I gave him a nice tip: "Smile when you play. The people want to like you.

When will cities start cracking down on subway violins?

@scroll_lock: "

Moby can suck it.

@TedSez: and sax in public too!

The violin's a little gay, right?

Being as though it may or may-not-be a recession, I prefer to give money to, oh, those who actually need it.

Hey - that's a little over $40 an hour. Given a full workday, week and month, that's about $6400 a month! Tax free! That should be enough to keep him from a life of prostitution.

Yes, but Joshua Bell is not a douchebag.

@Gregoire: Agreed. He happens to be a totally decent guy and not at all full of himself.

As I remember, Bell was playing standard repertoire Bach or Vivaldi, so familiar it fades into the background. No wonder no one noticed.

And it was in a part of DC where it's all government workers-they wouldn't notice anything unless it had something to do with Metro running late.

He was also sitting right in the entrance, where everybody is hurrying to get to their trains, not on the platform where they have time to listen.

@scroll_lock:

I adore you for that. OCD rules! Yeah!

@IHateWhatYouHaveOn: Isn't that all of DC?

Wonderful concept, great story. I have nothing snarky to say.

Just goes to show that what has been considered "traditionally great" may not apply anymore. Kinda like the subversion of the Western canon of literature in the 1960s