People Passing By a Violin Master
Apr 19th, 2007 by admin
You have to read this story. This is worth your time. So interesting, and watch the video too…
Josh Bell plays his $3.5 million strad violin in a DC Metro station and no one pays attention. When Leonard Slatkin, music director of the National Symphony Orchestra, was asked what would happen if one of the world’s great violinists had performed incognito before a traveling rush-hour audience of 1,000-odd people?
“Let’s assume,” Slatkin said, “that he is not recognized and just taken for granted as a street musician . . . Still, I don’t think that if he’s really good, he’s going to go unnoticed. He’d get a larger audience in Europe . . . but, okay, out of 1,000 people, my guess is there might be 35 or 40 who will recognize the quality for what it is. Maybe 75 to 100 will stop and spend some time listening.”
So, a crowd would gather?
“Oh, yes.”
And how much will he make?
“About $150.”
Thanks, Maestro. As it happens, this is not hypothetical. It really happened.
“How’d I do?”
We’ll tell you in a minute.
“Well, who was the musician?”
Joshua Bell.
“NO!!!”
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Great piece! Thanks for the link Sam. I once heard (yes paid good $!) Bell in concert but I wonder if I would’ve just passed by like the many that did!
whether you would have passed by…
that is pretty wild. i’ve been at that metro station many times actually. we bought my parents tix to see joshua bell in concert last year and they were not cheap. perhaps i will tell them to swing by the metro station… :cheeky:
my brother got to hold joshua bell’s strad once when he was younger. he said it sounded awesome.