bringing it back to music,as a pro of some years standing I'm having to turn down bookings from folk clubs I would have accepted in the past because taking the cost of getting to and from a booking 200 miles from home, paying my agent's commission and then paying tax on the remainder makes the stress and effort of the driving etc not worth the candle, and tying two or three gigs together gets harder by the week as clubs close or are only available on the same two or three days of the week. Therefore I have to find less work for more money. I'm sure this is getting to be true for most pros, but I can't imagine what it's doing to the aspirations of all the young folk musicians coming out of the Universities etc who hope to make a living from their music.No one will be on the road ten years from now at this rate, except those who can fill small theatres at least. And will the audience be able to afford to travel to the venue, buy the tickets and get the essential cd? Seems to me the british folk music scene will soon be like that in America or Canada, locally based with a few travelling superstars, and Summer festivals.