To Fair Ellender - it may interest you to know that the plan is to continue with the ballad workshops in Glasgow, starting again in August. There are two guests lined up, special offers for workshop members and - we hope - plenty of ongoing input from our regulars.
And could I just say, in relation to the original post, that it has been immensely rewarding as well as instructive to learn from workshop members who all have their individual responses to a ballad text and who can, and often do, offer surprising insights and approaches.
It's been a pleasure from the very start to be dealing with such enthusiasts!