In as many ways as you can think of – there are no boundaries. The European Folk Day is by you, for you, by us and for us all… 

If you are professional, a volunteer or an amateur, a solo artist, a band, a workshop, a community group, a dance group, a school or conservatoire, a choir, a concert or festival organiser, a national folk network – or any kind of person or organisation involved in folk music, dance and storytelling – you are free to imagine any activity you want to mark the Day.

Here’s just a few ideas: 

• Petition your local city government to issue a proclamation recognizing September 23 as European Folk Day
• Dedicate your September 23 program of activities to European Folk Day  
• Organize an expert panel, concert program series, a micro-festival, a bal folk, or a festnoz for your community
• Curate a radio/television broadcast showcasing music & dance by local artists
• Create and/or promote folk music playlists on social media
• Get together with your family to listen to Europe’s folk and traditional music
• Post a video or photo tribute of a folk song or dance you like on social media
• Host a house concert for your friends
• Make a arts-and-crafts project with your students
• Run jam sessions or open mics at your local restaurant
• Present instrument and dance workshops featuring local artists
• Join EFN – The European Folk Network and/or support us with a donation

No. Anyone connected to folk in Europe can participate in the European Folk Day. 

Although of course we will be very happy if you want to join EFN – here’s the link to EFN if you’re interested in joining.

The idea for the day came out of discussions by EFN members in all of EFN’s conferences since the network began in 2019. So EFN always planned to make it happen – and raised some funding to cover some basic administrative costs and to put together a team to help make it happen for the first time this year.

No – 23 September is the main day, but any events that take place in the week before or after 23 September can be regarded as participating in the European Folk Day.

Register your event, use the European Folk Day logo and hashtags #europeanfolkday #europeanfolkday2024.

Mention the European Folk Day as another way to connect yourself to the European Folk community.

The day focusses on traditional performing arts – music, dance and storytelling.  

Participation is open for any community in Europe – historically indigenous or newly migrant – which loves and practises its own folk traditions.

There is not a centralised main event for the European Folk Day. Wherever someone is playing, singing, dancing, telling folk stories, there is the European Folk Day.

European Folk Day is a platform, a way to connect your local tune or event or story with the European Folk community, so you can be heard not just at home, by your neighbours, in your local community, but you can be put on the European Folk Map and be heard and seen across Europe. 

Make a nice video or recording of your favourite folk tune, song, story or dance and publish it around 23 September in your channels – Youtube, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok etc. – and use the hashtags #europeanfolkday #europeanfolkday2024.  

Register your participation for the European Folk Day, using the form for Online Events HERE.

Think of some creative way to involve the students – prepare a local tune, song, dance or story, that could be published with the hashtag #europeanfolkday #europeanfolkday2024. 

Stimulate the students to research their local folklore – ask parents or grandparents for a song or tune they remember, record it, collect it, share it in a group and online with the hashtag #europeanfolkday #europeanfolkday2024.

Organise a concert, get-together, dance, or storytelling day or evening around 23 September and register it with us so it will appear on the Events Map – as an On-site Event.

No. Of course you can use your own language for songs, stories and other artistic activities in your tradition.  

Our website will use the English language for descriptions and so please use English for the registration of your events on the forms on this website.

We will also translate some media information into some other European languages – which we will put on our Resources page.

There is no central funding available. Many participants will use their own funding or apply for special funding from their local/national sources to make special events happen for European Folk Day.

Do everything you would normally do – social media, print, media releases – to publicise your event or activity locally and nationally.

Use anything you like from our Resources page – including add the European Folk Day logo and links and hashtags #europeanfolkday #europeanfolkday2024 to everything – and repost everything that you can on social media.

Register your contribution. The European Folk Day team will use your information and repost your posts wherever we can. The team will concentrate PR on national and pan-European media and institutions.

Spread the word! Use any form of communication you like to tell them that anyone can participate – and of course audiences are participants too!

The aim is to get as many people as possible talking about and getting interested in the richly diverse traditions of Europe.

The European Folk Day is by you, for you, by us, and for us all…

You can email any of EFN’s project team with questions or comments and they will help in whatever way they can.

Here are their email addresses.