It's the real thing. Here is are responses from EFDSS:

From Rachel Taylor, Chair of the EFDSS National Council:

Amongst the new initiatives now in hand at the EFDSS is a decision to take the magazine English Dance and Song (EDS) in a totally new direction. This was discussed at a meeting between Dave Arthur and Phil Wilson last year. Dave will not be editing future editions of English Dance and Song.

Unfortunately Dave has a very different view of events based on that meeting and he has sent a message to a number of people to express his view on how this information was relayed to him. We have met recently and discussed our differences.

The EFDSS is very grateful for the hard work and dedication Dave has put into the magazine for over 25 years. There will be an article on Dave in the Summer issue of EDS.

Please make sure you see a copy of the March edition of EDS - the Society would be interested in your comments. If you are not a member but would like to receive a copy please e-mail me your address and I'll arrange for a copy to be sent to you.

Rachel Taylor - Chair, National Council

------------------------------------------------------------------- From Paul Davenport, the new Editor of English Dance & Song:

Like many of you I only have one side to the story and so I do not wish to comment here. The following is part of a mailing which I have already sent to a contributor.

My recourse is to tell you what I have to do and what's planned and then for you to make any decisions as you see fit. I'm sitting between a rock and a hard place here and have no wish for anyone to feel upset for any reason.

My brief is to create a magazine which will sit comfortably on the newsstand alongside 'Irish Dancing', 'Dirty Linen', 'Sing Out' etc. It will not be another personality driven mag like Froots, or even Living Tradition. It must address the needs of those who are active in the folk scene as well as those who have not yet come to the same scene. To do this I must produce copy which is interesting both to the informed and the total newcomer. This is not possible in a single article but must be reflected in the balance. Any decision I make here is going to upset someone and already several writers have voted with their feet. Equally, new contributors have come forward and there is some unusual and interesting stuff in the mag for the March edition. I need copy which has accessibility to the newcomer, shelf life for the informed reader and a plain English approach to language. I would like writers to be amusing and light in their touch. Not always possible I know.

I agreed to do this job on the condition that I could remove from the magazine the articles, including many obituaries, which are important to the members but sudden death to a news stand mag. These and the diary dates are now included in a members supplement which I hope will contain stuff of real quality and so enhance the value of being a member of the society.

Effectively, therefore there are two magazines, a members only one and a glossy evangelical one for the general public, as large as usual and available on sale wherever we can put it.

Other than this I can only suggest that you judge the magazine and members supplements when you receive them. I do not wish to enter into a debate on other related issues and I hope members and other interested parties will understand this. I can only end by saying that my interests lie with the society and its membership both present and future.

Hopefully the latter will be greater than the former.

Best wishes,

Paul Davenport ------------------