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English Folk Dance & Song Society English Folk Dance & Song Society
Cecil Sharp House
Vaughan Williams Memorial Library
National Youth Folk Ensemble

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We champion folk music and dance at the heart of cultural life, all across England. Can you support the folk arts with a donation today?

Give now

Support our work

We champion folk music and dance at the heart of cultural life, all across England. Can you support the folk arts with a donation today?

Give now

Support our work

We champion folk music and dance at the heart of cultural life, all across England. Can you support the folk arts with a donation today?

Give now
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About us

The essential folk resource

Free entry

The most important concentration of material on traditional song, dance and music in the country – A Dictionary of English Folklore

The Vaughan Williams Memorial Library (VWML) is the library and archive of the English Folk Dance and Song Society (EFDSS), based at its home, Cecil Sharp House in London. It is England’s national folk music and dance archive, an essential resource for anybody interested in the folk arts. Founded in 1930 as the Cecil Sharp Library to house Cecil Sharp’s personal book collection, it is now a multimedia library of distinction, containing books, periodicals, sound recordings, moving images, photographs, artefacts and archival materials.

It is a comprehensive collection containing the largest number of folk-related manuscripts in England, providing invaluable insight into folk history and regional variation.

The Library was given an excellence award by the International Association of Music Libraries, Archives and Documentation Centres (IAML) in 2010 and designated status by the Museums, Libraries and Archives Council (MLA) in 2011.

Opening hours

Tuesday–Friday from 10am to 5pm.
1st and 3rd Saturdays of the month from 10.30am to 4pm.

Contact

Vaughan Williams Memorial Library
Cecil Sharp House
2 Regent's Park Road
London NW1 7AY

[email protected]
+44 (0)20 7485 2206 ext. 233



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English Folk Dance and Song Society, Cecil Sharp House, 2 Regent’s Park Road, London NW1 7AY, UK.
Tel: 020 7485 2206 | Email: [email protected] | Registered charity number 305999
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© 2025 EFDSS.
Supported by Arts Council England