The portal contains a vast range of resources by and for the dance, music, and song community. From expert tips from fellow organizers and callers, to databases of dances and songs, find what you need to help engage with the traditions you love!
Resources added before 2022 do not all have explicit permission from the authors. If your resource is in the portal and you’d like it removed, please email us.
Search the Portal
Use the search box and filters below to find resources.
Tip: Selecting multiple checkboxes will give you more specific results. For example, to see specific resources for contra dance callers, select both Callers and Contra Dance.
34 Results
Women/Black/Indigenous/POC/LGBTQIA+/People with Disabilities Music Instructor Nominee Directory
This spreadsheet shows a list of recommended music teachers from marginalized communities. The list is the result of a survey form created in 2019 by A’yen Tran with the intention of making it publicly available, particularly to music camp directors. The goal is to increase representation for women, people of color, people with disabilities, and gender-diverse people in music camps and other musical learning opportunities.
Categories: Experienced Participants, Musicians, Novices, Organizers, Singers
New Old Songs: Writing Within the Tradition
Alex Sturbaum shares tips for writing new songs within folk traditions and touches on writing with less-often-mentioned themes in mind.
From the CDSS News
Categories: Singers
Let’s Talk About Reentry, Part 7: Singing Together Safely
May 3, 2022
An online discussion to support organizers of song groups
Two organizers offered firsthand experiences about keeping their song groups alive and well through the pandemic by hosting in-person and online singing events. Our third guest provided the latest COVID-19 news from her public health perspective, with suggestions especially pertinent for song group organizers. Q&A with all three guests included:
- Janice Hanson from Golden Link Folk Singing Society in Rochester, NY
- Steve Deering from Vancouver Folk Song Society in Vancouver, BC
- Dr. Kimbi Hagen, public health professor from Atlanta, GA
Categories: Organizers, Singers, Web Chats
Miriam Newman explains the movement towards asking people about their pronouns.
From the CDSS News
Categories: Callers, Dancers, Educators, Musicians, Organizers, Singers
Northern Junket was a square dance magazine published from 1949 until 1985 by Ralph Page, a renowned figure in New England folk dancing. Each issue contains directions and tunes for squares, contras and folk dances, as well as folk songs, recipes, riddles, tongue-twisters, old wives’ tales, and other folklife traditions.
Categories: Callers, Community/Family Dance, Contra Dance, Dancers, Musicians, Singers, Square Dance
All things shape note, provided by the Sacred Harp Musical Heritage Association.
Categories: Organizers, Singers
Singalong and Song Circle Locator
Rise Up and Sing provides a list of regular song swap/singalong groups that are open to the general public, organized by geographical location.
From Annie Patterson and Peter Blood
Categories: Singers
Traditional Music Today Facebook Group
This Facebook group “attempts to be a safe(r) space to discuss traditional music, culture and our lives as members of it.”
Categories: Callers, Dancers, Musicians, Organizers, Singers
Sacred Harp Singing Discussion Lists
Two Sacred Harp singing email lists. One focuses on events and individuals while the other focuses on the historical and technical aspects of shape note singing.
From Sacred Harp Musical Heritage Association
Categories: Organizers, Singers
Shared Weight: Song Organizers Discussion List
This mailing list (email group) welcomes anyone interested in organizing song events. List members ask/answer questions, discuss issues that come up for them, and share helpful resources. There are both new and experienced organizers from throughout North America and beyond. Join the discussion!
Categories: Organizers, Singers
An archive of almost 1600 Ozark Mountain folk songs, recorded between 1956 and 1976.
From Missouri State University
Categories: Singers
The MacEdward Leach collection of Songs of Atlantic Canada
This collection includes songs from Cape Breton and Newfoundland.
From Memorial University
Categories: Singers
Juneberry 78s: Early American Roots Music
Collection of recordings from the 1920s and on in an online listening library. Many genres of early US folk as well as Cape Breton, Calypso, Irish, and more.
Categories: Musicians, Singers
Canadian Folk Music is a journal published by the Canadian Society for Traditional Music containing articles, notices, reviews, and commentary on all aspects of Canadian folk music.
Categories: Singers
This collection provides access to digital images for over 3,000 pieces from the collection, published in the United States between 1850 and 1920.
From Duke University Libraries
Categories: Musicians, Singers
GEMS: The Best of The Country Dance and Song Society Diamond Jubilee Music, Dance and Song Contest
This online collection contains American (e.g., contra, mixer, triplet) dances, English dances (with music), tunes, and songs composed by the country dance and song community.
From CDSS
Categories: Callers, Contra Dance, Dancers, English Country Dance, Musicians, Singers
Digital Library of Appalachia (Music Collection)
A searchable database of several thousand non-commercial sound recordings that document much of Appalachian music’s geographic, ethnic, vocal, and instrumental diversity.
From the Appalachia College Association
Categories: Musicians, Singers
Peter and Mary Alice offer more than 30 (and adding more all the time) free downloads of sheet music of accessible choral arrangements, mostly a cappella SATB, that are steeped in traditional music. Most are Amidon arrangements; there are a few by other old and new composers and arrangers, including a selection of classic American shape note songs.
From Peter and Mary Alice Amidon
Categories: Educators, Singers
The Music Box is an extensive searchable online database of more than 2500 songs that includes information on the song (where it can be found in songbooks, composers, song genre, culture) as well as a way to listen to recordings of the song by various artists.
From Rise Up and Sing
Categories: Singers
Broadside Ballads Online presents a digital collection of English printed ballad sheets from between the 16th and 20th centuries, linked to other resources for the study of the English ballad tradition. The collection includes many primitive woodcut illustrations, and words, but rarely musical notation.
From the Bodleian Library at the University of Oxford
Categories: Singers
Jon Boden’s project to record a folk song a day yielded a total of 365 folk songs with introductions and notes. This is a searchable database, or you can scroll through an alphabetical list of the songs.
From Jon Boden
Categories: Singers
The Full English Project is the world’s biggest free digital archive of traditional folk music and dance tunes, and songs.
From EFDSS
Categories: Dancers, Musicians, Singers
The Mudcat Café is an online discussion group and song and tune database, which also includes many other features relating to folk music.
Categories: Musicians, Singers
The Folk Scholarship Roots and Geopolitical Boundaries of Sacred Harp’s Global Twenty-first Century
This article by Jesse P. Karlsberg describes the history of Sacred Harp from its infancy until today.
From CD+S Online
Categories: Singers
This blog post looks at what is a comfortable vocal range for singers – helpful to know when leading songs.
From Jeff Kaufman
Categories: Singers
In this blog post, Amanda writes about how to use a memory prompt as a support when leading a song.
From Amanda Witman
Categories: Singers
Breaking Down the Legacy of Race in Traditional Music in America
This NPR radio piece and the associated article explore the intersection between racism and traditional music & song. Both Jake Blount and the Youth Traditional Song Weekend are featured.
From National Public Radio
Categories: Organizers, Singers
How to Lead Groups in Song In 10 Easy Lessons
Ten tips for leading a successful group sing.
By Peter Blood and Annie Patterson
Categories: Organizers, Singers
Fostering Intergenerational Community
This document is a product of groups discussions in a workshop attended by members of the YTS community. It focuses on what works, what doesn’t, and how individuals can raise intergenerational issues within their community.
From Youth Traditional Song Weekend 2015
Categories: Organizers, Singers
The Mermaid’s Tavern Guide to Zoom Singing
The Mermaid’s Tavern Guide to Zoom Singing is a blog-based website for planning, producing, and participating in community song sessions and concerts online. It includes an extensive resources section of over 25 additional guides to various aspects of online music, dance, and song.
Categories: Organizers, Singers
CDSS Starter Kit for Folk Song Organizers
A comprehensive how-to on starting a sing. Includes sections on vision, finding a venue, publicity, structure, facilitation, and more!
From CDSS
Categories: Organizers, Singers
Singing and Playing Music in REAL TIME! An online discussion for organizers of song communities and open bands
January 13, 2021
Members of the Sacred Harp group FaSoLa Philadelphia (PA) and the Phoenix (AZ) Traditional Music & Dance Society joined us for this conversation. During the Web Chat, they shared their successes with using the computer program Jamulus to enable their groups to sing and play music in real time!
Categories: Organizers, Singers, Web Chats
Supporting Song Communities Across the Continent
September 16, 2020
Many organizers of song groups are finding creative ways to keep your community engaged and connected during the pandemic. In this Web Chat, we heard from organizers about experiences that are working well in their song groups. We featured a few guest speakers and took time for Q&A, open conversation, and breakout rooms.
Categories: Organizers, Singers, Web Chats
Connecting Community Sing Organizers
October 16, 2019
Do you organize a participatory singing event (song circle, pub sing, etc.) primarily focused on traditional songs? If so, don’t miss this chance to hear about creating a thriving community sing series. CDSS web chat guests from across the continent will share their experiences, including time for Q&A.
Categories: Organizers, Singers, Web Chats
Thanks to the Massachusetts Cultural Council for their generous support.