Jorgy is an observer who can talk his way out of trouble and notices more than he lets on. Each story follows him through one small, true-to-life episode. Each also comes with a classical piece that matches its mood and structure, and a short philosophical reading about what the story means.

Sixteen thinkers each get one story and one piece of music: Aristotle, Simone de Beauvoir, Montaigne, Hume, Nietzsche, Epicurus, Spinoza, Seneca, Epictetus, Bergson, Hannah Arendt, Kant, Socrates, Schopenhauer, Camus and Wittgenstein. The music ranges from Schubert’s Trout Quintet and Bach’s Goldberg Variations to Shostakovich, Ravel and Satie. Several stories include a short passage imagining how the philosopher would have told the story.

The book is for anyone who loves classical music, likes philosophy without jargon, or simply enjoys short, well-observed stories. Every story stands on its own, so you can read the book from start to finish or one story at a time, with the matching music playing in the background.

What’s inside:

• 16 original short stories, each self-contained
• A classical music recommendation for every story, with an explanation of why it fits
• A philosophical reading of each story by a different thinker
• Short pastiches imagining how several of the philosophers would have told the story
• A recurring cast, with Jorgy’s voice running through the whole collection

Jorgy’s Shorts comes from MusikRoel, home to music recommendations, essays and stories about classical music in everyday life.

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Each of the four stories is inspired by a well-known piece of music and takes you back to the time when its composer lived. The main characters are enterprising and brave, and through them you learn new things. Scan the QR code to listen to the music while you read, and you’ll notice that each story has its own color as well as its own tone. The stories have a philosophical undertone; it’s up to you to find it.

I wrote these stories to bring peace, positive energy and inspiration, and to help restore trust in each other. They’re also good for reading aloud to your children.

Besides classical music, my stories have a second element: philosophy. I hope you picked up on it. Enjoy!

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Beethoven and Mahler couldn’t do without it either. For Beethoven, coffee was part of his creative process; for Mahler, it was a source of inspiration. Making and drinking it, the taste and smell, and perhaps the caffeine gave these composers a pause in which to gather energy and ideas.

Voltaire said coffee was a great power in his life. Kant limited himself to one cup a day, and Kierkegaard made a show of drinking his. Many philosophers were regulars at coffee houses.

Next time you drink a cup, think of the composers and philosophers who drank theirs while they worked.

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