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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 thousand 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 musician playing. He slowed his pace and stopped for a few seconds and then hurried up to meet his schedule.
A minute later, the violinist received his first dollar tip: a woman threw the money in the till and without stopping continued to walk.
A few minutes later, someone leaned against the wall to listen to him, but the man looked at his watch and started to walk again. Clearly he was late for work.
The one who paid the most attention was a 3 year old boy. His mother tagged him along, hurried but the kid stopped to look at the violinist. Finally the mother pushed hard and the child continued to walk turning his head all the time. 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 6 people stopped and stayed for a while. About 20 gave him money but continued to walk their normal pace. He collected $32. 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 Joshua Bell, one of the best 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 his playing in the subway, Joshua Bell sold out at a theater in Boston and the seats average $100.
This is a real story. Joshua Bell playing incognito in the metro station was organized by the Washington Post as part of an social experiment about perception, taste and priorities of people. The outlines 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?
Source: A Violinist in the Metro
Dear Kamlakar,
Thank you for your contribution
Warm Regards
Milind
I really dono what do we have time for... Is it only for work ?? earn money ?? pursure careers?? buy a house, car, bike, pay bills...
It does sound clinched but it is true that no matter what is said by whom, we will not change our attitude.. we wil still remain busy and have no time to share with and for those that really matter...
Dear Priya,
Very true
Exactly what you are saying , i was thinking about same.
Our life so hectic that we don't look at all these things.
Thanks for sharing view.
Warm Regards
Milind
Dear Mohan,
Thanks for sharing your thoughts.
Am very grateful to know your views on the same.
Warm Regards
Milind
it just shows that in this era people are so engrossed in their work that they have absolutely no time to stay n njoy the simple things in life
evry1 is soooo busy!!!!!!!
life is more than work n earning money
it is also abt appreciating the basic things
a child who has yet to be absorbed into the chain of committments and work was the only one who was able to enjoy da music.
nywaz tanx 4 sharing
regds
arathy;-)