Bless you, Maggie!!

Re:   ". . . twisting their vocal chords in an attempt to produce sounds that have no connection to the real world."

Not everyone can be an opera singer. First, a person has to be born with a potential for a pretty big voice (often needing to be heard over a full symphony orchestra, remember). Then, they have to learn how to use that voice in the most efficient way possible. Good, solid breath support (I've heard many folkies whose breath support is practically non-existent), and placement, which is a matter of learning to use the body's natural resonators, which requires some serious concentration early on, until it becomes "second nature."

And here, too, many folkies haven't a clue as to matters of placement. You can hear it especially when they try to sing loud. It's a BLAT rather than a musical sounding tone. Rock singers are especially prone to this.

And without good breath support and good placement, one runs the risk of doing permanent damage to one's vocal cords, especially if one sings a lot. Or tries to sing VERY LOUD. Or tries to sing in a range which their voice doesn't like. All of these things I've heard most folkies do.

And believe me, if you sing regularly, say off and on for five hours an evening, three evenings a week, or sing in a large auditorium with no amplification, you can burn your voice out very quickly if you are not using it efficiently.

I took voice lessons early on—even before I got interested in folk music—so I learned how to use breath support and correct placement. But I don't sound much like an opera singer. Nevertheless, I'm eighty-one years old and my singing voice is still strong and healthy.

Don Firth