Street Performance

     When I was in Amsterdam a couple weekends ago, I saw such a great street performance!  At the time I was with my friend who, as a musician, will stop and watch just about anyone perform.  We were in the touristy location of Dam Square, so I wasn't expecting anything too impressive.  This older man, however, gave one of the best guitar performances I've seen live.  He was playing a six stringed classical guitar.  Even though these are (apparently) more difficult to play because of the thicker, farther apart strings, he played so quickly, cleverly and never missed a note.  During the fifteen or so minutes I watched, he played versions of Jimi Hendrix songs White Stripes melodies and other familiar tunes that I never imagined could be played with a single guitar.  His renditions of these fan favorites would begin similar to the original than creatively drift into his own unique solos.

     The other street performers in the area included people who would paint themselves and dress up like a character only to stand like a statue for hours, or those who would attract a huge crowd and claim to do something impressive but instead collect money and leave the audience disappointed.  I was so shocked that we got the opportunity to see someone so talented perform that I almost felt guilty not paying for a ticket!  Although it didn't seem like he was attracting as big of a crowd as the performers mentioned prior, those watching were very appreciative and generous in donations.  I'm convinced this performer has a regular job, given the professional, effortless manner in which he played, but even if he didn't I'm sure he'd do fine playing street gigs alone!  Later on in my weekend-long trip I was lucky enough to find him playing in another square as well.

     Since this experience, I certainly pay more attention to performers in the subway and in public.  Especially since it's not likely I would seek out a performance for an instrument or style of music I haven't listened to, I think paying attention to street performers is a great way to expose yourself to different performances.