There were two statments of the composer Mayke Nas which were staying very present in my mind. The first is about having fun when doing (in her case composing) music. She let us listening to one of her composition which was a result of having fun with a piano. Having fun when doing music seems very simple but is endeed a challenge for professional musicans. As one of the reason why the fun factor of making music can get lost sometimes, Mayke was telling about the responsability she feels towards the society. Mayke was talking about what we called later in the class the “Baker” principe: The music she’s composing and which will be performed by an orchestra is subsidized by the government with the money of the taxes payed by the people as the baker around the corner.

By trying to conect this thoughts of Mayke with a picture, I remembered a comic drawing of the french cartoonist Jean-Jaques Sempé in his edition about musicians. On one of his drawings you can see a farmer by sunset on his field, leaning against his dung folk and listening to a violonist who’s, already dressed up in his concert suit, playing for him. You can see the high concentration on his (the violonist) face and how he’s drenched in sweat. I’m not able to explain with words the emotions Sempé could put in this comic.

But however, it remind me of the conflict (classical) musicians often have. Are we aloud to pass our days with doing music when others are doing “real” work? The comic of Sempé gives a very clear opinion to this question. Like the farmer was sweating befor at his work on the field, the violinist is sweating now while he’s enchanting the farmer with his music. I see a strong connection between the work of the farmer and the work of a musician (here violinist) even though the work they do is completely different. Both are poviding the people with two essential needs every humain person has. Because who wants to live without good food and music?