This is not a post on the merits of classical music or whether Beethoven was a better composer than Mozart. This is an article about embracing your natural working style. This is about discovering genius in our every day work.

Are you a Mozart or a Beethoven?

Mozart was a freak of nature.

We know this. He was like 5 years old when he wrote his first composition. It and everything he ever produced was perfect. Maybe a bit mathematical for my tastes, but perfect nonetheless.

According to popular legend, he never used an eraser - ok they didn’t have them back then - but he never had to rewrite or correct anything - ever. By the time it hit the page it was flawless. No mistakes, no second thoughts. It was done and people stood back in awe.

Beethoven, on the other hand, was a mess.

Reams of paper would flow off his table. He’d work and re-work composition over and over until he was satisfied. He’d throw out entire sections and start from scratch. He’d build something up only to rip back down.

It didn’t come easy — but the results were brilliant.

Listen to the Pathetique’ Sonata and tell me you can’t feel the yearning in that thing - I dare you.

As a person, he was irascible and moody and could be a downright ass.

Now, here’s a guy I can relate to.

I’m not saying I’m on any level near Beethoven. I just know I ain’t no Mozart.

Work Like Beethoven

If you’re preparing to work your masterpiece, here are some lessons you can learn from his approach:

Improvise an Inventory of Great Content - Beethoven was known for his improvisation skills. A party host or hostess would do whatever they could to get him in front of the piano. They knew once he started playing, it’d last all night. He’d generate new ideas and expand on them through endless variations.

This gave him a wealth of great ideas to pull from. A huge mountain of stock from which he could pick and choose his very best stuff.

Ferociously Edit - Starting with a wealth of great ideas gave him great flexibility. He could draw from a huge pool of ideas and arrange them in a myriad of combinations….knowing it was there, he just had to fit the puzzle pieces together.

That said, he had no qualms throwing something he loved in the trash if it didn’t work in the piece as a whole.

Live in a Linear World (But Work the Tangents) - Music is linear. In fact, it’s kind of the point. It moves moment to moment talking you on a journey. But the creative process, for Beethovens’, is NOT linear. Our brains jump to and fro with wild abandon.

The trick is allowing yourself the freedom to explore those tangents. Let yourself rabbit trail. Let yourself get lost. You never know how the ends may come together in a magical fit of inspiration.

Surrender to that idea and you can go anywhere. All you have to do is remember, you’ll eventually have to pull the pieces together again in one cohesive opus.

Hide Gold In the Nooks & Crannies - Beethoven’s work was rich. He poured his soul into his work. There was no ‘filler’. It was all good. It was all his best stuff. Every phrase contained little bits of wonderful for us to discover and appreciate with each listen.

Entertain new ideas late in the game - You know the feeling. You’re almost at the end. You’re almost ready to say, “Done!”

But there it is — a new idea. Do you delay calling it complete to explore it? Sure it’s interesting but you’re just about ready to call this one quits and move on to the next project. In fact, you’re so excited about what you’ve already done you can’t wait to get it out there.

Exhaust an Idea and Then Let It Sleep — Fatigue is a miraculous thing. You can run a concept around the block a million times and it still doesn’t feel right. It’s in those late night session where we’re tired and about to collapse that great ideas are just beyond our grasp.

The funny thing is the idea won’t come to fruition at that moment, but it won’t happen without that moment either. Sometimes, for truly great work you need to push yourself to the limits. You need to force yourself to grind through a problem as uncomfortable as it is.

And then, when you’re convinced it’s beyond hope (for now)…stop.

Let go. Get your mind on something else. Find a distraction. Sleep on it and let your subconscious do the work.

Immortalize Your Name - We live in a disposable society. Many of us don’t have the expectation that our work will have any lasting effect on our culture. It’s the nature of the beast. We under constant pressure to wrap up the current project and close the next deal.

Beethoven - and many of the composers of his day — had many of the same pressures. He’d take a commission on once piece of work, only to run out of money before it was completed to his satisfaction. He’d be forced to take on additional projects just so he could eat.

But he wouldn’t let it go until it was perfect. Because no matter who paid, it was HIS name that was going to be remembered. Who paid for Ode to Joy? …Exactly.

Beethoven’s work was appreciated in his time AND in the centuries to come. It embraced the characteristics of his day, but it was timeless. He wanted it perfect because he expected it to carry his name through the generations.

Be Vulnerable - I’m tired of posturing. I’m tired of trying to impress anyone. I’ve played that game and I’m done with it. People only relate to me and my work when I’m honest. Feed someone something you think will impress them? You can almost hear them mumble ‘poser.’

Beethoven was not a poser. Technically he was remarkable and a genius. But as stated earlier so was Mozart. In this they were both the real deal.

But, what separated Beethoven, in my opinion, was investment of himself in his work. His heartache, his ‘joy’ — his mercurial ’self’ — was evident in his every creation.

He let his work reflect his vulnerability.

In the end…
Beethoven’s genius can be summed up with one word: Passion

His passion dictated his life. His passion made his work great.

While, I’d hope to conduct my life with a little more balance than Herr Ludwig, I know I’ll try to inject a little more passion into my life & my work.

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