Right on, David..well said .

..and perhaps, just perhaps, some traditionalists are making good money out of traditionalism and don't want to, and perhaps don't know how to , innovate. Lack of innovation and the drawing of a line may , at the end of the day, be motivated by an accountant or manager's advice...risk management, I think they call it.

"I don't think there was a lot of hand-wringing going on about "Oh no! We're losing our tradition!" Nope, they embraced the accordion and made it their own."

Actually, the old time fiddlers hated the accordion, limited their "traditional" songs (I always apply labels with a chuckle). The dancers wanted to keep it. Now look where we're at today.

Of course, you are correct about the fiddle players not liking it (Dennis McGee talked about this some, as I recall). But who cares about them? (just kidding)

I left that bit out to simplify the discussion a little. The point remains valid.

It's hard to have traditions in melting gumbo pots.

What has become apparent from this discussion is that "tradition" is dynamic - window on the timeline, lagging just a shade behind the present.

The "gumbo" observation is the element that adds the spice.

Maybe the line is more in the water than the sand.