The following story is not unbelievable BUT IT SHOULD BE!

I honestly believe that if there were no judges on ‘The X-Factor’ most people would not have a clue what to think of the person audtioning.

This may be less about having an ear for music and more about not wanting to offer an opinion in a social situation where they may feel foolish if they end up ‘being wrong‘ but either way it poses an interesting question;

Do the general Public have ANY idea about music?

I am aware that this may sound like the ravings of a music snob (which i’m not, well maybe a little bit…) but having played for public audiences and taught members of the public for nearly 20 years i get a lot of people asking me what i think of ‘this band’ or ‘that guitarist’.

The truth is that my opinion is mine alone, music is about taste, personal preference and hearing music before we judge it! – The following story says it all!

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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 D.C. Metro Station, was organized by the Washington Post as part of a social experiment about perception, taste and people’s priorities.

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Even though as musicians its easy to be over critical (of ourselves and others)  we should learn to listen to music without any preconceived ideas or prejeduces and just ‘let the music do the talking’.

If you really like it – nobody elses opinion will change your mind
If you really don’t – nobody elses opinion will change your mind

I’m just as guilty of this as everyone else which is why i’d thought i’d share this story/lesson with you!

You can listen to Joshua Bell for free on Spotify or click here to buy his album from Amazon