Lucy Broadwood (1858-1928): the Challenges and Compromises of a Folk Song Collector

Lucy Broadwood (1858-1928): the Challenges and Compromises of a Folk Song Collector

A Folklore Society online talk

by Chris Hare

Tuesday 1 April 2025, 19:00 BST

Lucy Broadwood was a pioneering folk song collector, who was active in the field from the 1880s until her death in 1929. She had a broad range of musical tastes and was fascinated by humanity’s spiritual and ritual life.

Along with Kate Lee, Lucy Broadwood was one of Britain’s foremost folk song collectors; yet both have been eclipsed by Cecil Sharp and Vaughan Williams, who became interested in folk song much later than Broadwood (this is especially true of Cecil Sharp who Lucy came to regard as an inveterate self-publicist).

My talk will look at Lucy’s life. She was born into an upper middle class family of piano manufacturers, and lived as a child and young adult at Lyne House on the Sussex/ Surrey border. Her interest in folk song dated back to her young days and to the gypsy family that used to call at the house at Christmas singing old festive carols.

As a young woman she played the organ at Rusper church and came into contact with many of the local working people. Despite her class and gender she was able to build a rapport with the older (mainly male) agricultural workers and persuaded them to sing their songs to her. This was some achievement given the social mores of the time.

One man provided her with more songs that all her other informants put together. His name was Henry Burstow (1826 – 1916) of Horsham, a shoemaker and bellringer. It is believed he knew 400 songs. He also remembered in great detail all the events of his life, including the ritual/ festive calendar of his youth.

Lucy later travelled around Scotland and Ireland collecting folksong. Along with Kate Lee (with who she had a somewhat turbulent and competitive relationship), she founded the Folk Song Society (which later merged with the Folklore Society).

She was involved in organising public concerts of classical music in London. Her interest in folk song led her to abandon her youthful championing of Wagner and she became very involved instead with the Purcell Society.

She wrote extensively on a broad range of topics and believed she had ‘second sight.’

As well as secondary sources, I have read many of the entries in her diaries that are kept at Surrey History Centre at Woking, along with appreciations of her life and work by friends and colleagues. I have also learned and sing several of the songs she collected. I think folk song can be overlooked in the study of folklore, and yet really, many folk songs are just folklore set to music.

Chris Hare worked for several years as an adult education manager. Since 2009 he has run his own heritage consultancy and manages (mainly Lottery-funded) community heritage projects. He has a first degree in British Studies and an MA in Life History. As a social historian he has a long-standing interest in folklore and folk song.

Tickets £6.00 (£4.00 for Folklore Society members with the Promo Code: log in to https://folklore-society.com/members-only to get the Promo Code) from https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/lucy-broadwood-the-challenges-and-compromises-of-a-folk-song-collector-tickets-1233049707869?

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Image: Studio portrait of Lucy Broadwood by Henry Bullingham, Harrington Rd, Kensington; by permission, Surrey HIstory Centre