During an April 15 rally at New York’s Brooklyn Bowl, presidential hopeful Pete Buttigieg—also known as “Mayor Pete”—gave his condolences to the people of France for the recent fire that engulfed the historic Notre-Dame Cathedral.

Speaking in French, the South Bend, Ind. mayor’s addressed France’s BFM TV: “To the people of France, I would like to say that Notre-Dame Cathedral was like a gift to the human race. We share in the pain but we also thank you for this gift to civilization.”

Interestingly, his appearance at Brooklyn Bowl (a jam hub in NYC) is the second time in recent memory Mayor Pete has dipped his toe into the improvisational music scene. The candidate made waves earlier this week when his husband, Chasten Buttigieg, shared a campaign playlist that features Phish’s “Tweezer Reprise” alongside David Bowie’s “Rebel Rebel” and The Avett Brothers’ “Ain’t No Man,” as well as more poppy fare like Carly Rae Jepsen’s “Cut To The Feeling” and Demi Lovato’s “Confident.” (For the hardcore Phish fans reading, it’s worth noting that the “Tweezer Reprise” was the Picture of Nectar studio version.)

Click here to listen to the campaign’s “Buttijams” playlist on Spotify.

Watch Mayor Pete’s give his condolences at Brooklyn Bowl below:

« Au peuple de France je voudrais dire que la cathédrale Notre Dame, c’était comme un cadeau à l’espèce humaine. Nous partageons la douleur mais nous vous remercions aussi de ce cadeau à la civilisation. » @PeteButtigieg à @BFMTV
Et en français! 🇫🇷🇺🇸#NotreDame pic.twitter.com/0xbf5lGhYH— Cédric Faiche (@cedricfaiche) April 15, 2019