The English Folk Dance and Song Society (EFDSS, or pronounced 'EFF-diss') is an organisation that promotes English folk music and folk dance. EFDSS was formed in 1932 when two organisations merged: the Folk-Song Society and the English Folk Dance Society. Karpeles, Maud and Frogley, Alain (2007–2011)
'English Folk Dance and Song Society'
In: ''

Grove Music Online ''The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians'' is an encyclopedic dictionary of music and musicians. Along with the German-language ''Die Musik in Geschichte und Gegenwart'', it is one of the largest reference works on the history and the ...

'',

Oxford Music Online ''The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians'' is an encyclopedic dictionary of music and musicians. Along with the German-language ''Die Musik in Geschichte und Gegenwart'', it is one of the largest reference works on the history and the ...

. Retrieved 24 October 2011. . The EFDSS, a member-based organisation, was incorporated in 1935 and became a

registered charity A charitable organization or charity is an organization whose primary objectives are philanthropy and social well-being (e.g. educational, Religion, religious or other activities serving the public interest or common good). The legal definitio ...

in 1963.

History

The Folk-Song Society, founded in London in 1898, focused on collecting and publishing folk songs, primarily of Britain and Ireland although there was no formal limitation. Participants included: Lucy Broadwood, Kate Lee,

Cecil Sharp Cecil James Sharp (22 November 1859 – 23 June 1924) was an English-born collector of folk songs, folk dances and instrumental music, as well as a lecturer, teacher, composer and musician. He was the pre-eminent activist in the development of t ...

Percy Grainger Percy Aldridge Grainger (born George Percy Grainger; 8 July 188220 February 1961) was an Australian-born composer, arranger and pianist who lived in the United States from 1914 and became an American citizen in 1918. In the course of a long an ...

Ralph Vaughan Williams Ralph Vaughan Williams, (; 12 October 1872– 26 August 1958) was an English composer. His works include operas, ballets, chamber music, secular and religious vocal pieces and orchestral compositions including nine symphonies, written over ...

, George Butterworth, George Gardiner, Henry Hammond, Anne Gilchrist,

Mary Augusta Wakefield Mary Augusta Wakefield (19 August 1853 – 16 September 1910) was a British composer, contralto, festival organiser, and writer. Biography Early life Wakefield was born in Kendal, where her paternal ancestors had been members of the Quaker co ...

, and Ella Leather. The English Folk Dance Society was founded in 1911 by

. Maud Karpeles was a leading participant. Its purpose was to preserve and promote English folk dances in their traditional forms, including Morris and sword dances, traditional social dances, and interpretations of the dances published by John Playford. The first secretary of the society was Lady Mary Hepburn-Stuart-Forbes-Trefusis; Trefusis Hall in the EFDSS HQ, Cecil Sharp House, is named after her. One of the greatest contributions that the EFDSS made to the folk movement, both dance and song, was the folk festival, starting with the

Stratford-upon-Avon Stratford-upon-Avon (), commonly known as just Stratford, is a market town and civil parish in the Stratford-on-Avon district, in the county of Warwickshire, in the West Midlands region of England. It is situated on the River Avon, north-w ...

Festival in the 1940s and continuing with festivals in Whitby,

Sidmouth Sidmouth () is a town on the English Channel in Devon, South West England, southeast of Exeter. With a population of 12,569 in 2011, it is a tourist resort and a gateway to the Jurassic Coast World Heritage Site. A large part of the town ...

, Holmfirth,

Chippenham Chippenham is a market town in northwest Wiltshire, England. It lies northeast of Bath, west of London, and is near the Cotswolds Area of Natural Beauty. The town was established on a crossing of the River Avon and some form of settlement is ...

and elsewhere.

Publications

Since 1936 the EFDSS has published ''English Dance & Song'' at least four times a year. This has become the longest-established magazine devoted to folk music, dance and song in the country. ''English Dance & Song'' is aimed at stimulating the interest of the membership of the EFDSS, as well as the wider folk music and dance community. Their regular scholarly publication is ''Folk Music Journal'', published annually in December, which was formerly entitled the ''Journal of the English Folk Dance and Song Society'' until 1965. The work continues the earlier journals of the two societies: ''Journal of the Folk-Song Society'', 1899–1931; ''Journal of the English Folk Dance Society 191431''.

Cecil Sharp House

The Society is based at Cecil Sharp House in

Camden Camden may refer to: People * Camden (surname), a surname of English origin * Camden Joy (born 1964), American writer * Camden Toy (born 1957), American actor Places Australia * Camden, New South Wales * Camden, Rosehill, a heritage res ...

, North London. Originally conceived as a purpose-built headquarters for the English Folk Dance Society, and now Grade II-listed, it was designed in the neo-Georgian style by architect Henry Martineau Fletcher, and opened on 7 June 1930. The building’s most striking feature is Kennedy Hall, a large concert and performance space with a sprung ballroom floor for dancing. The space features acoustic-focused design elements, courtesy of Fletcher’s friend and fellow architect Hope Bagenal. One wall of the hall originally accommodated a raised musicians gallery, but this was destroyed by bomb-damage in the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

. When the damage was repaired, in works concluding in 1954, the decision was made to commission a mural by the British abstract pastoral painter

Ivon Hitchens Ivon Hitchens (born London, 3 March 1893 – 29 August 1979) was an English painter who started exhibiting during the 1920s. He became part of the ' London Group' of artists and exhibited with them during the 1930s. His house was bombed in 1940 d ...

. When unveiled, it was the largest single-wall mural in the United Kingdom. In addition to Kennedy Hall, Cecil Sharp House contains several smaller performance and rehearsal spaces; a café and bar; and the Vaughan Williams Memorial Library and Archive. Cecil Sharp House is an active and popular venue for concerts, as well as conferences and other private functions. In 2015, the building was voted as one of London’s 20 best music venues by readers of

Time Out Time-out, Time Out, or timeout may refer to: Time * Time-out (sport), in various sports, a break in play, called by a team * Television timeout, a break in sporting action so that a commercial break may be taken * Timeout (computing), an enginee ...

magazine.

Recent developments

In 1998, with the folk movement strongly supported by a number of other organisations and the seeds planted by EFDSS thriving, the EFDSS altered its strategy to focus on education and archiving, with its primary goal the development of the Vaughan Williams Memorial Library as the country's national archive and resource centre for folk music, dance and song. In 2009, the society became a regularly funded organisation (now called a National Portfolio Organisation) of Arts Council England. In 2011 the society entered into a joint commission with

Shrewsbury Folk Festival Shrewsbury Folk Festival is an annual festival of folk and world music and traditional dance held in the town of Shrewsbury in Shropshire, England. It takes place over four days on and around the UK Late Summer bank holiday weekend (usually t ...

to create the

Cecil Sharp Project The Cecil Sharp Project was a multi-artist, residential commission to create new material based on the life and collections of the founding father of the English Folk Revival Cecil Sharp. The residential took place in March 2011, immediately fol ...

, a multi-artist residential commission to create new works based on the life and collecting of

. The project took place in March 2011, the artists involved being: Steve Knightley, Andy Cutting, Leonard Podolak, Jim Moray, Jackie Oates,

Caroline Herring Caroline Herring (born 1969 in Canton, Mississippi) is an American folk and country singer, songwriter and musician. She started singing professionally when she was a graduate student at the Center for the Study of Southern Culture at the Univ ...

, Kathryn Roberts and Patsy Reid. In 2013, EFDSS launched The Full English, an ongoing archive project supported by the

Heritage Lottery Fund The National Lottery Heritage Fund, formerly the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF), distributes a share of National Lottery funding, supporting a wide range of heritage projects across the United Kingdom. History The fund's predecessor bodies were ...

The Folklore Society The Folklore Society (FLS) is a national association in the United Kingdom for the study of folklore. It was founded in London in 1878 to study traditional vernacular culture, including traditional music, song, dance and drama, narrative, arts an ...

, the National Folk Music Fund and the English Miscellany Folk Dance Group. This free and searchable resource of 44,000 records and over 58,000 digitised images is the world's biggest digital archive of traditional music and dance tunes. As well as folk music, the EFDSS is home to a number of performance artists, providing a regular performance platform for acts including the Ukulele Orchestra of Great Britain, the Massive Violins and the Swingle Singers. In September 2021, EFDSS opened consultation to consider changing its name, as it was felt by some that it did not represent the aims and outlook of the society. A proposed name was 'Folk Arts England', a name formerly used between 2005 and 2014 by the Association of Festival Organisers. Of 65 members surveyed in November 2021, 74% approved this name, against other proposals such as 'Folk Arts Society'. As of , consultation continues.

EFDSS Gold Badge Awards

The EFDSS Gold Badge Award, created in 1922, is made to those deemed to have made exceptional contributions to folk music, dance, or the wider folk arts and folk community. Many past recipients are prominent figures not only within the folk community, but of wider British culture and society. * 1922

Lady Mary Trefusis Lady Mary Trefusis, née Lygon (26 February 1869–12 September 1927) was an English hymnwriter and courtier. She was also known as Lady Mary Forbes-Trefusis. She was a daughter of the 6th Earl Beauchamp and the wife of Lt.-Col. Henry He ...

; Griselda Hervey * 1923

; William Kimber * 1928 Maud Karpeles; William Wells * 1929 Helen Storrow * 1930 Winifred Shuldham-Shaw * 1934 W H Bonham Carter * 1938 Anne Gilchrist; Miss E F Lawrence * 1940 Miss C Holbrow * 1943 Dr Ralph Vaughan Williams * 1945 Miss H Cornock Keen * 1946 Lady Ampthill;

Frank Howes Frank Stewart Howes (2 April 1891 – 28 September 1974) was an English music critic. From 1943 to 1960 he was chief music critic of ''The Times''. From his student days Howes gravitated towards criticism as his musical specialism, guided by the a ...

* 1948

Frederick Keel James Frederick Keel (8 May 18719 August 1954) was an English composer of art songs, baritone singer and academic. Keel was a successful recitalist and a professor of singing at the Royal Academy of Music. He combined scholarly and artistic inter ...

; R J Tabor; Rev E A White * 1950 Richard Callender * 1954 Violet Alford; Elsie Avril; Marjory Sinclair * 1956 P J Terry * 1957 Janet McCrindell * 1960 Kenneth Constable; Irene Fisher; Marjorie Heffer; Dr Robert Kenworthy Schofield; George Osborne * 1961 Kathleen Adkins; Miss L Chapin; Lily Conant; May Gadd; Margaret Grant; Sybil Lightfoot; Grace Meikle; Philip Merrill; Marjorie Penn; Evelyn Wells; Elsie Whiteman * 1962 Alec Hunter * 1963 Everal de Jersey * 1964 Lady Mary Trevelyan; Dorothy Bessant * 1965 Douglas Kennedy & Helen Kennedy * 1969

Harry Cox Harry Fred Cox (27 March 1885 – 6 May 1971), was a Norfolk farmworker and one of the most important singers of traditional English music of the twentieth century, on account of his large repertoire and fine singing style. His music inspired ...

; Arthur Marshall; Edward Nicol * 1970 Dr W Fisher-Cassie;

Fred Hamer Fred may refer to: People * Fred (name), including a list of people and characters with the name Mononym * Fred (cartoonist) (1931–2013), pen name of Fred Othon Aristidès, French * Fred (footballer, born 1949) (1949–2022), Frederico Rodr ...

* 1971 Nan Fleming-Williams; Patrick Shuldham-Shaw * 1973 Mollie Du Cane; Dr Leonard C Luckwill * 1974 William Ganiford * 1975

A L Lloyd Albert Lancaster Lloyd (29 February 1908 – 29 September 1982),Eder, Bruce. (29 September 1982A. L. Lloyd - Music Biography, Credits and Discography AllMusic. Retrieved on 2013-02-24. usually known as A. L. Lloyd or Bert Lloyd, was an English f ...

* 1976 Kenneth Clark; Johnson Ellwood * 1977 Stan Hugill; Rev Kenneth Loveless * 1978 Sybil Clark; Bob Copper ( Copper Family); Kathleen Mitchell * 1979 Bill Rutter * 1980 Dr Russell Wortley * 1981 Dr Lionel Bacon;

Bob Cann Bob, BOB, or B.O.B. may refer to: Places *Mount Bob, New York, United States *Bob Island, Palmer Archipelago, Antarctica People, fictional characters, and named animals *Bob (given name), a list of people and fictional characters *Bob (surname) ...

* 1982 Sam Sherry; The Watersons ( Lal, Norma and Mike Waterson, John Harrison and

Martin Carthy Martin Carthy MBE (born 21 May 1941) is an English folk singer and guitarist who has remained one of the most influential figures in British traditional music, inspiring contemporaries such as Bob Dylan and Paul Simon, and later artists such ...

) * 1983 Nibs Matthews;

Walter Pardon Walter Pardon (4 March 1914 – 9 June 1996) was an English carpenter, folk singer and recording artist from Knapton, Norfolk, England. He learned songs and tunes from older members of his family and remembered and performed them at a time when ...

; The Spinners (Tony Davis, Mick Groves, Cliff Hall and Hugh Jones) * 1984 Philip Bloy; Leslie Hyner * 1986 Hugh Rippon * 1987 Reg Hall; Ewan MacCoIl; Peggy Seeger; Michael Yates * 1988 Joe Brown; Ursula Vaughan Williams * 1989 Peter Dashwood; Jack Hamilton * 1990 Tom Cook; Pat Tracey * 1995 Ivor Allsop; Liza Austin; Brenda Godrich; Cyril Jones; Fred Jordan; Harry Pitts; Rex Laycock * 1996 May Beeforth; Elsie Cloughton; Tony Foxworthy; Francis Shergold * 1997 Barbara Kinsman; Ivy Romney; Cyril Swales * 1998 Jill Copper, John Copper & Jon Dudley ( Copper Family); Marjorie Fennessy; Dr Ian Russell * 1999 Roy Judge; Ron Smedley * 2001 Roy Dommett; Dr Denis Smith; Trevor Stone * 2002 Dr Christopher Cawte; John Kirkpatrick; Dave Swarbrick * 2003 Dave Arthur; Shirley Collins; Iona Opie; Roy Palmer * 2004 Steve Heap; Peter Kennedy; Geoff Rye; Malcolm Taylor * 2005 Alistair Anderson; Tony Engle; Phil Heaton; Aubrey O’Brien; Doc Rowe * 2007 Eliza Carthy; Michael Heaney; Frank Purslow; Pat Wilkinson;

The Yetties The Yetties (John "Bonny" Sartin, Pete Shutler, and Mac McCulloch) were an English folk music group, who took their name from the Dorset village of Yetminster, their childhood home. In 1975, they released an album entitled '' The Yetties of Yet ...

(Bonny Sartin, Pete Shutler and Mac McCulloch) * 2008 Ray Fisher; John Heydon;

Lou Killen Louisa "Lou" Jo Killen (born Louis Killen; 10 January 1934 – 9 August 2013) was an English folk singer from Gateshead, Tyneside, who also played the English concertina. Killen formed one of Britain's first folk clubs in 1958 in Newcastle upon ...

; Colin Ross * 2009 Jack Brown; Beryl Marriott; Roger Nicholls; Steve Roud; Derek Schofield * 2010 Jim Coleman; Vic Gammon; John Howson; Katie Howson; Taffy Thomas * 2011 Johnny Handle; Nic Jones; George Peterson; Les Seaman; Jackie Toaduff; Eddie Upton * 2012 Bill Leader; Graeme Miles * 2013 Ashley Hutchings; Ricky Forster; David Blick * 2014 Maddy Prior;

Sandra Kerr Sandra Kerr (born 14 February 1942, Plaistow, Essex) is an English folk singer. Kerr sings and plays English concertina, guitar, Appalachian dulcimer and autoharp. She was a member of The Critics Group from 1963–1972. With John Faulkner, sh ...

; David Leverton; Alan Bearman * 2015 Ian A. Anderson; John Tams; Rollo Woods; Paul Wilson and Marilyn Tucker (Wren Music) * 2016 Maggie Fletcher; Pete Coe and Sue Coe; Mike Wilson-Jones and Mary Wilson-Jones * 2017 Johnny Adams; Nicolas Broadbridge; Dave and Maggie Hunt; The Wilson Family * 2018 Frankie Armstrong; John Bacon; Antony Heywood; Vic Legg * 2019 Carolyn Robson; Chris Coe; John Graham; Mike Norris;

Kate Rusby Kate Anna Rusby (born 4 December 1973) is an English folk singer-songwriter from Penistone, West Riding of Yorkshire, England. Sometimes called the "Barnsley Nightingale", she has headlined various British folk festivals, and is one of the be ...

* 2020 Paul and Liz Davenport; Benny Graham;

Mick Peat Mick is a masculine given name, usually a short form (hypocorism) of Michael. Because of its popularity in Ireland, it is often used in England as a derogatory term for an Irish person or a person of Irish descent. In Australia the meaning broaden ...

References

External links

* *
English Dance and Song Magazine website
* {{DEFAULTSORT:English Folk Dance And Song Society English folk dance English folk music English folklore Ralph Vaughan Williams Arts organizations established in 1932 1932 establishments in the United Kingdom Charities based in England History of the London Borough of Camden Organisations based in the London Borough of Camden