Hi Marni, welcome to the Mudcat! I'm sorry the first reply to your first post here was such a snarky comment. I'll try to explain:

To most of this community, Celtic Thunder would not be a band that commands respect. Much of their material is not traditional, and calling their performance style "authentic" is likely to be met with howls of derisive laughter. There is more than a whiff of the "boy band" about them, meaning they appear to be a contrived group manufactured to appeal to (mostly public TV-watching, American) mass audiences - obviously some manager looked at the success of the odious Celtic Woman and thought, hmm, we can do this with guys.

Many Mudcat members are into the real traditional folk music. To them, "authentic" means something quite different. If you stick around for a while and read the music threads, you will get a sense of what I mean. Meanwhile, if Celtic Thunder blows your kilt up, good for you - enjoy!

Cheers,
Michael