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Perception
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PERCEPTION Something To Think About . . . 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?
Comments
Wow, that is pretty amazing. We do filter out a lot that is happening around us, mainly out of necessity - but it is sad that it does cause us to miss out on some truly beautiful things.
Haha I tell you this is very similar to performing on the street with magic.
I bet the journalist who wrote this piece originally is wishing he got the copyright for it now, its been reprinted by so many and so often, he'd be worth a fortune now!!
But all the same I think it raises some very valid points, peoples perceptions to 'a performance' can be totally influenced by setting, timing, social prowess and location. The same thing in the wrong setting and you get a situation he describes. But Chris, your comment about street magic feeling the same...................................You are SO right, sometimes you would have to think you had performed the greatest trick of them all and become totally invisible to those passing by 
Lukie
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Perception
I've actually been having thoughts similar to these lately and I kinda want to take a notebook with me every where I go now and write down my actions that I've done every hour or two throughout the day. Just kind of as a reflection type thing.