I missed yet another day...well time flies and the next thing i know its another day. And im pressed for ideas on what to write for my next entry, heck i havent even figured what to write for this entry. Cant even take a breather to stop and smell the roses. Everything is so fast paced that if u blink u might miss something.
Since i havent a clue on what to post for todays entry im cheating again here and putting up what my cousin had on his notes in fb. A cut and paste job again but i like the msg. Its simple but yet very thought provoking. What have u been missing?
First published on Sunday Star, 11th January 2009 (sent in via email by Benedict Lee); reproduced online for your reading pleasure.
A man sat at a Metro station in Washington DC and started to play the violin; it was a cold January morning.
He played six Bach pieces for about 45 minutes. During that time, since it was rush hour, it was calculated that thousands of people went through the station, most of them on their way to work.
Three minutes went by and a middle aged man noticed there was music being played. He slowed his pace and stopped for a few seconds, then hurried off to keep up his appointed schedule.
A minute later, the violinist received his first dollar tip: a woman threw the money in his till and continued to walk on.
A few minutes later, a man leaned against the wall to listen to the violinist, but he looked at his watch and started to walk again. Clearly he was late for work.
The only one who paid the most attention was a three-year old boy. His mother tagged him along, but the kid stopped to look at the violinist. Finally the mother pushed hard and the child continued to walk, turning his head back from time to time to glance back to the alluring music.
This action was repeated by several other children. All the parents, without exception forced them to move on.
In the 45 minutes the musician played, only six people stopped and stayed for awhile. About 20 people gave him money but continued to walk on at their normal pace. He collected US$32 in total. When he finished playing and silence took over, no one noticed it. No one applauded, nor was there any recognition.
No one knew this but the violinist was actually Joshua Bell, one of the best musicians in the world. That day in the subway, he played one of the most intricate pieces ever written with a violin worth US$3.5 million. Two days before he played in the subway, Joshua Bell sold out at a theater in Boston where the seats were US$100 each on average.
This is a real story. Joshua Bell playing incognito in the Metro station was organized by the Washington Post as part of a social experiment about perception, taste and priorities of people.
The brief were; in a commonplace environment at an inappropriate hour: Do we perceive beauty? Do we stop to appreciate it? Do we recognize the talent in an unexpected context?
One of the possible conclusions from this experience could be:
If we do not have a moment to stop and listen to one of the best musicians in the world playing the best music ever written, how many other things are we missing?
No comments:
Post a Comment