Where are the youngsters?

Subject: RE: Where are the youngsters?
From: GUEST,Banjiman
Date: 28 Aug 12 - 02:26 PM

They quietly dropped that one a couple of years ago Selby. Shame.

Subject: RE: Where are the youngsters?
From: Richard Bridge
Date: 28 Aug 12 - 03:15 PM

I don't go to Broadstairs much any more as I like singarounds and sessions but my experience of the past is that Flora's accusation is baseless. Tom and Barbara's singarounds in the sailing club are run on a strict rotation of the room (on polar co-ordinates) without any preferences. My only gripe with them is that they are too full and joining in is frowned on (and once someone turned up with recorded backing tracks).

The other pub (the Wrotham Arms)has Kenwood mixer sessions and my experience is that the organisation is scrupulous to give all a fair crack of the whip without even a hint of exclusion of those whom the organisers might not wish to hear - although it seemed to be on a sort of "Lazy-Z" sweep. My only moan there is that they are also rammed and I find it inconvenient to stick to the "easy key, easy rhythm" requirement.   

I infer that Flora did not intend to refer to Neptune's Hall - not a "pub" as such).   If she wants to have a pop at Bob and Kath perhaps she should openly stick her head above the parapet.

Subject: RE: Where are the youngsters?
From: GUEST,FloraG
Date: 29 Aug 12 - 04:19 AM

No pops. Its just a statement of fact. The sailing club is not a pub and Bobs session is mostly music. Not them then. Anyone who works in/for a festival - mostly without pay - can run things the way they like. If you don't like it you have the choice to get involved and take on a lot of work - or not go.
The radio 2 best folk club award was based on views of visiting artists. This meant that clubs that had the most artists tended to get voted for most. Nothing wrong with that as I don't think it affected the way the best folk clubs run.   eg The cambridge folk club has a mix of open stage, the best of whom are asked to showcase, and some paid guest nights with invited ( usually local ) support. This model is more work than just having guests, but it encourages new groups/ solo performers to hone their skills with good PA provided, and means a lot more variety for the audience. I'm not sure there would be an easy way to vote democratically about this. The Conway sounds delightful.
FloraG

Subject: RE: Where are the youngsters?
From: GUEST,Vincethecat
Date: 29 Aug 12 - 07:43 AM

FloraG- I appreciate your point re performers- actually I think one of the most wonderful and special things in the Folk world is an informal, friendly singaround/music session, give me one of those any day over a "Folk Club" where everyone sits in rows facing the stage waiting to do their floor-spot. That Folk Club format is stiff, dated and unwelcoming and I'm sure puts many younger people off. On the other hand there are amateur musicians in many genres who do it largely for the love of it so I don't think Folk is unique in that regard.

What I feel is that traditional songs and sounds have an eternal appeal- there is a large group of younger people drawn to things folky, rootsy, "authentic", old-and-strange probably for similar reasons to the folk-fans of their parents or grand-parents' generation; from the "Alt-Psych-Folk" Green Man festival sort of stuff, to the Wicker man soundtrack (yes it's still a major way that people get interested in traditional music), to Sea-Sick Steve and even the dire M*****d & S*ns. But this group and the established Traditional Folk Music scene are on the whole completely disconnected, which is a shame. I think it would be wonderful to bring these two groups of people closer together as they have a lot to gain from each other.

Acts like Bellowhead and the Unthanks probably help bridge the gap to some extent; and while I'm neither are exactly to my personal taste I think they both show that traditional music can still reach a wider audience by fusing with other genres, just as it did with Folk-Rock in the 60s and 70s. What I really think would bring more young people into traditional music is more genuine fusion of traditional music and other genres, as opposed to the likes of M & S; "Rootless Folk-Pop" as one reviewer recently aptly described them. We have to be secure and open minded to encourage this kind of experimentation, in the knowledge that it doesn't detract from the original source material but ensures its continued relevance and gives it a wider audience.

On a practical leveI, I think the best thing that the established festivals can do (and I know this has been done to some extent) would be to give new Folk promoters a window to take on one of the usual tents/venues, ideally this would be for the duration of the event, and to give them as much free reign as possible in terms of marketing, booking artists etc. This would allow a space for more experimental and younger orientated "folk", but in an environment where it could remain genuinely connected to and inspired by genuine traditional music.