Musical flash mob in a London grocery store

July 15, 2013 • 6:22 am

Here’s something to make you smile as I head back home. And if it doesn’t make you smile, you’re at the wrong place.

Reader Malcolm spotted this video on Big Geek Daddy, with the caption:

A routine day of shopping for groceries at John Lewis Foodhall from Waitrose turned into a grocery store opera when five singers performed a rousing rendition of the Italian classic Funiculì, Funiculà. This creative and fun musical flash mob is from Sacla’ the Pesto Pioneers and Italian foodies favourite brand who served up a great surprise by staging this impromptu Opera in the food aisles. How cool would it be to have some opera singers perform each time you went shopping for groceries.

Bravissimo!

46 thoughts on “Musical flash mob in a London grocery store”

  2. So when are we going to have “flash” veggie sales during the entre-actes at Glyndebourne?

  3. Now, why doesn’t anybody ever do that sort of thing at the places I shop at?

    Anybody in the Valley of the Sun needing a trumpeter for, say, the triumphal scene in Aida, please get in touch….

    Cheers,

    b&

    1. “Now, why doesn’t anybody ever do that sort of thing at the places I shop at?”

      I think you pretty well answered that question in the next sentence.

      For some reason, Star Wars quotes come to mind when I think of Phoenix. “Well, if there’s a bright center to the universe, you’re in the city that it’s farthest from.” “You will never find a more wretched hive of scum and villainy.” 🙂

  6. That’s more than just a smile–it’s pure joy. And look at the faces of the shoppers! If only we could “teach the world to sing . . . “

  8. Wonderful! I really like this phenomenon in general. People getting together to do something for the main purpose of putting a smile on other people’s faces as they move through an ordinary day doing their ordinary things.

    How cool is that? Gives me hope.

    1. “Wonderful! I really like this phenomenon in general.”

      That makes two of us.

      More, please.

      1. I’m glad you said that, Marta. I felt a bit foolish watching the video with tears welling up. For me, I think it’s the looks of surprise and sheer joy on the faces of onlookers, many of whom I expect have never been to an opera but suddenly have a greater appreciation for musical arts. The bemusement on the faces of the children is especially touching, I bet those kids never forget the moment.

        I’ll admit that I’m not an opera-goer but if that happened to me I might reconsider.

  9. Oh, great. Now I’ve got Funiculì, Funiculà repeating over and over in my head. 🙂

  10. What fun! Did anyone else notice how well dressed and attractive the shoppers are?

      1. Holds a royal warrant to supply groceries, wine and spirits to Queen Elizabeth II and to Prince Charles no less (didn’t see them on the video however . . .).

        1. Charles wasn’t there, but did you really not notice her royal madge there? She was in the background, elbows deep in the ‘reduced to clear section’ searching for the bargains. Have another look ;-).

  11. Whenever I read “flash mob,” I think of science fiction writer Larry Niven’s series of stories, starting with his 1973 novella “Flash Crowd” in The Flight of the Horse, about the impact of a teleportation deveice (the transfer box) that can take anyone anywhere on earth in milliseconds.

    1. You can join in! Sign up to Improv Everywhere and you can be alerted to events like No Pants (on the subway) day – though that probably wasn’t what you had in mind. improveverywhere.com/

      Hmm, it could be “improve very where”….

  15. I love Waitrose. We spent the last three months happily shopping there in Cambridge. You can get a great Indian meal to go at Waitrose (two mains, two sides and rice) for only £10! No flash mobs, sadly…

      1. Well, we did do a few other things in between shopping at Waitrose. Now back in Texas. Shopping at Krogers not quite the same. Definitely not worth a three-month shopping trip!

  18. Great way to start the morning. I like this phenomenon a lot and when I view them on the Internet I sometimes wonder what my first reaction would be were I a few aisles over from the sound. I really liked the fish-monger and the little boy clapping his hands overhead as well as the smiles all round. What a treat it would be to be in this infusion and surround of great music sung by great musicians.

  19. The best flash mob ever (without fear of contradiction!) is the Som Sabadell one, doing the Ode to Joy from Beethoven’s ninth.

    It’s brilliantly filmed, catching the looks of wonder and pleasure on the crowd’s faces. Apparently sponsored by one of those Spanish banks that are – I would guess – going broke.

    If I ever need cheering up, I always watch that one. I don’t dare to give the website for fear of embedding, but googling “Ode to Joy, Som Sabadell” should do it.

      1. Catalonia has a tradition of street performance – the Sardana round dance can start up just about anywhere if somebody starts playing the music, and more formally the ‘castell’ human pyramids are often a feature of town squares on Sunday mornings
        (search ‘Sitges’ and ‘castell’ or ‘sardana’ on YouTube)

  20. Thanks Jerry, I didn’t expect such a quick response!

    I’m biased about this because, for me, Beethoven is no 1.

  23. What’s with this? I thought evolutionary biologists can not appreciate anything beyond the speciation of Drosophila.

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