I've been keeping my head below the parapet, but isn't this all part of the art v folk, pro v amateur debate? On the one hand there are the professional performers, performing in concert venues, carrying on the tradition of troubadours and trying to make a living out of it (and usually needing other sources of income such as teaching), and on the other there are people like me for whom it's a vital relaxation from what I do for a living....

For me, the rapport between the artists and the audience, and the audience participation (rather than "we perform, you receive and applaud") has always made folk music special. "Professional folksinger" is arguably an oxymoron.

I'll get my coat.... Kitty