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.
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.
🇮🇹 Venice, Italy and 3 moreVenice New Year's ConcertConcerto di Capodanno del Teatro La Fenice di Venezia
A New Year's Day concert of orchestra and opera at Venice's Teatro La FenicePerformance
🇱🇻 Riga, LatviaRiga Salsa Festival
An annual salsa dance festival in Riga, Latvia, featuring workshops and live performances.Performance
🇺🇦 Kolomyia, Ukraine and 4 moreKolomyikaКоломийка
A quick Hutsul dance-song of comic rhymed verses, danced at weddings and holidaysPerformance
🇽🇰 Pristina, KosovoDAM Festival Pristina
An annual gathering in Pristina showcasing emerging classical and contemporary musiciansPerformance
🇽🇰 Vushtrri, Kosovo and 1 moreGatherings of Poetesses in VushtrriTakimet e Poeteshave në Vushtrri
An annual literary festival celebrating female poets in Vushtrri, KosovoPerformance
🇪🇸 Seville, SpainTraje de flamenca
The ruffled dress women wear to the fairs of AndalusiaDress
🇬🇧 Sheffield, United KingdomOld Tup
A midwinter folk drama with a ram disguise from the English East MidlandsFolklore
🇲🇰 Skopje, North MacedoniaAnother Story FestivalДруга приказна
An annual literary festival in Skopje celebrating short fiction, activism, and diverse voices.Festival
🇮🇸 Reykjavík, IcelandIceland Noir
An annual November literature and storytelling festival held in central ReykjavíkPerformance
🇫🇷 France and 2 moreReynard the FoxRoman de Renart
A medieval European beast fable cycle starring a cunning trickster foxFolklore
🇷🇸 Belgrade, Serbia and 2 moreMerlinka Festival
An annual queer film festival held across Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and MontenegroFestival
🇱🇺 LuxembourgCinEast
An October film festival in Luxembourg showing new cinema from Central and Eastern EuropeFestival
🇳🇴 NorwayMárkomeannu
A Sámi music and cultural festival held in northern NorwayFestival
🇲🇪 Herceg Novi, MontenegroSunčane Skale
A three-day summer pop music festival and song competition in MontenegroPerformance
🇩🇰 Copenhagen, DenmarkCopenhagen Distortion
A week of street parties, club nights and a rave in Copenhagen celebrating new dance music.Festival
🇬🇷 GreeceLipothymiarikosΛιποθυμιάρικος (Χορός της νύφης)
A men-only Greek wedding dance where one dancer pretends to faint and springs upPerformance
🇲🇹 Valletta, MaltaL-Għanja tal-Poplu
An annual Maltese music festival celebrating original songs in MaltesePerformance
🇳🇱 Netherlands and 6 moreManifesta
A roving European contemporary art festival held in a new host city every two yearsPerformance
🇱🇻 Riga, LatviaRiga International Short Film Festival 2ANNASRīgas Starptautiskais īsfilmu festivāls 2ANNAS
An annual autumn film competition and screening event held in Riga, LatviaPerformance
🇽🇰 Prizren, KosovoAutostrada Biennale
A biennial contemporary art festival and cultural exhibition in Prizren, KosovoPerformance
🇲🇹 Floriana, MaltaIsle of MTV
A major free summer open-air pop and electronic music gathering held in MaltaFestival
🇽🇰 Prizren, KosovoDokuFest
An annual summer gathering in Prizren dedicated to non-fiction cinema and short filmsFestival
🇽🇰 Gjilan, KosovoFlaka e Janarit
A winter arts festival in Kosovo honoring national martyrs through music, drama and verseFestival
🇬🇷 GreeceKalanta ChristougenonΚάλαντα Χριστουγέννων
A Greek Christmas carol, sung around the feast with triangle and guitarPerformance
🇬🇧 United KingdomWelsh danceDawns Gymreig
Traditional dances of Wales, known for their athletic steps and revival after a period of decline.Performance
🇬🇧 Porthmadog, United KingdomWelsh clog dancingClocsio
A Welsh dance in wooden-soled clogs, full of rhythm, leaps and tricksPerformance
🇸🇰 SlovakiaJasličkári
A Slovak Christmas custom of young men acting out the Nativity from house to houseFestival
🇪🇸 Spain and 1 moreFlabiol
A Catalan woodwind flute played alongside a small drum in folk dancesPerformance
🇨🇿 Prague, CzechiaPrague SoundsStruny podzimu
An annual music festival in Prague presenting jazz, classical and electronic artistsFestival
🇩🇰 Copenhagen, DenmarkNatFilm Festival
An annual Danish cinema gathering held around Easter from 1990 to 2008Performance
🇪🇪 Kuressaare, EstoniaSaaremaa Opera FestivalSaaremaa ooperipäevad
An annual opera festival in Kuressaare, Estonia, featuring international performances.Performance
🇦🇹 Bludenz, AustriaBludenzer Tage zeitgemäßer Musik
An international festival of contemporary classical music held annually in BludenzPerformance
🇪🇪 Tartu, EstoniaTartuff
An open-air romance film festival held in the town hall square of Tartu, EstoniaPerformance
🇲🇰 Bitola, North MacedoniaManaki Brothers Film Festival
An annual international festival in Bitola honouring the craft of cinematographyFestival
🇷🇺 Vladimir, RussiaRozhokрожок
A traditional Russian wooden trumpet played solo and in pastoral horn ensemblesPerformance
🇬🇧 United Kingdom and 2 moreScottish folk music
Traditional ballads, fiddle tunes and bagpipe melodies from Scotland and its diasporaPerformance
🇬🇧 United KingdomWooing Play
A folk performance of farm labourers in the East Midlands, featuring a sieve horse.Performance
🇬🇧 United KingdomThe Knight's Ghost
A traditional folk ballad of grief, captive soldiers and a midnight spectral visitationPerformance
Photo credits on this page
The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.
- Welsh clog dancing: TG11TG15, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Welsh dance: Geoff Charles, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Iceland Noir: TommyBee, CC0, source
- Márkomeannu: Chmee2, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Manifesta: Manifesta8 manifesta 8, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Autostrada Biennale: Lajmmoore, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Isle of MTV: Continentaleurope, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- DokuFest: Fallbackintoreality, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Flaka e Janarit: E Sadiku, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Flabiol: P0mbal, CC0, source
- Saaremaa Opera Festival: Ave Maria Mõistlik, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Tartuff: Tusklikupreili, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Manaki Brothers Film Festival: US Embassy, Macedonia, Public domain, source
- Rozhok: Obakeneko, CC BY 3.0, source
- Scottish folk music: Kim Traynor, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- DAM Festival Pristina: Lyra Cela, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Gatherings of Poetesses in Vushtrri: Drenisa, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Another Story Festival: Vancho Dzambaski, CC0, source
- Traje de flamenca: MariCruz México, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Old Tup: Doyle of London, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Kolomyika: Teodor Axentowicz, Public domain, source
- Venice New Year's Concert: Youflavio, CC BY-SA 4.0, source