On January 12 2007, a man sat at a metro station in Washington DC and started to play the violin. He played 6 Bach pieces for about 45 minutes. During that time, since it was rush hour, it was calculated that thousands of people went through the station, most of them on their way to work. 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 at 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 that the violinist was Joshua Bell, an internationally acclaimed musical virtuoso (photo above). He played one of the most intricate pieces ever written for violin on a Stradavarius worth $3.5 million. Two days before his playing in the subway, Joshua Bell sold out at a theatre in Boston and the seats average price was $100 each. This social experiment was organized by the Washington and a full report on the event can be read here: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/04/04/AR2007040401721.html
Many passers-by didn't take a second glance at a performance that concert-halls-full of people pay over $100 to hear. One conclusion to this would be that the performance isn't worth $100. I disagree with this. Having been told who was playing the violin, and what was being played, I think that many of the daily commuters would have appreciated the music. They didn't appreciate what was being performed because it looked commonplace to them. Is a function of art to take the amazing things of everyday life and make us notice them? If so, is this experiment more art than a painting created for personal pleasure?
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