Would you recognize talent… in a rush?

I got an e-mail today regarding an incredible social experiment that was performed just over 2 years ago, and thought I would share it for anyone who hasn’t heard of it yet.

If one of the best violin players in the world was dressed incognito in a busy metro station during rush hour, playing an instrument worth millions of dollars, would you notice? Joshua Bell did just that in April of 2007 in Washington D.C., and not surprisingly, was noticed by perhaps only one or two of the people on their way to work out of over a thousand people who passed by in the hour he played.

Just watching the video of him play sent shivers running down my spine, but had I been on my way to work or school I can’t be certain that I would have stuck around for very long. Check out the article published in the Washington Post the next day, it’s an excellent read.