[MD] Joshua Bell piece in the Washington Post

[Arlo Bensinger]

[Ian]
I'm practically an addict of late night live music joints; trouble is 
I always fall for it, buy the artist's often amateur produced CD, 
take it home and 9 times out of 10 ask myself why did I do that - 
sure it sounded better through the smoke and alcohol ?

Of course the answer is easy - dynamic quality - one time in 10 
(maybe a hundred) you've found a gem that repays the disappointments.

[Arlo]
I'm sure the DQ->SQ transition is a big part of it, but I'm not sure 
its the only part. I think a lot of it has to do with moving the 
"music" out of the "context". When I lived in Chicago years ago, we 
used to frequent the Kingston Mines, an authentic, hidden, downright 
smokey and tiny blues club. I saw the same musicians several times, 
and each time was literally swept away by the experience. The same CD 
at home seemed impotent. When I first heard "Beethoven's 9th" 
performed live I was blown away, even after hearing the music on CD 
many, many times. The reason is that there is more to the 
"experience" than "me" and "object", context is always relevant, 
whether its a hushed concert hall or the sweaty bowels of the 
Kingston Mines. And don't mistake this for "live" versus "memorex", 
we all have songs (I'm sure) that are amazing in one context, like 
when on the road driving or walking across town or whatever, but when 
removed from that just seem to suffer. Listening to Radar Love while 
traveling the long night along southbound on I-79 is still almost a 
religious experience for me. Same song sitting in my office, not so much.

And... just to tease this into a fun direction, I am convinced that 
the "pub" experience is also heightened by imbibing in ale. Like 
Pirsig's peyote experience, alcohol can serve to loosen the static 
perceptions and clear our mind of the static cobwebs of life. And in 
the right situation can leave us extra-susceptible to potential DQ 
moments. Of course, it can also cloud our mind as well. Balance is 
always the key. (Just for an example, there are ample studies 
demonstrating that moderate alcohol consumption can increase one's 
ability to learn a foreign language. Of course, too much will leave 
you just south of the Tower of Babel.)