Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart circa 1780. (Creative Commons licensed)

With finals approaching rapidly, many students are searching for alternative ways to relieve stress, while also maintaining focus. This is no simple task since many things, such as drugs and alcohol, aren't able to achieve both goals - not to mention how unhealthy and dangerous they are.

But one simple way to boost test scores is to follow the "Mozart effect." This simply means that by listening to Mozart's music, stress levels go down, and I.Q.s  go up. Of course this is only a theory, and the ironic part? Mozart's life was full of stress and angst with his music, even up to his dying day.

To call Mozart a musician is like calling Michelangelo a painter. These terms are far too simplistic to refer to once-in-a-lifetime prodigies. Mozart is one of the absolute great deities in musical history.

When thinking about his work in general, an important thing to think about is the fact that his work reflected his short life.

One of his greatest and well-known overtures from his opera, "The marriage of Figaro," is full of intensity. The notes dart along in a fast-paced and heart-pounding beat, which seems to increasingly build until the explosion of instruments takes full control. This piece seldom rests.

Making a connection back to his life; Mozart himself was never one to rest. Beginning at the age of six when he composed Minuet and Trio, to his operas, concertos, serenades, symphonies, and finally to the requiem he would never finish before his death at thirty-five, his life was never idle.

Yet while life was a productive one, it was also full of heartache and despair. This is most clearly reflected in what would be his final piece, his Requiem.

Not only did his beloved mother die when he was in his early twenties, but the love of his life refused him, causing him to marry her sister. He lost children at birth and fell ill at thirty-five.

The Requiem has an eerie feeling to it. Mozart was frightened that he was writing this piece for his own death, and that fear's certainly reflected in the piece.

It begins very slowly and solemnly, but soon builds up with heavy strings and horns, leading to a dark place once the male chorus begins. The moods change throughout this piece, often grabbing you by the throat. Your heart feels heavy and it beats intensely to the profound but rather sinister notes.

Much like his life, his Requiem changes from soft, light moods to very intense, grave ones. What is interesting is that the ending doesn't match his life. The end of the piece has the sound of drums intensely leading up to the final strong, concluding note.

Mozart died before finishing this piece; his final note was not a strong one, but an incomplete one.

But let us not forget that this was a musical genius who achieved so many profound things before his death and yet was buried in a pauper's graveyard. We can learn a thing or two about the value of existence. It isn't counted by the dollars in our pocket, but by the things we create from our passions and the things we leave behind for others in the brief time that we have here on this earth.

So with this in mind, don't spend your precious moments stressing out. Finals are certainly important, but so is good mental health. Take fifteen minutes at the end of your day to listen to a little Mozart, and let your mind go. This tiny task may make finals, and your life, just a tad less stressful.