It was a cold morning at a metro station in Washington DC, a man started to play the violin. He played six Bach pieces for about 45 minutes. During that time, since it was rush hour, 1,100 people went through the station, most of them on their way to work.
Three minutes went by, and a middle aged man noticed there was musician playing. He slowed his pace, and stopped for a few seconds, and then hurried up to meet his schedule.
A minute later, the violinist received his first dollar tip: a woman threw the money in the tin without stopping, and continued to walk.
A few minutes later, someone leaned against the wall to listen to him, but the man looked at his watch and started to walk again. Clearly he was late for work.
The one who paid the most attention was a 3-year-old boy. His mother tagged him along, hurried, but the kid stopped to look at the violinist. Finally, the mother pushed hard, and the child continued to walk, turning his head all the time. This action was repeated by several other children. All the parents, without exception, forced them to move on.
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 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 this, but the violinist was Joshua Bell, one of the most talented musicians in the world. He had just played one of the most beautiful pieces ever written, on a violin worth $3.5 million dollars.
Two days before his playing in the subway, Joshua Bell sold out at a theater in Boston where the seats averaged $100.
This is a real story. Joshua Bell playing in the metro station was organized by the Washington Post as part of a social experiment.
The outlines were: in a commonplace environment at an inappropriate hour: Do we enjoy beauty? Do we stop to appreciate it? Do we recognize the talent in an unexpected situation?
One of the possible conclusions from this experience could be: If we do not have a moment to stop and listen to one of the best musicians in the world playing the best music ever written, how many other things are we missing?”
Few people stopped to listen to Joshua Bell playing because____________.
A.it was too cold in the subway |
B.they were not interested in music |
C.people were in a hurry |
D.the performance was not good enough |
Which of the following is true about Joshua Bell’s performance?
A.Nobody gave him money |
B.Nobody recognized him. |
C.Nobody appreciated it |
D.Nobody organized it |
Joshua Bell played in the metro station in order to ____________.
A.make more money on the street |
B.practice his skills in playing music |
C.made an advertisement for his concert |
D.find out people’s reaction under such a circumstance |
Which of the following would be the best title for the passage?.
A.The Importance of Music | B.A Talented Violinist |
C.A Subway Violin Performance | D.The Things We Miss |