18 April 2007, 02:03 in

Violinist experiment

Jason recently posted about an experiment set up by the Washington Post in which they got a highly talented violinist to busk at a train station to see if people would notice. In other words they were testing whether people would recognize greatness in situation where they did not expect it. I found it to be very interesting reading.

No one knew it, but the fiddler standing against a bare wall outside the Metro in an indoor arcade at the top of the escalators was one of the finest classical musicians in the world, playing some of the most elegant music ever written on one of the most valuable violins ever made. His performance was arranged by The Washington Post as an experiment in context, perception and priorities—as well as an unblinking assessment of public taste: In a banal setting at an inconvenient time, would beauty transcend?

The results were that basically no one took any notice. People hurried by and went about their daily business. This confirms that our judgment of something is heavily influenced by our expectations. While this outcome is to be expected, it is quite sad when you think about it…

If we can’t take the time out of our lives to stay a moment and listen to one of the best musicians on Earth play some of the best music ever written; if the surge of modern life so overpowers us that we are deaf and blind to something like that—then what else are we missing?

It also bothers me because I would like to think that we are able to recognize something good for what it is, regardless of the context. It begs us to ask ourselves whether we are giving the things around us a fair and honest evaluation, or whether we are just taking the easy route and going along without thinking, like a flock of sheep.

There are some intelligent comments too:

... However, this experiment is very deeply flawed – people in subway systems are typically on their way to appointments which have great penalties for late attendance. Set up the experiment in an amusement park type situation, where people are not hurrying to meet prior obligations on their time, and results worthy of discussion may be obtained.

It would be interesting to conduct a similar experiment but in reverse; i.e. substitute something with inferior performance in a situation where people expect greatness.

  Textile Help