Stories to Tell

01 May, 2023

MUSIC Information:

• Emperor's New Clothes
• F Major/D minor
• 30 Measures
• Cello and Piano
• 3:15 min
• 5 Pages

“The last generations's worst fears become the next one's B-grade entertainment.” ― Barbara Kingsolver, Flight Behaviour

EIGHT BILLION

Eight billion humans sharing the planet earth, and everyone has a story to tell. We smile and cry, we get happy and sad, and we do not need to be in a beauty pageant to desire, desperately, world peace. The thing is, we are a unique, emotional bunch of individuals reacting, in so many different ways to the same problems. I would like to think that, perhaps, we do have more things in common than we are willing to accept.

Everyone has a story to tell, it is up to the listener to accept it as it is, or give it a judgmental interpretation. Eight billion humans, I can't emphasise that number enough; and yet, here we are, all trying to survived in an enclosed sphere that we'd called planet Earth.

From 1900 to Digital

It's a very natural way for us to encapsulate every single living person into a "Generation", thus: Grandparents, parents, sons and daughters, all belong to a different moment in time. Therefore, each group, for example; takes a special meaning, because their members share a crucial life circumstance, forming a tight bond around that experienced. Life experiences are what defines us as a group, as well as individuals.

The concept of Generations has been around for centuries, but it differs from culture to culture, writers go to and fro analyzing data to finalize their research. From 1900 to the present, the world has witness a succession of generations, each defined by the era they were born into. In particular; the generations are defined more or less as follows:

Greatest Generation: Born 1901-1924. They entered a world already shaken—by World War I and a global pandemic that rewrote daily life. They grew up in economic collapse and were eventually forced into another, —even more devastating— global war.

Silent Generation: Born 1925-1945. They didn't know it, but they inherited an unrecognizable world, reorganized after World War II. Raised in the shadow of war and growing up during the early tensions of the Cold War, they didn't just live through it all, they carried it with them to the next group.

Baby Boomers: Born 1946-1964. After the worst seemed over and behind, the new ideologies of that time and the thirst for power made sure nothing was permanent, and this group learned it the hard way with yet another war: The Vietnam War, alongside civil rights struggles and cultural unrest.

Generation X: Born 1965-1980. In a world defined by the long tension of the Cold War, they grew up thinking it could stretch forever, then came to an unexpected end, symbolized by the fall of the Berlin Wall. At the same time, personal computing began moving into homes and workplaces, changing how information was stored and shared.

Millennials: Born 1981-1996. They grew up alongside the rapid expansion of the internet. At the same time, shocking events like September 11 attacks disrupted any sense of political, social and economic progress in the entire world, introducing a subtle uncertainty into their futures.

Generation Z: Born 1997-2012. This group was born into a fully connected world. They didn't have to adjust to the digital world —they arrived inside it. Their environment has been shaped by crisis like COVID-19 pandemic, while also confronting challenges related to the escalation of climate change.

Generation Alpha: Born 2013-2025. They are being born into a world already transformed by anything artificial. Institutions still adapting after the COVID-19 pandemic. They are not entering a world that feels established, the rules in it, whether political, social, cultural or economic, are being rewritten fast in real time — and with no contemplation — So, I just want to wish them Good Luck!

THE WHY'S and WHO'S

As I write this letter, there are people from the seven generations currently living on the planet. But what all this labels really mean?, Well, in a practical way, nothing really. It is simply a label. But it's entertaining _ from the statistic point of view_ to know the why's and who's of each one.

The problem with defining specific characteristics to Generations is that affects our individuality, for instance; I know Millennials acting and thinking more as researchers expect a Baby Boomer would do; and vice versa, there are a great number of Baby Boomers that are more openly progressive on social and political issues than said, Generation X.

ENOUGH IS ENOUGH

Some authors write loosely about generations, making sound more like the Zodiac signs, implying that if you were born in this year or that one, your are certainly to be this or that way. A 2007 Pew Research center report called "Millennials: Confident. Connected. Open to Change". As I read that_ sitting on my comfy chair this morning_ I thought the article was talking about the Aries sign. When the stars align, they don't give a fuck about us. We are just being a product of today, nothing else, nothing more.

I am Generation X, and I am tired of these articles pitting one generation against the other. Last week; Boomers leave messy tables in restaurants. This week: Generation Z don't tip. Next week: Millennials will be mean to their letter carriers. Last week the article I read with a picture of stacked plates on the table. It was boomers that left clean tables and Generation Z were pigs. We were also great tippers and Millennials were lousy. Enough!

STORIES TO TELL

Generational "characteristics" are nothing but lazy stereotypes. Take me, for instance: I despise iPhones — a rotten plague on society. If only Jobs had known (bless his heart). Meanwhile, my eighty‑year‑old neighbor adores the thing, happily scrolling Facebook to chat with friends and family. So much for the cliché that tech is only for the young. Maybe she’s smarter than me, or maybe she’s just bored with too much time on her hands. Honestly, I can’t tell.

So here we are, eight billion people, each with a story to tell, convince our story matters. Whether you are "stamped as "this generation" or "that one", the truth is we share far more than we care to admit. But acknowledging common ground isn't nearly as fun as clinging to labels, is it? But I'm sure you get my point.

VOICES OF PAST AND PRESENT

I wrote this piece while pondering on how each generation does things a little different from the one before. Spanning the years from 1900 to 2025, Beyond Time is a piece that tries to capture the voices of generations past and present. The Andantino has a dance-like character, composed around a short repeated rhythm bass line pattern, consists of primary chords. It has become one of my favorite pieces to play.

I hope that when you listen to it, it makes you want to dance. And, perhaps, to think about the cycle life really is — where the current generation advises the next and wink at the last.