I doubt if traditional singers sat down and consciously copied another singer, they might have unconsciously picked up something from another singer, generally speaking they just sang ,the personality of the singer might come across in the singing, that is why Sam Larner is so different from Walter Pardon. traditional singers did it their own way or as the song goes "i did it my way", one thing they did not do is consciously think about chest voice, head voice, singing with a smile on the face etc, and if people want to sing with a smile on their face or any other[imo] idosyncratic eccentric style,that is their business, as long as they do not go around the revival folk scene saying or giving the impression at workshops that they are singing in the style of traditional singers, or that their way is the only way.