Folk Music Journal 2025
The English Folk Dance and Song Society has published the 2025 issue of Folk Music Journal (FMJ) – the annual scholarly journal of the Vaughan Williams Memorial Library.
Editor David Atkinson introduces the new issue (Volume 12 Number 5):
The 2025 issue of the journal will be the last in Volume 12. It kicks off with a study of sea shanties, in particular the much-loved American shanty ‘Shenandoah’, written by acknowledged shanty expert Gibb Schreffler. And nowadays everyone loves shanties, or ‘chanties’ as Gibb prefers, but you’ll have to read the article to find out why. Then that old chestnut, what is folk?, which Peter Harrop tackles from a novel angle by comparing morris and sword dancing with the development of the Northern Soul scene, shedding unexpected light on the matter.
Chloe Middleton-Metcalfe provides an exhaustive study of the origins of the ‘Varsoviana’, the couple dance that will be familiar to many under various titles (‘Shoe the Donkey’, ‘Turkey Rhubarb’, among others), which takes us rattling through Spain, Poland, and the racy world of Parisian salons, ending up on the London stage. For the less terpsichorean and more computer-minded, Mike Boursnell tries out the application of phylogenetic software from his background in biological sciences to tracing the evolutionary trees of Child ballads. Does the transmission of songs stand comparison with the evolution of species?
In ‘Lucky Lukey’s Northsea’ George Frampton brings to life manuscript sources and a series of newspaper columns to shed new light on singing in the North-East fishing village of Cullercoats before the First World War. Sean Goddard’s note revives, or rediscovers, the country dance ‘The Quaker’s Wife’ as played on the anglo-concertina by William Kimber.
Reviews include David Sutcliffe’s major new biography of Cecil Sharp. At last we have an authoritative source for what Sharp got up to. No doubt he will continue to be the target for agenda-driven criticism, but at least the outline of his work collecting folk songs, tunes, and dances is available for all. There is also a new book about the suffragette and morris dance pioneer Mary Neal, with whom Sharp fell out. Equally to blame, it seems. There are books about the hymn ‘Amazing Grace’, the great Scottish singer Jock Duncan, songs collected by the late John Howson, another volume of songs from Gypsies and Travellers, essays on folk songs, Ralph Vaughan Williams, and eighteenth-century street literature. And more, and a handful of films about British customs and Sidmouth Folk Week. As editor, I am ever grateful to everyone who has contributed to making this volume possible, and I trust EFDSS members, and all readers of the journal, will find something to interest them, and perhaps be prompted to submit their own research findings to the journal.
Members of the English Folk Dance and Song Society can search and view all previous issues of the Journal, and of its various predecessors dating all the way back to the first Journal of the Folk-Song Society in 1899, by logging into the Members’ area of this website and following the link to the digital library JSTOR. The members-only area also allows members to download PDFs of complete issues from 2014, strictly for their own personal study, and to search these same issues using various criteria.
As well as this increasing range of digital options, personal (non-group) members can opt-in to receive the printed Folk Music Journal by post. All Institution and Library members receive the printed FMJ by default.
Other benefits of being a member of the English Folk Dance and Song Society include English Dance and Song magazine three times a year and discounts on learning and safeguarding programmes from partner organisations, An exclusive FOLK pin badge, with a design by artist Amy Goodwin, was introduced in autumn 2023. Membership also directly supports the organisation’s charitable activities.
