Why is a song about a cat more of a folk song than a song from La Traviata? In the days when I had money and travelled and had girlfriends, I once had a gondolier in Venice who at the drop of money serenaded the girl I was with songs from Italian operas. As we rowed around, his colleagues happily joined in (for free). I don't remember "Sempre Libera" being part of the common repertoire, but "La Donna e Mobile" was. Was that not Italian folk singing (admittedly a bit touristy). I don't ask to be critical, I am interested. I was also jealous of the gondolier at the time, but that is another problem.

Peter Timmerman