The space between the notes...

An unusual musical experiment at a busy metro station.

On a day that celebrates amateur musicians, especially buskers, I was reminded of that famous Washington Post experiment with celebrated violinist Joshua Bell and the many statements it made about music, performance, atmosphere and the value of art itself, not to mention, perceptions, priorities, and perhaps, taste.

So, here’s the story: On 12 January 2007, in the middle of the morning rush hour at a busy metro station in Washington, Joshua Bell, one of the finest contemporary classical musicians America has produced, stood in a corner in his white tees and baseball cap, took out his precious Stradivarius violin and played six classical pieces, some of them the most elegant and exquisite you will ever hear. More than 1,000 people passed him by; seven stopped to listen, for around a minute; 27 donated money and hurried away. And one lone woman recognised him. The entire performance was secretly filmed and the video is out there on YouTube. And even after all these years, is still a hard watch because of how futile and hopeless the sheer beauty of his music seems against the ever-consuming rush and ruthlessness of everyday banality. And everytime I come across this video on YouTube, I am reminded yet again how indeed the world is too much with us.

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