"singers such as Martin Carthy...sang with both hands cupped over their ears"

Is there a particular technique Carthy used to do this AND similtaneously play guitar? Did he used to have four arms and, if so, when/why did he dispense with the other pair??

I stopped singing unaccompanied trad songs for a while, but recently started again. Done reasonably well, I find it can really grab an audience's attention and make 'em watch during that tricky middle part of a gig when attention can sometimes start to wander...particularly if it's a younger crowd less familiar with the tradition. Would never have occurred to me that cupping my hands over my ears in the manner suggested would help my pitch, though...is there any science behind this? I always assumed it was just a mannerism some singers of a certain generation developed.

I've pretty well said my piece on folk police issues on other threads.

And I agree, calling ANYBODY a fascist for any other reason than literally being one, is reprehensible.