A bust depiction of three street musicians. The first plays a flute while the other two sing from sheet music held by one of them.

The sketchy rendering and vigorous brushstrokes mark this as a preliminary study. However, as no known work of Jordaens uses similar figures, his authorship has long been in doubt.

The very loose rendering and large amount of paint in the brushstrokes of the flesh tones, as well as the strong touches of white, recall the youthful period of Van Dyck (1599-1641), who has also been proposed as its author.

This work is documented as one of the paintings acquired by Carlos IV while he was Prince of Asturias.