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04/07/2023 10:08 am
“ In Washington DC, at a Metro Station, on a cold January morning in 2007, a man with a violin played six Bach pieces for about 45 minutes. During that time, approximately 2000 people went through the station, most of them on their way to work.
After about four minutes, a middle-aged man noticed that there was a musician playing. He slowed his pace and stopped for a few seconds, and then he hurried on to meet his schedule.
About four minutes later, the violinist received his first dollar. A woman threw money in the hat and, without stopping, continued to walk.
At six minutes, a young man leaned against the wall to listen to him, then looked at his watch and started to walk again.
At ten minutes, a three-year old boy stopped, but his mother tugged him along hurriedly. The kid stopped to look at the violinist again, but the mother pushed hard and the child continued to walk, turning his head the whole time. This action was repeated by several other children, but every parent - without exception - forced their children to move on quickly.
At forty-five minutes: The musician played continuously. Only six people stopped and listened for a short while. About twenty gave money but continued to walk at their normal pace. The man collected a total of $32.
After one hour:
He finished playing and silence took over. No one noticed and no one applauded. There was no recognition at all.
No one knew this, but the violinist was Joshua Bell, one of the greatest musicians in the world. He played one of the most intricate pieces ever written, with a violin worth $3.5 million dollars. Two days before, Joshua Bell sold-out a theater in Boston where the seats averaged $100 each to sit and listen to him play the same music.
This is a true story. Joshua Bell, playing incognito in the D.C. Metro Station, was organized by the Washington Post as part of a social experiment about perception, taste and people’s priorities.
This experiment raised several questions:
In a common-place environment, at an inappropriate hour, do we perceive beauty?
If so, do we stop to appreciate it?
Do we recognize talent in an unexpected context?
One possible conclusion reached from this experiment could be this:
If we do not have a moment to stop and listen to one of the best musicians in the world, playing some of the finest music ever written, with one of the most beautiful instruments ever made…
How many other things are we missing as we rush through life?”
John Kuvakas
Warrenton, VA
04/07/2023 10:48 am
Excellent point that we can all learn from!
04/07/2023 12:28 pm
I have encountered many excellent street musicians over the years. Pop. folk, classical or whatever. Not just in subways but in city streets around the country, and have stopped and listened for quite a while (throwing one or two contributions into their hat, and thanking them for the entertainment before I move on) but I am always amazed at the hordes of people just walking past with barely a glance. OK, no doubt some of them are in a hurry, but lots of them give the impression of simply not appreciating the talent on display. I sometimes feel like shouting "For God's sake, you people, can't you just take a moment to enjoy this?"
I have a horrible suspicion that if some fourth-rate "flavour of the month" band with more Tik Tok image than talent were putting on a public show, all these busy, busy passers-by would be crowding around and cheering. Depressing, really.
Graeme.M. Ogg
London U.K.
04/07/2023 6:41 pm
There are social stigmas associated with street music in North America and I doubt many take the time to even listen to evaluate what is happening. They think, hit for money and move on.
Only in high tourist areas like Las Ramblas in Barcelona, Avignon in France and the historic market area in Boston do people stop to enjoy. Sad really. Graeme, I’m not sure even the most well known Tik Tok artists would be recognized playing in a subway staircase.
Lessons for us all JK. Thanks for this one.
Frank Reed and John Kuvakas reacted