I looked at this thread because it's a subject that often comes up. We listen to wonderful musicians making great music and know that almost no one around us has ever even heard of these people. So -- we wonder how much money do they make? Are they paid any where near what they deserve compared to the popular musicians who are rich.?
And whatever anyone else thinks, I think our culture/our country values the arts too little. We all benefit from the arts--music as well as the visual arts and theater and dance and I wonder why we give athletes multi-million dollar contracts but a folk musician who preserves something of value barely pays for his or her bread.
(I love baseball and its overpaid practitioners, and I am an artist who has never come close to making a living at it so of course I have given the topic some thought. )
This is a particular topic that I really do care about, and I never even thought the question was intended to be intrusive.