THE SITUATION
In Wash DC, at a Metro Station, on a cold Jan morning in '07, this man with a violin played 6 Bach pieces for about 45 min. During that time, approx 2,000 people went through the station, most on their way to work. After about 3 min, a middle-aged man noticed that there was a musician playing. He slowed his pace & stopped for a few sec & then he resumed his schedule.
About 4 min later: The violinist received his first $1. A woman threw money in the hat & without stopping, continued to walk.
At 6 min: A young man leaned against the wall to listen to him, then looked at his watch & started to walk again.
At 10 min: A 3-yr old boy stopped, but his mother tugged him along hurriedly. The kid stopped to look at the violinist again, but the mother pushed hard & 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 45 min: The musician played continuously. Only 6 people stopped & listened for a short while. About 20 gave money but continued to walk at their normal pace. The man collected a total of $32.
After 1 hr: He finished playing & silence took over. No one noticed & 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 mil. 2 days before, Joshua Bell sold-out a theater in Boston where the seats averaged $100 ea to sit & listen to him play the same music.
This is a true story. Joshua Bell, playing incognito in the DC Metro Station, was organized by the Wash Post as part of a social experiment about perception, taste & people's priorities.
This experiment raised several questions:
*In a common-place environment, at an inappropriate hr, 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 take a moment to stop & 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?
