Hey man, slow down

Jessica Duchen has repeated the now legendary Joshua Bell experiment with the violinist Tasmin Little in London, watching crowd reaction as the star musician busks on her Stradivarius: “….it becomes clear that it’s the young people, children and teenagers, who are the most interested, responsive, willing to stop and likely to give their money — even though they, no doubt, have the least resources. As for the well-heeled, grey-haired clientele that we are always told make up the majority of audiences for classical concerts, they are the most likely to turn away, lips pursed in snobbish disapproval….” On a related theme, read about Lisa Bielawa’s Chance Encounter project, a site-specific work to be performed in public spaces in downtown Manhattan next September, and follow her musings at her blog.