This weekend the BBC had a big music festival, supposed to be all kinds of music happening live "all around the country" (by which they meant the UK, which isn't "a country" in my book, but that's another matter), over a 24 hour period - but the only trace of folk music was from Northern Ireland - and that was on at 4.30 or so in the morning. English traditional music was nowhere/

As scouse says, it seems the same thing with the Dutch. And I gather it's the same in Norway, where there are some brilliant musical traditions.

It seems a pretty widespread phenomenon for people to despise their own traditional music. There are some places where it doesn't seem to happen quite like that, France and Spain, I get the impression. I've never heard any kind of explanation for it that makes sense. Anybody got any suggestions? Or information about places where it doesn't happen. When I go abroad, I want to hear music that has roots in the place I'm visiting.