"Frustrated by the dreary amateurishness of folk song performance, he decided to establish his own centre of excellence to professionalise the art. He called it "The Critics Group"."

This in itself is an arrogant statement. It is both a value judgement, and a put down. There were then, and always have been, many excellent performers on the folk scene.
Ewan seemed to assume that if they weren't doing it his way, they were doing it wrongly!