Les B, I accept entirely your reply to my comments, I should have read more closely perhaps..

As I said, I have no wish to denigrate the many people who attend concerts, I would however hope for that to be reciprocated and the role of those of us who go to the sessions to be recognised as a vital part of a festival too.

On the other hand, I would like to point out to JW that I don't live in cloud cuckoo land and don't appreciate the personal nature of the attack..I thought we were having a discussion about what is or isn't wrong with festivals and where they should be going in future..

My point remains, at many of the weekends I go to, the local pubs and businesses do contribute towards the weekends as they know it boosts their own takings..I know of festivals where the session goers pay towards camping facilities and buy raffle tickets etc to help with funding..
I simply don't accept or appreciate the subtext to this thread; that somehow those of us who don't attend concerts are 2nd class spongers and hangers-on.

As I've already said, I am not a fan of "concert style" events; many people other than the concert-goers make a significant effort to get to festivals and spend most of their time in the sessions, does that make us less important to the organisers?
Perhaps we simply shouldn't turn up then? Would it be better if we never appeared and allowed the (allegedly) ever-dwindling audiences at concerts to sit in reverential silence?

Rant over, can we please get back to a discussion on the central topics?..

Is it possible that the numbers are declining because people would prefer more "glamourous" concerts rather than folk festivals? Much as I don't like the Celtic Conections format in Glasgow (impersonal..lots of big names, big venues...)it does appear to be successful in that atendances are increasing. To my mind though it isn't really a folk festival, but therein lies an entirley different debate...

Andymac