Emerging from the metro at the L’Enfant Plaza Station, he was pretty nondescript as he positioned himself against a wall beside a trash basket. He pulled a small violin from a case. Placing the open case at his feet, he threw in some small change as seed money, swivelled it to face pedestrian traffic, and began to play.

It was the middle of the morning rush hour. In the next 43 minutes, as the violinist performed six classical pieces, 1,097 people passed by. Each passerby had a quick choice to make ...  read more »