Music, dance and storytelling
Songs, dances, theatre, epic poetry and oral history.
Music, dance and storytelling traditions are the performances that a community passes down by ear, eye and heart: the epic poem recited by a griot, the dance in a circle at a wedding, the shadow play of Java, the ballad of a village, the lullaby of a grandmother. They carry history, law and humour in forms that people can remember. Many are linked to festivals and rites, and many are on UNESCO's lists of intangible heritage. Here they are gathered by country, with notes on who performs them and when.
Songs and dances of the people
Folk music and dance are community property: they are learnt by joining in, not by lessons, and they change a little with every generation. Circle dances, line dances and couple dances accompany harvests and weddings, and instruments such as the drum, the fiddle, the pipe and the lute are made locally. In many places, there are separate songs for work, for love, for mourning and for children, and each has its own time and place.
Stories and theatre
Oral storytelling holds a society's memory: epics, myths, fables, proverbs and riddles told by elders. Some become formal theatre, such as kabuki and noh in Japan, wayang in Indonesia, the mumming plays of Britain or the Ramlila of India, which retells the Ramayana in a month of evenings. These forms often depend on one master teaching one student, and communities and governments now support them to keep them alive.
About this page
Written by the EveryParampara desk with AI assistance. Background on Music, dance and storytelling (kind of tradition). Customs differ from place to place and family to family. If this is your tradition and we have it wrong, tell us.
🇮🇪 Dublin, Ireland and 2 moreIrish stepdance
A percussive dance form with swift, intricate footwork and an upright torsoPerformance
🇺🇦 Kyiv, UkraineBanduraБандура
A Ukrainian plucked string instrument played to accompany epic songs and folk balladsPerformance
🇬🇷 Athens, Greece and 1 moreTsamikoΤσάμικος
A slow Greek folk dance performed in a line or circle to 3/4 time music.Performance
🇬🇧 Newcastle upon Tyne, United Kingdom and 5 moreRapper sword
A fast-paced five-person sword dance from the coalfields of North East England, kept alive by teams worldwide.Performance
🇬🇧 Cardiff, United KingdomNational Eisteddfod of WalesEisteddfod Genedlaethol Cymru
An annual week-long festival of Welsh music, poetry and culture held across different locations in Wales.Festival
🇵🇱 Poland and 1 moreOberek
A rapid Polish spinning dance in triple metre with athletic lifts and jumpsPerformance
🇦🇹 Vienna, Austria and 2 moreViennese waltzWiener Walzer
A fast rotary partner dance kept across Austria and Europe, celebrated in ballrooms and social halls.Performance
🇱🇻 LatviaDaina
Short, traditional Latvian folk songs and verses sung across the human life cyclePerformance
🇬🇧 United Kingdom and 3 moreMumming
A medieval European custom of masked house-to-house visits, performances and seasonal revelry.Festival
🇪🇸 Seville, SpainSevillanas
A folk dance and song from Seville, kept at fairs and festivals across Andalusia.Performance
🇫🇷 Paris, France and 3 moreFête de la Musique
An annual celebration where people play music in public spaces on the summer solstice.Festival
🇦🇹 Vienna, Austria and 3 moreLändler
A three-quarter time partner dance from the Alpine region, known for hopping steps and yodeling.Performance
🇵🇱 Kraków, PolandKrakowiak
A lively Polish folk dance from Kraków that became a popular ballroom style across Europe.Performance
🇪🇸 Ronda, Spain and 5 moreBullfightingCorrida de toros
A ritual contest between a bullfighter and a bull, kept in Spain and Latin AmericaGame
🇬🇧 Pilton, United KingdomGlastonbury Festival
A five-day summer performing arts festival held on Somerset farmlandFestival
🇮🇪 Dublin, Ireland and 2 moreIrish traditional music
A living folk practice of dance tunes, airs, songs and communal pub sessionsPerformance
🇩🇰 Copenhagen, DenmarkFaroese chain danceFøroyskur dansur
A living medieval chain dance guided by sung ballads in the Faroe IslandsPerformance
🇮🇸 IcelandKvæði
Long narrative ballads sung during traditional chain dances in the Faroe IslandsPerformance
🇭🇺 Budapest, Hungary and 2 moreHungarian folk dance
A collection of traditional dances kept by Hungarians in Hungary and across the diaspora.Performance
🇪🇸 Granada, SpainCante jondo
A solemn and profound vocal tradition of Andalusian flamenco song.Performance
🇪🇸 Spain and 1 moreBertsolaritza
Improvised songs sung in Basque, rhymed on the spot at contests and gatheringsPerformance
🇬🇧 United Kingdom and 5 moreBeating Retreat
A military ceremony of music and drill held at sunset to mark the end of a day or a festival.Ceremony
🇬🇷 Athens, Greece and 1 moreSirtakiσυρτάκι
A Greek folk dance created for a 1964 film that blends slow and fast rhythms into a single performance.Performance
🇭🇷 Dubrovnik, CroatiaLinđo
A circle dance from Dubrovnik played to the lijerica, where a leader sets the rhythm and calls the steps.Performance
🇮🇪 Ros Muc, Ireland and 2 moreSean-nós dancedamhsa ar an sean nós
An improvised solo Irish dance: low footwork, free arms and a loud battering beatPerformance
🇵🇱 Poland and 2 morePolonaisePolonez
A traditional Polish partner dance in triple metre, kept as a national custom and UNESCO heritage.Performance
🇭🇺 Hungary and 5 moreCsárdás
A Hungarian folk dance that moves from a slow start to a fast finish, kept in Hungary and neighboring regions.Performance
🇵🇹 Lisbon, PortugalMarchas Populares
Neighbourhood teams march, dance and sing through Lisbon's June nights for St AnthonyFestival · Feasts and festival meals
🇮🇪 Ireland and 5 moreFleadh CheoilFleadh Cheoil na hÉireann
An annual gathering of Irish traditional music and dance, featuring competitions, public sessions, and concerts across IPerformance
🇲🇰 Galičnik, North Macedonia and 1 moreTeškotoТешкото
A Macedonian line dance that expresses the hardship and resilience of people in western Macedonia.Performance
🇵🇱 Kraków, PolandSt. Mary's Trumpet CallHejnał mariacki
A five-note bugle call played hourly from the tower of St. Mary's Church in Kraków, Poland.Performance
🇬🇧 United Kingdom and 5 moreMorris dance
A rhythmic English folk dance performed in costume with bells, sticks and handkerchiefsPerformance
🇮🇪 Waterford, IrelandSean-nós singingSean-nós
An unaccompanied, highly ornamented style of traditional Irish folk singingPerformance
🇬🇧 United Kingdom and 5 moreChristmas carol
Festive songs and hymns sung during the Christmas season and door to doorPerformance
🇫🇷 Paris, FranceCoupé-décalé
Ivorian dance music of club nights, flamboyant dress and money thrown to the crowdPerformance
🇦🇹 Vienna, Austria and 4 moreLipizzanerLipicanec
A gray riding horse breed and centuries-old tradition of classical dressage kept by the Spanish Riding School.Performance
🇪🇸 Valls, SpainCastell
A Catalan tradition of building multi-level human towers at festivals, requiring strength, balance, and community solidaPerformance
🇫🇷 FranceFest nozfest noz (pl. festoù noz)
A Breton night festival of group dancing and live acoustic music, kept in Brittany and its diaspora.Festival · Tea-time and snacking customs
🇮🇪 Dublin, Ireland and 5 moreBloomsdayLá Bloom
A celebration of James Joyce and his novel Ulysses, observed on 16 June in Dublin and worldwide.Festival · Breakfast
🇳🇴 Norway and 2 moreJoik
A Sámi song that evokes a person, animal or place instead of telling about themPerformance
🇷🇴 Romania and 3 moreCălușariCălușarii
An acrobatic Romanian spring dance and ritual brotherhood tied to folklore and healingPerformance
🇬🇧 London, United KingdomNotting Hill Carnival
An annual London street carnival celebrating British Caribbean culture and musicFestival
🇬🇧 Dunoon, United Kingdom and 5 moreHighland gamesgeamannan Gàidhealach
A series of Scottish athletic and cultural competitions held in Scotland and across the diaspora.Festival
🇬🇧 United Kingdom and 1 moreBurns supperBurns Nicht
A Scottish celebratory meal of haggis, poetry and toasts in honour of Robert BurnsFestival · Dinner
🇷🇺 RussiaScarlet SailsАлые паруса
A summer graduation celebration on the Neva River in Saint PetersburgFestival
🇬🇧 Edinburgh, United Kingdom and 2 moreRoyal Edinburgh Military Tattoo
An annual military music and performance show held on the Esplanade of Edinburgh Castle in August.Performance
🇸🇮 Slovenia and 1 morePrešeren DayPrešernov dan
A national celebration of arts and literature observed across Slovenia on 8 FebruaryCeremony
🇪🇸 Pamplona, Spain and 5 moreProcessional giants
Towering costumed figures carried through town streets during communal festivalsFestival
Photo credits on this page
The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.
- Bandura: Julianhayda, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- St. Mary's Trumpet Call: Jadwiga, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Processional giants: Jesús Serna, CC BY-SA 2.5, source
- Castell: Pcm, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Bloomsday: No machine-readable author provided. Flapdragon assumed (based on copy, Public domain, source
- Călușari: El bes, CC BY 3.0, source
- Notting Hill Carnival: Diliff, CC BY 2.5, source
- Highland games: marsupium photography, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Scarlet Sails: Kora27, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Burns supper: Kim Traynor, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Prešeren Day: Franz von Kurz zum Thurn und Goldenstein, Public domain, source
- Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo: xlibber, CC BY 2.0, source
- Morris dance: Des Blenkinsopp, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Glastonbury Festival: Czampal, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Christmas carol: Prathyush Thomas, GFDL 1.2, source
- Sean-nós singing: Pierre Puvis de Chavannes, Public domain, source
- Irish traditional music: Gtapp, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Faroese chain dance: Eileen Sandá, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Oberek: Józef Chełmoński, Public domain, source
- Irish stepdance: John Benson, CC BY 2.0, source
- Kvæði: Eileen Sandá, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Daina: Savannah Rivka, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- National Eisteddfod of Wales: Llywelyn2000, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Teškoto: This illustration was made by Rašo . An email to Rašo would be appreci, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Bullfighting: No machine-readable author provided. Manuel González Olaechea assumed, CC BY 3.0, source
- Viennese waltz: Sigismund von Dobschütz, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Krakowiak: Władysław Bakałowicz, Public domain, source
- Sevillanas: Anual, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Beating Retreat: Beating Retreat, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Hungarian folk dance: Koós Ildikó, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Bertsolaritza: Akerbeltz, Public domain, source
- Mumming: Flemish illuminator Jehan de Grise and his workshop, 1338-1344, Public domain, source
- Sirtaki: Simon Bonaventure, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Linđo: Sasa.mazinjanin, Public domain, source
- Fest noz: Man vyi, Public domain, source
- Fleadh Cheoil: Gfitz122, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Csárdás: Unknown author, Public domain, source
- Marchas Populares: Taisir85, CC BY 4.0, source
- Fête de la Musique: dalbera, CC BY 2.0, source
- Polonaise: Korneli Szlegel, Public domain, source
- Ländler: Emil Rau, Public domain, source
- Lipizzaner: Srdjan Živulovič, Attribution, source