A Beethoven Kind of Life

I like thinking about life in terms of different composers and the major traits of their music. To me, Mozart is all about order. I enjoy playing Mozart, but it doesn't quite thrill me. Beethoven thrills me. My heart actually beats a little faster. There is order, but with it a wonderful kind of defiance. Minuets are fine things, but if you speed them up just a bit, you suddenly get a scherzo, a wild ride that may take you far from where you started.

I do like having order and structure in my life, but I also enjoy those surprising excursions into new territory. So sometimes, when life gets a little too Mozart-y, I start to shake things up, just to see what will happen. And then my world shifts, as that familiar structure gets far away and some exciting adventure begins.

Becoming assistant manager here at the store has been like that - new responsibilities, new procedures, new systems to create - it's all very Beethoven. Actually, at times it gets pretty Schoenberg! Still, there's enough of my old responsibilities and routine to provide a good balance with the new. And every day I see customers that I already know well and that helps ground me, too.

So, tell me, has your life been Bach-like lately? Sort of Bartok-esque? Or altogether full of Faure'?


Ron B