"much of the above was almost lost in the modern world and folk clubs"

Sorry Jim. I should have constructed the sentence better as the excerpt you've quoted now conveys a different meaning from what I intended.

Perhaps something like

"Of course, much of the above was almost lost in the modern world. Folk clubs and the work done by many performers, activists, academics and so on in preserving same and keeping the music alive was very important."

would be better.

I hadn't intended "modern world" and "folk clubs" to be in the same box, in this instance. Sorry.