Beethoven's Ode to Joy

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For three decades, Beethoven had worked on setting Ode to Joy. To him, this poem was the ultimate expression of love and unity. He felt he had to do a justice, composing some 200 versions before settling on the one he liked best. But those years had not been kind to him: rocky romances, turbulent guardianship of his nephew, and he lost his hearing. The performance ended and Beethoven stood with his back to the audience, still beating time to music that played only in his own head. A young soloist instantly turned him around to see the audience, with tears streaming down their cheeks,. hanker chiffs and hats raised.

The Next Big Idea presents an audio masterclass from bestselling author Susan Cain. Drawing on her latest book, "Bittersweet: How Sorrow and Longing Make Us Whole," Susan shares practical insights that you can use to bolster your creativity, deepen your connections, and find joy.

Susan Cain is the author of two New York Times #1 bestsellers, "Bittersweet" and "Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can't Stop Talking." She's also one of our curators here at the Next Big Idea Club. To learn more about her work, visit susancain.net.

If you enjoy this episode, we invite you to join our community by downloading the Next Big Idea app, where you can listen to e-courses by brilliant authors like Shankar Vedantam, Lisa Feldman Barrett, and Surgeon General Vivek Murthy. Visit nextbigideaclub.com/app.