Have You Witnessed a Random Act?

In the midst of the mass of holiday shoppers at Macy's in Philadelphia, the familiar, exhilarating sounds of Handel's Hallelujah Chorus ring out. Singers from the chorus of the Opera Company of Philadelphia, mingling with the shoppers, sing exuberantly, the music circling mysteriously seemingly from everywhere.

As the sound fades, a stranger in the crowd holds aloft a sign that reads, "You Have Just Experienced a Random Act of Culture."

If you haven't yet seen this delightful Christmas-time event on You-Tube, you can find it at www.youtube.com/watch?v=wp_RHnQ-jgU.

I discovered there have been a number of such "random acts" in various cities, sponsored by the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation. Over the next three years, the Foundation will sponsor 1,000 of these events in eight cities, as a promotion of the arts. (For more information and additional videos, visit http://www.knightarts.org/.)

The music blossoms in unlikely public places, often crowded malls, as well as airports and markets. What I love most about these recordings is to see the faces of the surprised witnesses. A few people ignore, others look disconcerted and uncomfortable. But most show obvious delight, some as though they have just been awakened from the trance of their busyness. A number use cell phones to take photos. Some even join in directly to the fun.

The faces are fascinating, beautiful, captured in a wondrous moment of being themselves.

As a viewer commented on the You-Tube site of one of these classical performances, "This is pleasing to God!"

Enjoy!