Josepp: When I watch musicians that I respect play, they can all play straight off sheet music. That is how it should be. Anything less damages our culture.

And then, when I asked about the accuracy of the notation for some traditional folk dance styles:

As for rhythms, you're going to lose that. But so what? Make your own.

Josepp, you're making this up as you go along. How do you get from "That is how it should be. Anything less damages our culture" to "you're going to lose that. But so what?"

Either music reading is the only way to go, or it is simply not possible in some circumstances. Which is it? You can't have it both ways. "Make your own" rhythms don't work for dancers or for musicians who actually want to play in a particular style.

Lox, I'm also interested in your comment:
If you can hear it, you can write it down ...

I ask again, how do you notate an Irish reel or a Swedish Boda polska so that someone who's never heard one will be able to play it?

Please believe that I'm not against reading music. I read music all the time. It's a very important skill. But it is clear to me that our notational system has a lot of holes in it when it comes to accuracy.