Ron,

You're one of the judges!

Cool.

Anyway...

For the record, I am a musician, but I am not now, nor have I ever been, nor have I ever wished to be a performer. My questions are not a sneaky way to figure out how to get an edge in the NERFA selection process.

I personally think it is perfectly reasonable for someone who is considering making a submission to your (or any) committee to try to get as much information as possible about the committee's selection criteria. I am and have been involved in booking, in a small way, for several organizations so this is not simply a "theoretical" belief. I have put it into practice.

Granted, you say that "If the talent appeals to us, if we feel that this person or group is worth sharing with others, we give them consideration," but that's exactly what I would expect any judge of any activity to say. What judge would say "if we think they suck, we give them consideration."

When I am asked what sort of acts we book, I don't simply say, "Stuff we like" because the rational immediate response would be "Well, what do you like?"

By the way, I have friends who are actively and enthusiastically involved with NERFA, and who just as enthusiastically avoid discussing the "F" word.

You make a distinction between "singer-songwriter" and "traditional folksinger".

Apparently there are some categories at work here. But categorizing a submission (not to say evaluating it) surely must involve using some criteria.

Russ (Permanent Persistent GUEST)