Traditional street performances are much more than “just music”. The 5 below are my favorites.

1. The Ukulele Guy: This guy has a great voice and a ukulele that he plays on the streets of San Francisco. He also has a wonderful sense of humor as you can see in his video here.

2. The Beatboxer: I ran into this beatboxer while in New York City and was blown away by his sound effects that sounded just like real instruments! You can check out his video here.

3. The Human Jukebox: This guy is amazing! I saw him perform in Union Square and was really impressed with his talent and style, which reminds me of a bluesy Ray Charles. You can see him perform here.

4. Vocal Trash: A group of performers that sing, dance and play instruments made entirely from recycled materials, such as hubcaps and PVC pipes. Their performance is fun, engaging and family-friendly, so if you have young children this is the group for you! Watch them perform here.

5. The Street Drummer: This drummer performs on trash cans in Union Square by himself or with his band; either way he gets the crowd moving and grooving to

There is a trend in street performances going on for years now, targeting the digital nomads. Music has become the predominant art form on display. But the traditional street performance was much more than “just music”. The 5 below are my favorites.

Living Statue

One of the most common form of street performance is the living statue. These can be found all over Europe and more recently abroad as well. They are always fascinating to watch and you may stand there for minutes without noticing that this is not just a statue. The best ones really look like statues and will suddenly move in a flash, scaring you half to death!

The Mime

Mimes have been around for ages, but they seem to have disappeared from the streets in Europe. I remember them doing their thing in Paris when I was a kid, but even there they seem to have died out. They are still going strong in New Zealand though, where I saw some of them perform brilliant routines. In Asia they are even more alive than ever and especially in Hanoi, Vietnam you will find many mimes performing on the streets or at restaurants and bars. Their routines often have a lot of humor and some make you laugh out loud while others make you cry (in a good way

The definition of street performance as an art form is: “a performance, as of music or juggling, that is given on the street in front of a crowd.” As a person who enjoys live music and has worked in and around the music industry for the past decade I can tell you that the best street performances give you much more than “just music.” Usually, they have some sort of a show with props or costumes to enhance their act. Here are my 5 favorite street performances that I’ve seen while traveling around Europe.

The first one was in Rome, Italy. It was right outside of the Pantheon, which is one of the most popular tourist spots in Rome. The performer was dressed up like a Roman soldier and he had an old-timey barrel organ with him. This instrument would play the same tune no matter how you turned its crank so his act was simply to walk around in front of the crowd playing it while they were taking pictures and enjoying his show. He would occasionally stop and do an act like pretending to hold up a building or sword fight with himself. My favorite part about this performance was how he stayed in character all day as if he were really from ancient Rome and had come back in time to

1. Cello Joe

Cello Joe is an American street musician who combines playing cello with beatboxing. He performs in the streets of Eugene, Oregon and Seattle, Washington. His music became popular on Youtube, and it has been played over 8 million times.

2. Insane street drummer

This video was uploaded to Youtube almost 7 years ago and it has been watched more than 20 million times. All you can hear is the sound of the drumsticks hitting various objects. It sounds like it’s a band in full force. But it’s actually just one guy with a strong rhythm sense who knows how to use his surroundings to create music.

3. The street violinist

This amazing performance took place in Prague and was recorded by an anonymous passer-by who shared the video on Youtube. In this video you can see Street Violinist Tomas Kubinek improvising with Colin Huggins (aka “The Piano Guys”) at Grand Central Station in New York City, NY USA in 2008 – a truly spontaneous meeting between two great improvisors! The crowd goes wild as Tomas introduces Colin to his violin technique and then proceeds to kick his violin into a high gear! Watch how Colin responds!

1.The Saxophone Player

The saxophone player I have in mind is a tall, skinny, young man with a shaved head. He’s always wearing a black suit and performs on a street corner near my office building. His saxophone case is open for donations, but he never once lifts his eyes from his music to ask for money. He just plays, and people throw in some coins or dollar bills. Most of the time there are only a few people around him, because he plays on a quiet street, not in the subway or outside of a shopping mall. I’ve never heard him play the same song twice, and I often see him change his repertoire between songs. Once he starts playing, though, he’s completely absorbed and doesn’t look at anyone until the end of the song. At that point he smiles broadly and nods to those who have stayed to listen while they applaud him.

2.The Drummer

I saw this form of street performance for the first time in New York City: A drummer sets up his kit at a busy intersection and starts playing as loud as he can, attracting crowds of onlookers who clap in time to the beat or dance as they watch him perform. This kind of performance doesn’t require any special skills –

1. The Saxophone Guy

The Saxophone Guy plays his saxophone as loud as he can in the middle of a busy pedestrian plaza in a major city. He wears a suit and tie, which is not only unusual for a street performer but also makes him stand out against his background of suits and ties.

2. Sidewalk Violinist

A man plays classical music at rush hour on the sidewalk outside of an office building. He is dressed in what looks like a uniform: blue shirt and pants, with yellow stripes down the sides. He plays his violin very fast, while dancing around. People stop to watch him and drop coins into his hat.

3. The Accordion Player

A man stands on the sidewalk playing an accordion. He is wearing a striped shirt and a beret; one of his legs is propped up against a wall behind him, so that he is standing at an angle to the passersby. His music is very loud, and he sings along with it in French.

4. The Electric Guitarist

An electric guitarist sets up on the corner of a busy city intersection, with his amplifier turned up to maximum volume. When people stop to listen, he plays an improvised solo for them, then asks for donations

1. The street musicians of the Vienna Philharmonic:

2. Chris Bliss:

3. Kneebody:

4. Kanye West, on the subway:

5. The Roving Crows: