BY: MELISSA GONZALEZ
I race to the subway, balancing a dripping tray of coffee while glancing anxiously down at my wristwatch. Already I’m late to work and I’ll no doubt be caught in the human swarm of Monday morning—sleep deprived faces with the same clenched jaws of unexpected lateness.
Staggering down the steps I begin to hear a beautiful echo from the hallway. I turn the corner to see a young busker, eyes closed, lost in sound. So, without a second thought, I stop to listen to the moments unraveling from his fingertips. Somehow my lateness doesn’t seem so important anymore.
We often see them in subways or on sidewalks sharing their talents with complete strangers. We hear their song—but do we know their story?
Photographer: Jenny Schweitzer
Lorenzo, an electric violinist in New York, says he was “put on this Earth to play music for my fellow human beings. It’s my calling.”
Photographer: Jenny Schweitzer
Jenny Schweitzer, a New York City-based producer and director, documents the lives of several NYC subway musicians and shares the stories behind the art. The short film series “Rhythm in Motion” illustrates the mosaic of busking origins.
“The films peek into their arresting and deeply personal stories.”
“My objective in making these films was to give these gifted people the opportunity to reveal a hidden aspect of who they are and to voice their artistic message.”
Sources: remezcla.com, ownit.nyc, theatlantic.com
