Janssen Kuhn

A break in the rain meant a chance to grab a popular busking corner and play a little Bach. Janssen plays beautifully, but while I was watching him, another musician, a homeless person, and a kid trying to gather signatures for a petition all tried to crowd him off the corner. He held his ground, and what I liked best: he disappeared into the pleasure of the music. He told the other musician, "You can have it in an hour. I just got here. I just need one hour, and then it's yours."

"Don't let anybody else have it, OK?"

Janssen answered, "No chance. I don't see anybody but other musicians. We've got to stick together."

I waited till he took a slight break and asked for his email address and name, said I'd send him the pictures. He thanked me and said, "I just reached a new level today. It's all about being absorbed in the music. You can't worry about the notes, you have to be where it's going next."

"Yes," I told him. "That's exactly what I saw. You were entirely absorbed in the music."

"Bach," he grinned. "He does it to me every time."