Unticketed, unexpected musical bliss in Philadelphia

On a recent trip to Philadelphia, like most visitors, I spent my time queuing to see the famed Liberty Bell at the Independence Hall and taking selfies with actor Sylvester Stallone’s statue at the Philadelphia Museum of Art—this is where he famously ran up the majestic flight of stairs for Rocky Balboa. But thanks to pointers from my newfound friend, the 70-year-old artist Ed, painting at his open-air studio sectioned off the Rittenhouse public park sidewalk, I wound up visiting a mall and a restaurant for two unexpected classical music performances that were, in Ed’s wise words, “blissful music”. Its Grand Court, a massive atrium on the ground floor of the 12-storey building, is home to one of Philly’s oldest and famous residents: The Eagle. In spite of the Grand Court’s high ceiling and open space, the acoustics are perfect and hearing this heroic instrument in the ordinary setting of a mall is surreal.