One of the reasons folk degree students might not be interested in this thread is because they're tired of this argument that has been ranting on with countless threads exactly like this one since before the Newcastle degree began!

The first point i always put forward is; Are you saying that our traditional music isn't worthy of being studied at degree level alongside jazz, popular and classical musics?

The other thing is that there are so many different kinds of people who choose to study on the course. An encouraging amount of mature students, and a lot of people who will never get mentioned on these message boards because they simply couln't be less interested in being a professional performer, very wise if you ask me!

And the course is not a folk fame factory! just like any degree, people go in with their own personal agendas, yes some will want to be folk stars but they really are in the minority. Some will want to play stupdly fast tunes and not give a damn about playing with feeling or relating to an audience but again, you're going to get people like that wether they've been on a folk degree or not. Personally i learnt all i know about performing from playing in rock bands on the exeter pub circuit when i was at college and playing folk clubs when i was supposed to be studying in newcastle! The best thing for me when i was at newcastle was having the time and resources to really research and soak up all the music that i love and am passionate about and i don't think i would have discovered half of the great songs or the old singers if it wasn't for having Sandra Kerr and Chris Coe around to inspire and encourage me.

When i started the degree i had no idea who anyone was or had ever heard of FolkWorks or even Mike Harding(!) I had just gotten really interested in folksong from going to local clubs and reading books in the library. i was very innocent of the wider folk scene before i became a 'product' of the folk degree. God i hate it when people say that! like i was completely void of skill before i went up there and then magically Sandra Kerr taught me to sing like a mouse!

what i do for a career and whatever sucess i have had has very little to do with the folk degree. the folk degree didn't mold me and get me bookings at folk clubs and it certainly didn't teach me any stage craft, i did all that myself because i chose to and i've worked bloody hard too so that's why it gets me hot under the coller when people who don't actually know anything about the degree go making sweeping statements and generalisations and announcing that all you have to do to get sucessful is enroll at newcastle and bob's your uncle you've got a folk award, what nonsense!

And finally about young folkies undermining the tradition; yeah some of them probably will. singing songs and playing tunes with no feeling, being dull on stage and rude to organisers and claiming to represent traditional music and we'll all get really annoyed and embarrassed but hey you can't stop the little f**kers, some folks even enjoy and encourage 'em! But for all the crap there are loads of really switched-on and intelligent young folkies out there doing really great stuff so we need to concentrate on encouraging them. there always has been and always will be awful performers who will look like they're gonna ruin everything but as many wise people have observed; traditional music is tough stuff and you simply can't kill it! if somebody sings your favourite song really badly we say they've murdered it but in truth we know thats rubbish, the song still exists in its purest form completely unharmed waiting for someone to come along and sing it well.

folk music will be just fine, it's not going anywhere so stop worrying and just enjoy playing /singing it and listening to the people who do it justice in your eyes.