Pause for Beauty

What impresses us, nowadays?
Mass reproduction and accessibility has altered the way we perceive the extraordinary. If we can download that gut wrenching solo instantly, if we can buy that t shirt with the Botticelli angels on it, how do we approach the real thing - played live, seen two feet away? Is the nature of our appreciation altered by context? Are we too rushed to care?

The Washington Post ran an experiment.

They got violin virtuoso Joshua Bell to stand in a Washington terminal, busker-style. He played a series of technically difficult, incredibly moving works on one of the finest instruments in the world.
Typically he commands $100 for an adequate seat in the finest venues on the planet.
This day, he played for free to whoever cared to pause their day, and just listen.

The results provide a fascinating glimpse into what happens when we hurry through the day, disregarding the rare, the fantastic and the surprising.

Read it here.