The European Folk Day is a pilot project conceived and coordinated by the members of the European Folk Network (EFN), co-funded by the European Union via the MusicAIRE programme. This intention is that it will take place on an annual basis.

This pilot project is democratic and diverse. It is open to traditions of music from any community in Europe, whether historically indigenous or newly-migrant.  

The European Folk Day is a milestone for everyone in the world of folk arts to show that we can come together and that we are an essential part of Europe’s rich cultural spectrum. Folk music, dance and storytelling carry the voices and stories of the people, nations and communities of Europe. The folk arts preserve the cultures and traditions of the past and evolve with each generation.   

The European Folk Day is conceived in such a way that participation is possible by almost any interested person or organization who wants to join in. For example, an aficionado can publish a playlist of his or her favorite folk recordings. Or an organization can create a festival with several artists performing, as is the case with festivals in Malmesbury in England or Rome in Italy.   

And radio stations can add participation in their programming, as the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) has encouraged its members to do. Indeed, the EBU, also known as Euroradio, the world’s leading alliance of public service media, has already announced that 19 of its members will include the European Folk Day in their programming, with more to come.  

This initiative aimed to reach deeper into the wealth of people and organisations across Europe, who are involved in so many ways in the traditional performing arts.   

On the website you can learn about all the events programmed for the European Folk Day.