If a great musician plays great music but no one hears, was he really any good?

Here’s an article that can make you cry.

Pearls Before Breakfast
Can one of the nation’s great musicians cut through the fog of a D.C. rush hour? Let’s find out.

By Gene Weingarten
Washington Post Staff Writer

Sunday, April 8, 2007; Page W10

Synopsis: Joshua Bell plays at the Washington Metro during morning rush hour. He plays the best classical solo violin pieces ever written, with his awesome instrument to an awesome acoustic – did he have an audience? Hardly. The article goes through numerous interviews, and even consulted many for plausible explanations, leaving us with even more questions.

Source: Washington Post

Optional background music while reading the article (Bach ‘s Chaconne for Solo Violin, performed here by Itzhak Perlman):

Part 1
[kml_flashembed movie=”http://www.youtube.com/v/5bVRTtcWmXI” height=”355″ width=”425″ /]

Part 2
[kml_flashembed movie=”http://www.youtube.com/v/2lPZWJu1QPI” height=”355″ width=”425″ /]

Well done w-post for such an initiative – and kudos to Joshua for making it happen. Now if someone can just release the entire hidden camera recording on YouTube…

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