1,070 Ways to Spaz

“Most men pursue pleasure with such breathless haste that they hurry past it.”
-Soren Kierkegaard


Here’s the situation. Violinist Joshua Bell, a classical music superstar, is playing a $3 million Stradivarius antique violin. And he’s performing “Chaconne” which is “not just one of the greatest pieces of music ever written, but one of the greatest achievements of any man in history.” So would you stop and listen?

The Washington Post performed an experiment placing Joshua with his master violin and virtuoso talent in a Washington DC subway stop. Over the course of the 45 minutes that Joshua performed, 1,070 people hurried past, few even turning to look. Only 7 people stopped, if just for a few seconds.

Would YOU have stopped? I’m not sure I would have. I’ve thought long and hard about this. As the article ends, “If the surge of modern life so overpowers us that we can be oblivious to a world-class musician playing some of the best music ever written, then WHAT ELSE ARE WE MISSING?”

• Grace Is Gone Dave Matthews Band
• Honky Tonk Women The Rolling Stones
• Dance the Night Away Van Halen
• Snow (Hey Oh) Red Hot Chili Peppers
• Car Wheels on a Gravel Road Lucinda Williams
• Dance Dance Dance Neil Young<>
• Before This Time Ollabelle<>
• Go It Alone Beck
• Undermind Phish
• Wanted Dead or Alive Bon Jovi
• Wild Horses The Rolling Stones
• The Rainbow Connection Willie Nelson
• Journey to India Karunesh
  

*Note: While few if any adults stopped to watch the violin experiment, every single small child at least attempted to stop and watch.

**Taken from THE WEEK, May 4, 2007