I was saddened last night when a "performer" came to one of my local folk clubs. It's a fairly informal club but it does have the usual "go to the front and do two songs" format of a club rather than being a singaround. He was put on just before the interval/beer break and proceeded to give us three of his own compositions. Immediately afterwards he left. I'm left wondering, did he not notice the two songs each format that all the other floor spots stuck to, did he not want to listen to (and learn) from other floor singers? I'd partly excuse his failure to follow the two songs format by saying he was obviously unused to folk clubs (certainly if his songs were anything to go by) but he had not picked up anything from the five or six who went on before him and didn't stay afterwards. I don't enjoy every singer/musician when I go out but I can learn something from all of them - even if it's only what not to do.

There's nothing wrong with wanting to do justice to your material (does that make it a performance?) but the trend that worries me is that one where the performer comes before the material. (In my prejudiced old mind I think of it as open-mike syndrome.) Thankfully there are several singarounds nearby which are flourishing in the "old style". (I still miss the second Saturdays though!)