Out of the Box

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For some karmic reason, last week several out-of-the-box music videos ended up in my inbox.

These caused me to rethink something about my life.

The first was this guy in Portland, Ore. who has over thirty-five years honed a technique to play impressive music on a rubber band.

You heard me right. A rubber band.

You have to watch the video to believe it:


Here, he's playing in a jazz trio:


Here, he's explaining his technique:


The second is this guy who takes a different approach to the rubber-band music:


The third is string quartet from Poland of all places, who are obviously very talented at their craft. Yet they have the most fun playing classical music you've ever seen:


After watching these videos, I started to wonder: What is so compelling about these guys?

I think the answer is that they have found a way to be unconventional without being offensive. Au contraire, their unconventionality draws you in.

But this leads to a profound question that you might try asking at your table -

Is there room for such out-of-the-box expression in every human endeavor? What about your own job/career/pasttime?

And if you answer yes, the second question is, is it important to break with convention?

And if the answer is yes, then the third question is, How????