Society

The English Folk Dance and Song Society (EFDSS) is the national folk arts development organisation for England, originally established in 1898 as the Folk Song Society, and housed at Cecil Sharp House – the first dedicated folk arts centre in the UK, established in1930.

The EFDSS mission is to celebrate and preserve England’s traditional folk songs and wider folk arts from music, dance, storytelling and traditional customs. Over the past 115 years they have preserved, promoted and developed folk and folk artists for new audiences, and as part of the rich and diverse cultural landscape and history of the UK. The EFDSS acknowledges outstanding contributions to Folk Art through their renowned Gold Badge Award and are custodians of the Vaughan Williams Memorial Library – a multi-media, award-winning library and online resource celebrating all things folk.

From big bands to solo singers, Morris dancers to contemporary choreographers, schools to mass participation, intimate folk clubs to major concert halls – the EFDSS’s work reaches far and wide. Encouraging and supporting new artists inspired by folk and folk traditions, celebrating it as a living, breathing and constantly re-invented art form. To keep the tradition alive the EFDSS run the Annual National Youth Folk Ensemble bringing together talented young folk musicians aged 14-18, from across England, to create and perform inspiring new arrangements of folk music and work with leading folk artists.