Richard ,is quite right,the Irish tradition has survived,through the competition system,the down side is that Comhaltas through their marking system,have encouraged a certain style of playing.
ironically,they intended to preserve the music,but they have in fact intentionally altered it,to the detriment of certain regional styles,the plus side is thet, at any regional as well as national fleadh,it is a focus point,for thousands of musicians to get together and play.
of course,when Isuggested a competition or even examination system,some eighteen months ago,I was laughed to scorn,on this forum.
John Adams,even went so far as to take the piss out of my name.
Comhaltas do receive considerably more money than the EFDSSS,but this was not always the case,from 1951 to approximately 1966,they had to make do with very little government support.
I personally would be in favour of EFDSS reintroducing The competition system,yes, they used to do it.
It certainly has contributed to the strength of Irish traditional music.
however, I would suggest a slightly different marking system on tunes,one where ornamentation is not given more marks,than rhythm or danceability.
Comhaltas do have one or two eccentric rules,such as the non allowance of tunes in 3/4,the non allowance of english song translation from the Irish,such as Ned ofthe hill.but overall most people apart from[it would seem] Jim Carroll,enjoy the fleadhs,and treat it as agreat oppurtunity to meet up and play music with old friends.
Dick Miles