Celebration of music, dance, town and country as folk festival returns
A JOYOUS return for the Holmfirth Festival of Folk has been hailed a record success.
Dancers twirled in traditional finery and brought to life old customs and with merry revelry.
There were 18 dance groups performing, from belly dancing to traditional Morris, complete with garlands, slings and bobbins and traditional bells and clogs.
Festivities ran all through the weekend, with workshops, bands, a ceilidh and many performances from dance troupes. Workshops, meanwhile, featured participatory events from drumming to shanty singing.
A key feature of the popular festival, which has been held online for the past two years, is band music and performances, with acts appearing in pubs across the town.
Committee member Andrew Carver said this year’s festival, as a return to in-person events for its 44th year, had been “amazing”.
He said: “We’ve had probably a record number of bands, and a record number of dancers. The atmosphere has been absolutely brilliant.
“It’s keeping folk music and dance and storytelling alive as an art form, and that beautiful reflection of British-ness and English-ness, as well as celebrating the culture in these Pennine towns.”
The festival is community led, run entirely by volunteers, and Mr Carver paid tribute to their efforts.
He said: “We are so proud of what they have achieved, putting Holmfirth on the map.
“It’s just about fun, about people coming and having a really good time, and that sense of community.”
We’ve had probably a record number of bands and dancers. Andrew Carver, committee member of Holmfirth Festival of Folk.