Violin and Nokia Duet in A (for Annoying) Minor

We’ve all been there, that quiet time in the middle of a great movie or maybe a sweet moment while enjoying an intimate dinner with a loved one, when out of the blue somebody’s cell phone starts bleating out its attention-demanding caterwaul.

All too often that offending bit of tech is screaming from the depths of someone’s purse or well-buttoned back pocket. And so we have the pleasure of hearing its obnoxious ring at least two or three times. You think we’d be used to it. But even though just about all of us are attached to some kind of mobile appliance, it can still be irritating. And it can be particularly so during a live event like a concert, play or public address.

I read not long ago about some person who forgot to silence their phone while attending a New York Philharmonic performance. And when the thing started ringing they tried to be nonchalant and ignore it so people wouldn’t think that they were the knucklehead interrupting the beautiful concert. The problem is, the phone just kept on ringing. And it’s hard to miss a Marimba ringtone in the midst of Mahler’s Ninth. So the conductor actually stopped the concert and publically embarrassed the offender while concertgoers yelled, “Throw him out!”

You can almost feel sorry for that poor guy. Well … maybe not.

Anyway, there’s a video that recently splashed across Facebook of a similar cell phone incident that you may or may not have seen. But just in case you haven’t, I thought I’d bring it to your attention.

Slovak violist Lukáš Kmit was in the midst of his recital when a mean old cell started vying for the audience’s attention. But Mr. Kmit handles himself quite differently than the Philharmonic conductor. Take a look.

You can tell he was a bit put off. But he turned things around in a unique way, pleased the audience, and with a wink and a smile, got the guy with the phone to turn the silly thing off without throwing him to the wolves. Now that’s worth a “bravo” or two.

And isn’t this situation sort of a metaphor for life nowadays? We know that we can’t always avoid the annoying things that often invade our lives. But perhaps if we take a cue from Lukáš Kmit we can incorporate those burrs and brambles into the melody of our day and make something beautiful of it.