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Perception

. . .  Something To Think About . . . 

Picture
Joshua Bell
THE SITUATION
In Washington DC, at a Metro Station, on a cold January morning in 2007, this man with a violin played six Bach  pieces for about 45 minutes. During that time, approximately 2,000 people went through the station, most of them on their way to  work. After about 3 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 4 minutes later:

The violinist received  his first dollar. A woman threw money in the hat and, without stopping, continued to walk.
 
At 6 minutes:  
A young man leaned against the wall to listen to him, then  looked at his watch and started to walk again.

At 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 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  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.

After 1 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 DC 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? 
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