I'm not a singer nor any kind of musician, so my perspective is different from that of many posters above. I go to a couple of festivals a year in order to see the best performers in the folk field. I prefer the more intimate sets but if the concert hall is required then so be it. Without the festivals it would be much more difficult to see such people, and certainly much more expensive.

I've walked out of Fylde final concerts before because of the volume, or just avoided them, but in the past two years the noise levels have been brought under control.