Something to think about….
Washington, DC Metro Station on a cold January morning in 2007. The man with a violin played six Bach pieces for about 45 minutes. During that time approximately. 2 thousand people went through the station, most of them on their way to work. After 3 minutes a middle aged man noticed there was a musician playing. He slowed his pace and stopped for a few seconds and then hurried to meet his schedule.
4 minutes later:
The violinist received his first dollar: a woman threw the money in the hat and, without stopping, continued to walk.
6 minutes:
A young man leaned against the wall to listen to him, then looked at his watch and started to walk again.
10 minutes:
A 3-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 all the time. This action was repeated by several other children. Every parent, without exception, forced their children to move on quickly.
45 minutes:
The musician played continuously. Only 6 people stopped and listened for a short while. About 20 gave money but continued to walk at their normal pace. The man collected a total of $32.
1 hour:
He finished playing and silence took over. No one noticed. No one applauded, nor was there any recognition.
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.
This is a true 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 people’s priorities.
The questions raised:
*In a common place environment at an inappropriate hour, do we perceive beauty?
*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?
Thanks Gene
I’ll bet many of them noticed but were uneasy about his presence, suspicious and possibly afraid. He was “out of place.” The perception was there but it was Try making a pleasant remark in an elevator or subway in NYC and notice the looks you will get. You will be heard, i.e. perceived, but suspected of foul play!
speechless. I can’t explain how the human race is stupid
How weird — I am listening to Joshua Bell RIGHT NOW on PBS. Drives home the point even more. Wow.
Do we really go so fast through life that we fail sometimes to stop and notice the flowers.
As I travel around the country, it is sad and pathetic that we have become a society so infatuated with our phones and PDA’s. We are so worried we may have received an email (most likely spam or something frivolous)and feel we need to respond to it right away, that we miss the finer moments in life; a world renown violinist in a subway or having a conversation with someone you encounter in passing or sitting on a plane. In our busyness, we miss too many opportunities that could possibly enrich our lives or maybe even change them forever. We (and that includes me) need to slow down and allow time in our hectic lives to make every day count and make someone else’s life a little brighter with a smile or a kind word.
this is very crazy and insane. this is certainly unbelievable. how could this happen?
It makes perfect sense to me. If you were walking along and had never heard of the musician, and didn’t know his violin was worth 3.5 million dollars, would you have recognized his genius? if so, you are one of the few. Most people need someone else to point out “greatness” to them.
What a great statement on the nature of humanity and the ambiguity of music.
Just try and remember a house on your street. difficult right? i am from denmark and what i learned was that we rarely notice even the closest objects
Funny how people would pay $100 to see a show than listen to the same show for free. What does that say about our society? On another note, Metro Stations are for travel and that is what people focus on rather than anything else.
It is very simple — perception of anything is facilitated by context which in itself develops language (to express what might be perceived) — the opera house, the the velvet seat, the chandeliers, all hint to perceiving all that the subway walls may not –
like everything else one needs language that enables vision/perception of what is out there—-
this is my 5cent cut on the story—
I see your point about not being comfortable with stopping and probably noticed him and just suspicious about it. But why are we so uncomfortable to stop and hear something so beautiful no matter how inappropriate the place or time of day it is. I mean in a back alley in the middle of the night hell yeah but in a subway station where hundreds of people are why can’t people be comfortable enough to stop and listen to the world’s greatest musician. whether they know it’s him or not.
Children are the only ones that have the time to stop and smell the flowers.
This is a perfect example of self-absorbed people. I recently sat next to an individual who was a WWII veteran. I stopped and took an extra long lunch to talk with this gentleman. It turns out he is one of the only people to ever receive the Medal of Honor while still alive. Just an example of what I would have missed if I had ignored this gentle older man. Stop and smell the roses. Look around, and you will find beauty everywhere if you just open your eyes.
It annoys me that people come to conclusions based on the message that the author is trying to get across. The video of this event paints a different picture but not one that is so bleak. What we should take from the message is not that human kind has lost its way, or things are moving too fast although that maybe true, but we need to look around and see the beauty, relish it and hope that others see it. But don’t look down on those don’t don’t see it, for that is believing that they they don’t have the ability to, or choose not to. You are no better than them.
two things in life are infinite- the universe and human stupidity, and of the former, I am not certain.
The experimenters should also take into consideration the people in the metro station. Chances are that the average person in the metro station has no idea who Joshua Bell is, has never listened to his music, and has little or no knowledge of the violin. On the other hand, 100% of the people who payed $100 to see his concert had a very strong desire to see him perform. “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,” is entirely a matter of opinion. Personally, I listen to metal music. If a metal band were playing a live show in a metro station, I would undoubtedly stop to listen, whereas the average person (who doesn’t listen to metal) would not only not stop or listen, he would probably avoid the area altogether.
Different strokes for different folks.
are you serious? How many people actually know who his guy is? or how what a 3.5 million dollar violin looks like? Believe me, if it had been Patrick Stump, or “Edward”, people would’ve stopped and watch.
I lol at how so many people are trying to sound so profound or claim a self imposed position of authority in which to look down and scorn their fellow man for going about their lives in the manner in which they choose. He was out of place in a rushed environment.
What this article doesn’t tell you is that there at TONS of bums/panhandlers around. Even if you stop for a second, you get accosted to add money into the hat for listening. It doesn’t matter who he is, pleople in the DC area look at this as a panhandler. It could be the most beautiful peice of music ever, but i assure everyone was suspecious of that this dude wanted something. Plus, the DC Metro system is the most inefficent mass transit system in the United States. i will be dammned if I will stop and listen to a panhandler and miss my trian, becasue i am not going to wait 20 minutes for another train that will be overcrowded, and I may not get in, then have to wait another 20 minutes for the next train. The social commentary from you people just makes you come off as pretentious pricks. wait, oooohhh, ahhhhh, people paid $100 a seat to see this dude. Color me unimpressed, he was taking up space on an already overcrowded metro platform. I am not stopping if I am going to be late to my place of employment. Providing for my family is more important than watching some clown waste space with a 3 million dollar violin. Explian to your boss ‘I missed two trains, and am an hour late, becasue a buch of pretentious-wannabe-super-snoty-people thought I should listen to this bum with a hat in front of him playing a violin on the metro platforn” and let me know how that goes.
That’s an interesting experiment. I not so often hear/see musicians on the street so it’s always a pleasure to meet them. But sometimes I don’t have cash with me so I feel guilty for listening lol. Though there’s a guy, a violinist who occasionally plays in central square in my city, I can tell by his viola, he’s not doining it for little cash passerbies may give him. When I’m in a hurry, I don’t stop but try to slow down my pace, when I’m walking, always listen to him, he’s a genius!
I can see your point. But there was recognition. One person stood for a long time listening to him play. And afterwards she approached him and said that it was fanastic! He changed that persons day, for definite. You can only change the world one person at a time. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=myq8upzJDJc
I think one main point is that we really often ignore beauty in the everyday life without knowing it.
But considering this experiment (which IS intertesting): People that go to his concert for $100 KNOW who he is and simply enjoy this kind of music. That’s why they go there. But there’s a huge amount of people who would NOT pay $100 and who don’t give a damn if he plays the Moonshine Sonata, Carmina Burana or simply Jingle Bells. It’s sometimes hard to accept but the bigger part of people don’t cherish arts.
So this experiment only was reliable if the people that already attended one of his concerts ignored him afterwards. But even then I think this could have happened because perception is highly contextual. You simply need time and leisure when enjoying art. It’s not something to be done while rushing to work. E.g. if you have trouble at work or at home and you don’t know how to pay the bills of the last month, those things are definitely more important in that very moment than some guy playing the violin (no matter who he is).
Sorry for the bad english… I hope it’s understandable^^
You didn’t mention that there was one who recognized him at the time, from the 1,097 that passed by. I read it on Wikipedia..
There is also the fact that Washington DC has the highest crime rate in the country and is populated by a high percentage of n’er-do-wells, most notably those that “serve” in Congress, so it is no wonder they have no culture, taste, or civility. It’s a cesspool of ignorant, corrupt humanity that frankly doesn’t even deserve the blistering commentary that I’m bothering to type at this moment, so, bye!
I think they forgot on a key point here. Yes, we don’t stop to appreciate music- but WHY? A lot of people didn’t want to stop because then they feel compelled to donate money.
I’m disappointed that aspect wasn’t mentioned, because most street performers want donations and most people feel guilty if they listen but don’t give money. If there was a sign that said “No donations- just listen”, I would have gladly stopped and listened to the whole performance!
I don’t think anyone has mentioned that people don’t usually enter the subway with spare time on their hands. Probably 100% of the people passing by had to be somewhere by a certain time and couldn’t afford to stop and appreciate anything, without ending up late for something. I know I try not to be involved with mass transit any longer than necessary.
Now send him to a public park or somewhere where the people obviously aren’t in a hurry to be somewhere else, and I bet he not only ends up with a nice sized crowd listening, but probably gets a standing ovation and tons of “Wow that was wonderful-s” when he finishes.
I would have listened for a minute at least, but whoever said in subways people are in a hurry thats why they use it is probably right. I try to stop snd smell the roses whenever I can. Going for Kemo does that for you.. Stop and look around, you’ll be amazed at what you see. EVERYDAY
Actually, I’m even more appalled by several posts here, which attempt to excuse the zombie-like indifference of these people. It is beyond stupidity, it is a sign of mass soul-damage. Those who try to explain such behavior away are simply afraid to admit what an abysmal, unsustainable, inhuman civilization we have created, especially over the last decade.
more people want to stop, but doing this on a work morning isn’t a good idea. people have to get to their precious jobs. in case you haven’t noticed people are getting laid off or can’t find jobs so the ones they have are more important. many more people might want to stop but just can’t afford the time. And THAT to me is the saddest part.
plus, maybe they didn’t know who it was or appreciate the music.
Oh, for crying out loud: another idiotic experiment where nobody bothered to trim the variables. The results could have been affected in dozens of ways: from the harmonics of the room to the choice of music to the general mindset of the commuters. I’m going with the bloody obvious: most of the people passing by were on a tight schedule; if they had stopped and let themselves get sucked into something — Bach, Boccherini, Bruch, blue grass, blues or bebop — they’d have made themselves late. They were not stupid, ignorant, or tasteless. They were considerate of their co-workers, concerned to get their kids to day school, and worried about their jobs.
Some people cant stop because they have to go to work on time and pay bills, thats why its more convenient to see him perform on weekends or days less hectic when he has concerts. Welcome to life.
As someone who used to ride the Metro everyday, I can understand their reaction. A violinist in the Metro subway system is so unusual as to be odd. A panhandler inside the system itself is unheard of.
Like it or not, there are other cold unwritten rules about the Metro system. Regular riders do not speak to each other at all, and they face forward.
Also, the Metro isn’t a very social place, except for days when there are blizzards. People are trying to get from here to there. The only ones who don’t understand that are the kids. Unfortunately, standing around listening to a violinist that you think is a panhandler would seem to be a waste of time and you would get in the way.
Those who pushed their children along are what I like to call “bad parents.”
But for The Washingotn Post’s desire to prompt their half-baked exercise, Joshua Bell and his overpriced violin would have been tucked away in bed… ask yourself when was the last time the Post asked its readers how many homeless people used its newprint for warmth?
Journalists should stop trying to be philosphers and report the news. Commuters ignoring a subway musician is not news, no matter how cute the juxtaposition.
brava
“The grownups get to make the rules
but we have all the fun.”
– Jesse Winchester
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