Sustainable development and eco-responsibility are historically very present in the history and the project defended by the Trans. I remember that the first actions in this direction date back to 2005, when the question was not very little discussed in other festivals. Sadly, even if it's been more than fifteen years that we strive to reduce our impact by reducing our waste et our carbon emissions, it should be noted that the pollution emanating from the event is only partly compressible. For example, the transport of artists and visitors remains the primary source of CO2 emissions. We are parts from the principle that, if we don't peut not erase our broadcasts, it is possible to calculate the cost of these. The environmental contribution is to offer all festival stakeholders, whether spectators, partner companies, volunteers or even artists, to participate in the reimbursement du cost of the event. All of the sums collected are then distributed to local initiatives specializing in energy savings.  

Probably by the great curiosity that is inherent in the organization of the project. Jean Louis Brossard, the artistic director of Trans Musicales and the founder of the event, really stands out for his knowledge of contemporary music, but also blues and jazz. This cultural baggage is really what allows us to stay up to date, to discover lots of young bands, without getting lost in the different fashion effects. The event really owes its avant-garde character to him.
I would also say that since our beginnings we have paid very close attention to maintaining links with our social, technological and artistic environment. Originally, in the 80s, the festival mainly presented artists from Rennes or France, who had very few places to perform. Then, in the 90s, when the recording industry was extremely powerful and supportive, we exhibited a lot of international artists like Ben Harper, Björk and even Daft Punk who we saw playing without headphones! In the early 2000s, with the democratization of the internet, the recipe had to be reinvented. Our model today is hyper avant-gardism and public loyalty. In my opinion, we could no longer create a festival like ours today.

There have been several distinct phases. You should know that the first edition was in fact a concert in support of an association with failing finances. The idea was just to ask the buddies to come on stage and tell the audience “You give what you can, it will help the association ". As such, there wasn't really a business model, we presented a hat and waited to see how much it would bring us. It was only in 1984 that the festival obtained the first funding from the municipality. In the 80s, the political ground was conducive to the development of contemporary music. Jacques Lang at the Ministry of Culture has greatly contributed to the financing of these. Then in the 90s, there was a golden age of financing alcohol and tobacco brands. The atmosphere in this decade was one of sponsorship and product placement. Today, private contributors have changed tack a bit and are looking for something else through their financial participation.

Over the last ten years, there has been a stagnation, even a reduction in public funding. The latter represent just under 50% of the 3,7 million euros committed for the 2022 edition. The rest of the budget is divided equally between sponsorship, private partners, bars, catering and ticketing. . What is interesting is that with the increase in private funding, new modes of participation are being invented. We have come out of the logic of product placement. Companies that approach us do so in support and recognition of what the festival brings to the area. Many partners also support us for the innovation that is at the heart of our project. For example, long before the Metaverse explosion, we were the first music festival to feature a live concert on Second Life in the 2000s.

I think the environmental dimension is becoming really predominant. This is a subject that affects more and more people and we felt it, especially in the evenings that we were able to organize for our partner companies. Regarding the sponsorship part, we are lucky to be able to count on loyal patrons for many years. They grew up with the festival. More broadly, companies often see it as a “Team Building” lever and an opportunity to associate their image with that of the Trans Musicales. In this case, the partnership takes the form, for example, of the co-organization of a specific event such as a concert for the children of employees.

(photo credit: kokomo 2022, cc Elodie Le Gall)