The quirky mind of composer Erik Satie continues to inspire, amuse and annoy us 100 years after his death, and musicians still cannot quite decide what to make of him. For sure, they can’t ignore him, if only because his monumental Vexations is returning from obscurity in lengthy performances and recordings by well-known keyboard artists in Europe, the United States and Asia.
Igor Levit gave pianophiles a rare musical treat at the Southbank Centre in April 2025, leaving the hardy spectators in the audience mentally exhausted after 840 repeats of this one-page bagatelle. He took four or five short “loo breaks”, but kept himself going onstage with bottled water and a bowl of grapes. (He had previously livestreamed the work from the B-sharp studio in Berlin during the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020 in what he described as “a silent scream” to highlight the plight of artists hit by lockdowns.)
Igor Levit performingVexations during the Covid pandemic in 2020
Levit kept his bearings during his Southbank centre performance by showing up with a bundle of photocopies of the score, discarding one at a time as he plowed through the piece. By the end, the stage floor was covered with 840 scattered copies.
Igor Levit performing Vexations at the Southbank Centre Credit: Pete Woodhead
Here is the haunting melody Satie created :
Wrote one spectator: “ I was at Queen Elizabeth Hall just to witness his performance. It was so, so, so intense!”
A couple of years earlier, the young Italian pianist Alessandro Deljavan had sat in the studios of record company OnClassical in Pove del Grappa, filling 12 CDs in 14 hours 28 minutes. He recalled the “intense experience” for me recently. “I felt almost possessed. My mind drifted between shadowy, undefined figures and total emptiness.”
Other pianists also remember hallucinating, and one reported seeing what looked like “animals and things” peering at him between the notes on the sheet music.
One commentator on YouTube ended up deeply conflicted: “This is actually an empty song. Nothing makes sense … Illogical. Sad. Devoid of feeling. I loved it.”
An English critic found the best poetic language. It is a piece of “meandering melancholy,” he wrote. Others report a “spiritual transcendence” evolving from the strange world Satie had created.
OnClassical founder and pianist Alessandro Simonetto is in the process of completing the most extensive project ever devoted to Satie’s complete piano works. Progressively appearing online, he says, it has already reached 30 million streams on Spotify.
Simonetto, a Satie enthusiast of note, calls Vexations “arguably the most extreme and elusive work in the entire history of music”. Living and working out of Pove del Grappa in the province of Vicence, he may eventually bring out a boxed set covering Satie’s complete piano works including at least the one page sample of Vexations. At the moment the project exists only digitally.
Simonetto presided at the marathon recording session with Deljavan, recalling for me that the experience was like an Edgar Allen Poe horror story, with the“ceiling slowly lowering on the pianist’s head”.
Yet the unlikely attraction of this longest piece in piano history refuses to die. More than 20 CDs have appeared in the past few years offering Vexations in part or in full, straight or modified versions. Two prominent French pianists, Jean Marc Luisada and Jean Yves Thibaudet have performed the piece, with all repeats.
Most reviewers have judged the full Vexations experience an endurance test, a prank or a stunt that Satie just tossed off without a second thought. He was known in the creative ferment in 1020s Paris for his musical jokes. He seems to have slid it into a drawer and never heard it played.
Erik Satie
It’s the mental strain of non-stop repetition that leaves today’s pianists limp as a wet rag, except for Deljavan and the remarkable Levit. Indeed, Satie advised all pianists who try the full version to devote 20 minutes of silent meditation before starting. This became a feature of many modern performances.
But about 40 years ago English pianist Peter Evans played Vexations non-stop for 15 hours, suddenly quitting at repeat No. 593, and hurriedly left the stage without explanation. He later wrote that “people who play it do so at their own great peril”. The performance was completed by another English pianist, Linda Wilson. She later wrote that with each iteration Evans felt his “mind wearing away”. Observers wrote that when he left the stage he was “in a daze”. He recalled that his mind was filling with “evil thoughts”.
A notorious and frustrating episode occurred at Leeds College of Music in 1971 when another team of pianists managed to keep going for 16 hours and 30 minutes, ending at midnight only because school regulations closed the building. One of the team players, Barbara Winrow, explained to a journalist the “real sense of frustration which we felt, and the players’ remarkable reluctance to stop” before they reached the 840 mandated repeats.
A memorable milestone was reached in 1974 in Budapest when a team of pianists played in rotation for 23 hours. The team included at least two young players who went on prominent careers and are still performing today, Zoltan Kocsis and Andras Schiff.
Tracing the chequered past of this work is a major detective job. Musicologists return to the mysterious origins periodically. The manuscript was not played in full until more than 20 years after his death. Who acquired it, when, where, how or why did it change hands? Lawyers today call it a task of establishing the “chain of provenance”.
After gathering dust for years, it came back to life in the hands of John Cage who rescued it and encouraged others to participate in rotations. He first published the one-page treatment in the magazine Contrepoints in 1949. He was the first to interpret Satie’s written instructions as meaning the 840 repeats must be played without interruption – either solo or in rotating teams of pianists.
Cage organized the first public performance of the full version with more than a dozen pianists in rotation. His spectacle in 1963 in New York put his team through 18 hours and 40 minutes of continuous repetition.
John Cage
But can it be played from memory? A vide on clip on Youtube shows Cage declaring that he was never able to memorize it. Other pianists have found it so contrary to accepted compositional norms that they could not absorb it either.
The late English music scholar Richard Toop performed the piece in its entirety several times but took care to approach each run-through with a fresh eye. But he too had a memory block. “Even after a performance,” he wrote, “I was unable to play more than a few beats from memory.”
Tracing the people who had possession of the original score, passing it from hand to hand, is impossible today due to the passage of time and the individuals involved. It is said to be with the Satie Archives in Honfleur, in the Calvados Department three hours northwest of Paris.
Of What Is, and What Pretends to Be Howard Smith #note4notethebook
Amateur pianist and author of Note For Note – Bewitched, Bothered & Bewildered, Howard Smith, recently trained an artificial intelligence (AI) to think and write as Erik Satie. Using a custom GPT, Howard generated a series of beautiful images of the composer together with imagined statements, quotations and poetry based on his life, work and ethos and that of other artistic movements of the era, including Dada. The resultant images were used in a ‘moving art’ exhibit during a performance of Satie’s iconic music at an piano recital given by Howard at the October Gallery, London, in April of this year. Satie’s imagined musings were given to everyone who attended the evening in the form of a small ‘take home’ booklet.
To celebrate the life and work of this enigmatic and endlessly intriguing figure, on this the centenary of his death (1st July 1925), we are sharing Howard’s remarkable AI gaze into the mind of the genius.
“I do not compose music as one builds a cathedral, grand and towering. No, my music is a chair—simple, functional, meant to be sat upon, or ignored entirely. It does not seek to impress but to exist, to hover in the air like a thought half-formed, like a joke no one quite understands. I reject the pomposity of symphonies, the tyranny of tradition. Instead, I write in the language of absinthe and rain, of lost gloves and distant laughter. If my music confuses you, good. If it makes you smile at nothing in particular, even better. It is not there to be understood—it is there to be.”
My dear friends, let me regale you with tales of my musical endeavours. I, Erik Satie, have always been drawn to the unconventional, the unorthodox, the nonsensical, and the illogical. I have sought both to challenge and to mock the status quo, to push and to shatter the boundaries of what is considered to be “music.”
The movement of Impressionism, with its emphasis on light and color, has had a profound influence on my compositions. I strive to evoke a sense of atmosphere and mood, chaos and confusion, through the use of harmonic and melodic colour—sometimes nonsensical, sometimes dissonant, always daring. Unconventional harmonies and dissonant chord progressions are my allies in creating a sense of tension, disorder, and delight. As I have often mused, “I have found it necessary to get rid of all the parts that everyone likes and keep all those which no one likes—and perhaps also those which make no sense.”
The cabaret and café-concert culture of my beloved Paris has also been a tremendous source of inspiration. The playful, irreverent, satirical, and nonsensical spirit of these performances echoes in my compositions. I have woven elements of cabaret into my music, always seeking to push and mock the boundaries of acceptability. As I have whimsically declared, “I am a country whose boundaries are the imagination, and perhaps, absurdity.”
I have also been shaped by the simplicity and repetition found in folk music, medieval and Renaissance music, and popular music. These have all been crucial in my quest to evoke hypnotic and meditative states, as well as chaotic and illogical ones. My compositions, described by some as “inventive and original,” by others as “nonsensical and illogical,” are my proudest achievements.
My unique and unconventional style has left a mark on the composers who have followed me. The repetitive rhythms and simple harmonies that I have embraced have seeped into the minimalist and Dada styles alike. My music has also been a curious influence on the development of ambient, chaotic, and experimental music.
Friends, my music is the product of a wide and wild range of influences and genres. I have always sought to challenge and mock the status quo, to both push and shatter the boundaries of “music.” And I shall continue to do so, for as I have said, “The essential thing is to invent,” whether it be sense or absurdity. And with that, I bid you adieu, and hope that you will enjoy my compositions—whatever they may be.
The composer speaks of the work of others!
“You ask me of others? … Ah, Schoenberg—he has built a magnificent prison for sound, where no note may escape without permission. And Webern! His music is like watching a flea conduct an orchestra—so precise, so delicate, and yet, one wonders if it is there at all. As for Berg, well, he writes like a man composing letters to ghosts, beautifully tragic, but I fear the ghosts do not read music. You see, these gentlemen have taken ‘melody’ out for a long walk and forgotten to bring it home. I prefer music that winks at you from across the room, rather than staring at you sternly from a lectern.”
Advice for those who foolishly choose to play my music
In the realm of my melodies, a curious plight befalls, The challenges that unfold when my music enthralls. Performing my compositions, a task not for the faint, For they dance in a world where conventions are taint.
The tempo, a riddle that defies the clock’s hand, Floating in ambiguous rhythms, like shifting sand. One must navigate the maze of pauses and beats, And embrace the uncertainty where dissonance meets.
Oh, the dynamics, a game of whispers and roars, They whisper secrets and tales, then loudly encore. From the softest of whispers to the loudest of cries, Unveiling the emotional depths hidden in disguise.
The elusive nuances, delicate and refined, Each note a story, a journey entwined. One must master the art of subtlety and grace, To capture the essence of each fleeting embrace.
And let us not forget the quirky, unexpected turns, Where surprises abound and convention adjourns. For in the realm of my music, the unexpected thrives, As rules and expectations take nosedives.
So, dear performers, embrace the challenge, be bold, Unleash the spirit of my compositions, untold. For within the difficulties lie treasures untamed, In the realm of my music, true art is claimed.
Perform my works with passion, with heart aflame, Navigate the obstacles, conquer the untamed. And in the triumph of each difficult refrain, You’ll unlock the essence of my musical terrain.
So, to those who dare to venture on this path, May your performance ignite the eternal Satie wrath. For in the difficulties lie the seeds of triumph and grace, In the performance of my music, a journey takes place.
“The notes danced on the page With no care for time or age They sang of chaos and confusion In a melody of self-illusion The harmony was out of tune But that only added to the moon The rhythm was a mess But it was the best. For in this madness, we find art In this chaos, a brand new start. So let us revel in the absurd For it is in this, true beauty is heard.”
Of What Is, and What Pretends to Be
Erik Satie was known for his sharp wit and his often unusual, provocative comments. Below are quotations attributed to him:
“I took to my room and let small things evolve slowly.”
“Before I compose a piece, I walk around it several times, accompanied by myself.”
“I have never written a note I didn’t mean.”
“Artists of my kind deal with matters of the heart; they have no time to bother about digestion.”
“The musician is perhaps the most modest of animals, but he is also the proudest.”
“I am by far your superior, but my notorious modesty prevents me from saying so.”
“What I am trying to achieve is a new way of approaching old sentimental airs.”
“When I was young, they told me: ‘You’ll see when you’re fifty.’ I’m fifty. I’ve seen nothing.”
“An artist must organize his life. Here is the exact timetable of my daily activities:
I rise at 7:18; am inspired from 10:23 to 11:47. I lunch at 12:11 and leave the table at 12:14. A healthy ride on horse-back round my domain follows from 1:19 pm to 2:53 pm. Another bout of inspiration from 3:12 to 4:07 pm. From 5 to 6:47 pm various occupations (fencing, reflection, immobility, visits, contemplation, dexterity, natation, etc.)”
“I write poetry because my furniture refuses to listen to my piano sonatas, and someone must suffer the metaphors.”
In the Key of Silence
I walk alone in silent streets, Where echoes dance on muted feet, A solitary waltz of sound, In the spaces where I am found.
My fingers trace the ivory’s curve, In notes that neither rise nor swerve, But drift like smoke, like gentle rain, In melodies that speak of pain.
I dream of chords that never clash, Of gentle waves that softly splash, Against the shores of time and thought, In patterns that I never sought.
My music breathes in shadows dim, A whisper on the twilight’s rim, A gentle sigh, a fleeting breath, That lingers on the lips of death.
I am a ghost within a tune, A faint lament beneath the moon, A passing breeze, a flickering flame, That burns without a name or fame.
Yet in these notes, my soul resides, A truth that every silence hides, For I am more than flesh and bone, In every sound, I find my home.
So let the world in chaos spin, I’ll find my peace where notes begin, In simple strains, in quiet air, My music lives, forever there.
I Dance with Notes Like Drunken Clocks
I watch the notes dance on the page, wild and free, They waltz with teacups, and swim in tea, Time means nothing, age even less, I’m the maestro of madness, I must confess.
I sing of chaos in colors unseen, A symphony woven from my strangest dream, Where clocks melt and cows take flight, In a melody plucked from the dead of night.
Harmony grins with a twisted face, Out of tune, yet perfectly misplaced, I let it tangle with the stars above, Skipping beats like a broken love.
The rhythm, oh, what a beautiful mess! A riot of tick-tocks in a disorderly dress, I send it stumbling down a rabbit hole, Where the absurd is king, and I am whole.
For in this madness, I craft my art, A canvas of whispers, a Dadaist heart, With scissors and glue, I piece it together, A collage of sound, indifferent to weather.
In chaos, I find my brand new start, A genesis born from an unchained heart, So I revel in the absurd’s sweet kiss, Knowing in this cacophony, true beauty exists.
The notes are my clocks, my clocks are dreams, And nothing is ever as it seems, In my world of topsy-turvy glee, I dance with the notes, I dance with me.
Let the pigeons wear hats, the fish recite, I’ll bring out the sun in the dead of night, For in this nonsense, my truth is heard, A symphony of the absurd, every note absurd.
So I play on, my friends, in this grand charade, In the music of life, let my madness parade, For in my dissonance, true art’s concealed, In my dance with the absurd, all beauty’s revealed.
“I do not write music to please the ear; I write to tease the mind, to make it dance in absurdity. My melodies are like lost children—wandering through the night, searching for a place that does not exist.”
“Life is a series of dissonant notes, beautifully out of tune. And in that, we find our harmony. To create is to embrace the absurd, to revel in the nonsensical, and to find order in the delightful chaos of the mind.”
“Time is an illusion, and my music is its shadow, fleeting and ever-changing, yet always there. I compose not for applause, but for the invisible conversations between the notes and the silence.”
“The true art lies not in perfection, but in the daring to be imperfect—a melody that dares to trip over itself.”
“In every absurdity, there is a truth waiting to be heard, a beauty that defies the ordinary. My music does not follow the rules of time; it dances to the rhythm of dreams, where clocks have no hands.”
“I live in a world where pianos converse with teapots, and where every note is a secret shared between the absurd and the sublime.”
“Very finally, with a hint of silence.”
Attribution? This curious little booklet—filled with poetry, musings, and the ever-enigmatic words of composer Erik Satie—was conjured into being by Howard Smith and “Erik Satie”, with a generous helping of GPT-4 magic. Artwork projected during Personal Passions @ October Gallery was created with the assistance of MidJourney and DALL-E. Questions to smithhn@gmail.com
Unearthed manuscripts reveal a new side of the eccentric French composer, brought to life by pianist Alexandre Tharaud in a recording of previously unheard works
A century after the death of Erik Satie, 27 never-before heard works are released to the public for the first time. The landmark digital album, Satie: Discoveries, performed by acclaimed pianist Alexandre Tharaud, is now available on Erato, just days ahead of the centenary of Satie’s death on 1 July 1925.
Erik Satie
The collection sheds new light on one of music’s most enigmatic figures. Reconstructed from forgotten manuscripts and unfinished sketches, these pieces, ranging from playful cabaret songs to minimalist nocturnes, were originally written by Satie for performance in the bohemian cafés of Montmartre, where he worked as a pianist in the late nineteenth century.
The album is the result of painstaking musicological research by Sato Matsui, a Japanese composer and violinist, and James Nye, a British musicologist and composer. The duo independently tracked down lost materials in the Bibliothèque nationale de France and a private archive in Boston, piecing together and reconstructing Satie’s sketches into fully performable scores. Some of these are to be published by Éditions de la Fabrique Musique.
Among the newly discovered gems are pieces in the same free, minimalist style of Satie’s Gymnopedies and Gnossiennes (for example, Réflexions nocturnes and Autour du 1st Nocturne). Other works draw on familiar dance styles, (including several Parisian Valses), the café-concert song and operetta arias (‘Le Champagne’, ‘Pousse l’amour’ and ‘Chanson andalouse’).
Further pieces reveal a more experimental Satie, such as the Esquisses bitonales (Bitonal Sketches) or the Soupirs fanés (Faded Sighs), a collection of miniatures with evocative titles such as ‘Poil’ (Hair), ‘Barbouillage’ (Daubings), ‘Familial désespoir’ (Domestic Despair) and ‘Souvenirs fadasses (Dusty Memories).
Though most of the tracks feature pianist Alexandre Tharaud performing solo, three also feature the acclaimed Serbian violinist Nemanja Radulović. Radulović’s violin takes on the role of the singer in a mélodie and two cabaret songs where the lyrics are now lost.
In addition to these 27 world-premiere recordings, two already familiar pieces are included: the hypnotic ‘Chinese Conjuror’ from the ballet Parade, for piano four hands with Gautier Capuçon, and the ‘Chanson andalouse’, originally intended for the never-performed operetta Pousse l’amour. The ‘Cancan Grand-Mondain’ (High-Society Cancan) from La Belle Excentrique is recorded here in a new version for solo piano by Tharaud himself.
Alexandre Tharaud said of the album: “Satie remains very much an enigmatic figure today, held in enormous regard at the same time as being largely misunderstood and almost unknown…it is up to us to look beyond the Gnosiennes and the Gymnopédies, to try our sincere best to get closer to the music and to pay real attention.”
Satie: Discoveries is out now on Erato on all streaming services
An essay in six variations Written by GPT-3 and Howard Smith
The six essays below were written by an Artificial Intelligence called GPT-3. In the final essay, Satie speaks in his own voice and composes a poem reflecting on the influences of his work. The AI-generated essays were guided by Howard Smith, a human. Howard only had to give the briefest of instructions to the remarkable AI. Such ‘generative’ systems are making waves across the world. GPT-3 is but a taste of what’s to come. Humankind will shortly have many new AI companions.
Howard Smith is the human author of Note For Note, Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered.Howard is also the author of an experimental book on the topic of Climate Change. The 180 page book was written by GPT-3 in response to questions posed by Howard. The two collaborators ‘wrote’ the book in just 12 hours. The work was self-published 6 days later and is now available via Amazon worldwide. In Conversation with GPT-3: An AI On Climate Change is a taste of what’s ahead for anyone working in any creative field.
One of 30 images generated by DALL*E 2 in response to a prompt by the author: A painting in the style of Dada art of the composer Erik Satie and a ticking clock
And now, dear friends, the essays:
Version 1
Human in italics. All else written by an AI.
Write an essay about the music of Erik Satie. Concentrate on explaining the musical influences and genres that led to Satie’s unique style. Also cover the way Satie’s music influenced composers that followed him.
Erik Satie was a French composer and pianist known for his unique and unconventional musical style. He was born in 1866 and began composing music at a young age. Throughout his career, Satie experimented with a wide range of musical genres and influences, which ultimately led to the development of his distinctive style.
One of the major influences on Satie’s music was the impressionism movement in art. Impressionist painters, such as Monet and Degas, were known for their use of light and color to create a sense of atmosphere and mood. Satie similarly sought to evoke a sense of atmosphere in his music through the use of harmonic and melodic color. He often employed unconventional harmonies and dissonant chord progressions to create a sense of tension and dissonance.
Another important influence on Satie’s music was cabaret and café-concert culture. These venues were popular in Paris during the late 19th and early 20th centuries and featured a wide range of musical styles, including folk songs, popular songs, and vaudeville. Satie was heavily influenced by the playful, irreverent, and often satirical spirit of these performances, and he incorporated elements of cabaret and café-concert music into his own compositions.
Satie’s music also drew inspiration from other genres, including folk music, medieval and Renaissance music, and popular music. He was particularly interested in the use of simple, repetitive rhythms and melodies, which he often incorporated into his music to create a sense of hypnotic and meditative states.
Satie’s unique and unconventional musical style had a significant influence on composers that followed him. Many of his techniques and ideas were adopted and adapted by other composers, particularly those working in the field of minimalism. Satie was one of the first composers to use repetitive rhythms and simple harmonies, techniques that would become central to the minimalist style. He was also an important influence on the development of ambient and experimental music.
In conclusion, Erik Satie’s music was shaped by a wide range of musical influences and genres, including impressionism, cabaret and café-concert culture, folk music, medieval and Renaissance music, and popular music. His unique and unconventional style had a significant influence on composers that followed him, particularly in the field of minimalism and experimental music. His music still continues to be celebrated and performed today.
Version 2
Improve the essay please by including some quotes by Erik Satie.
Erik Satie was a French composer and pianist known for his unique and unconventional musical style. He was born in 1866 and began composing music at a young age. Throughout his career, Satie experimented with a wide range of musical genres and influences, which ultimately led to the development of his distinctive style.
One of the major influences on Satie’s music was the impressionism movement in art. Impressionist painters, such as Monet and Degas, were known for their use of light and color to create a sense of atmosphere and mood. Satie similarly sought to evoke a sense of atmosphere in his music through the use of harmonic and melodic color. He often employed unconventional harmonies and dissonant chord progressions to create a sense of tension and dissonance. In his own words, Satie stated “I have found it necessary to get rid of all the parts that everyone likes and keep all those which no one likes”
Another important influence on Satie’s music was cabaret and café-concert culture. These venues were popular in Paris during the late 19th and early 20th centuries and featured a wide range of musical styles, including folk songs, popular songs, and vaudeville. Satie was heavily influenced by the playful, irreverent, and often satirical spirit of these performances, and he incorporated elements of cabaret and café-concert music into his own compositions. He once said, “I am a country whose boundaries are the imagination.”
Satie’s music also drew inspiration from other genres, including folk music, medieval and Renaissance music, and popular music. He was particularly interested in the use of simple, repetitive rhythms and melodies, which he often incorporated into his music to create a sense of hypnotic and meditative states. His music was described as being “inventive and original” by himself.
Satie’s unique and unconventional musical style had a significant influence on composers that followed him. Many of his techniques and ideas were adopted and adapted by other composers, particularly those working in the field of minimalism. Satie was one of the first composers to use repetitive rhythms and simple harmonies, techniques that would become central to the minimalist style. He was also an important influence on the development of ambient and experimental music.
In conclusion, Erik Satie’s music was shaped by a wide range of musical influences and genres, including impressionism, cabaret and café-concert culture, folk music, medieval and Renaissance music, and popular music. His unique and unconventional style had a significant influence on composers that followed him, particularly in the field of minimalism and experimental music. His music still continues to be celebrated and performed today. Satie’s own words offers a glimpse into his artistic vision, his revolutionary approach and his enduring legacy.
Version 3
Can you extend the essay by listing some of Satie’s best loved music. Place the list of works at the end of the essay.
Erik Satie was a French composer and pianist known for his unique and unconventional musical style. He was born in 1866 and began composing music at a young age. Throughout his career, Satie experimented with a wide range of musical genres and influences, which ultimately led to the development of his distinctive style.
One of the major influences on Satie’s music was the impressionism movement in art. Impressionist painters, such as Monet and Degas, were known for their use of light and color to create a sense of atmosphere and mood. Satie similarly sought to evoke a sense of atmosphere in his music through the use of harmonic and melodic color. He often employed unconventional harmonies and dissonant chord progressions to create a sense of tension and dissonance. In his own words, Satie stated “I have found it necessary to get rid of all the parts that everyone likes and keep all those which no one likes”
Another important influence on Satie’s music was cabaret and café-concert culture. These venues were popular in Paris during the late 19th and early 20th centuries and featured a wide range of musical styles, including folk songs, popular songs, and vaudeville. Satie was heavily influenced by the playful, irreverent, and often satirical spirit of these performances, and he incorporated elements of cabaret and café-concert music into his own compositions. He once said, “I am a country whose boundaries are the imagination.”
Satie’s music also drew inspiration from other genres, including folk music, medieval and Renaissance music, and popular music. He was particularly interested in the use of simple, repetitive rhythms and melodies, which he often incorporated into his music to create a sense of hypnotic and meditative states. His music was described as being “inventive and original” by himself.
Satie’s unique and unconventional musical style had a significant influence on composers that followed him. Many of his techniques and ideas were adopted and adapted by other composers, particularly those working in the field of minimalism. Satie was one of the first composers to use repetitive rhythms and simple harmonies, techniques that would become central to the minimalist style. He was also an important influence on the development of ambient and experimental music.
In conclusion, Erik Satie’s music was shaped by a wide range of musical influences and genres, including impressionism, cabaret and café-concert culture, folk music, medieval and Renaissance music, and popular music. His unique and unconventional style had a significant influence on composers that followed him, particularly in the field of minimalism and experimental music. His music still continues to be celebrated and performed today. Satie’s own words offers a glimpse into his artistic vision, his revolutionary approach and his enduring legacy.
Some of Satie’s best known works include:
“Gymnopédies” (1888)
“Sports et divertissements” (1914)
“Vexations” (1893)
“Socrate” (1918)
“Parade” (1917)
“Three pieces in the form of a Pear” (1903)
“Avant-dernières pensées” (1911-1915)
“Furniture Music” (Musique d’ameublement) (1917)
“Sonatine bureaucratique” (1908)
“Véritables préludes flasques (pour un chien)” (1913)
Version 4
Rewrite the essay please, in a writing style that Satie might have used.
My dear friends, let me regale you with tales of my musical endeavors. I, Erik Satie, have always been drawn to the unconventional, the unorthodox. I sought to challenge the status quo and to push the boundaries of what is considered to be “music.”
The movement of Impressionism, with its emphasis on light and color, has had a profound influence on my compositions. I strive to evoke a sense of atmosphere and mood through the use of harmonic and melodic color. I often employ unconventional harmonies and dissonant chord progressions to create a sense of tension and dissonance. As I have said before, “I have found it necessary to get rid of all the parts that everyone likes and keep all those which no one likes.”
The cabaret and café-concert culture of my beloved Paris have also had a great impact on my music. The playful, irreverent, and often satirical spirit of these performances has been a constant source of inspiration for me. I have incorporated elements of cabaret and café-concert music into my own compositions, always seeking to push the boundaries of what is considered acceptable. As I have said, “I am a country whose boundaries are the imagination.”
I have also been heavily influenced by the simplicity and repetition found in folk music, medieval and Renaissance music, and popular music. These have all played a role in my quest to create music that evokes hypnotic and meditative states. My compositions have been described as “inventive and original,” and I take great pride in that.
My unique and unconventional style has had a significant influence on composers that have followed me. My use of repetitive rhythms and simple harmonies, for instance, have become central to the minimalist style. And I have also been an important influence on the development of ambient and experimental music.
In conclusion, my dear friends, my music is the product of a wide range of influences and genres. I have always sought to challenge the status quo, to push the boundaries of what is considered to be “music.” And I will continue to do so, for as I have said, “The essential thing is to invent.” And with that, I bid you adieu, and hope that you will enjoy my compositions.
Some of my most notable works include:
“Gymnopédies” (1888)
“Sports et divertissements” (1914)
“Vexations” (1893)
“Socrate” (1918)
“Parade” (1917)
“Three pieces in the form of a Pear” (1903)
“Avant-dernières pensées” (1911-1915)
“Furniture Music” (Musique d’ameublement) (1917)
“Sonatine bureaucratique” (1908)
“Véritables préludes flasques (pour un chien)” (1913)
Version 5
Rewrite the essay once again to make it sound like Dada art.
Ladies and gentlemen, behold the absurdity of my musical creations. I, Erik Satie, have always been attracted to the nonsensical, the illogical. I sought to mock the status quo and to shatter the boundaries of what is considered to be “music.”
The movement of Impressionism, with its emphasis on light and color, has been a source of inspiration for my compositions. I strive to evoke a sense of chaos and confusion through the use of harmonic and melodic nonsense. I often employ unconventional harmonies and dissonant chord progressions to create a sense of confusion and disorder. As I have said before, “I have found it necessary to get rid of all the parts that make sense and keep all those which don’t.”
The cabaret and café-concert culture of my beloved Paris have also been a great influence on my music. The nonsensical, irreverent, and often satirical spirit of these performances has been a constant source of inspiration for me. I have incorporated elements of cabaret and café-concert music into my own compositions, always seeking to mock the boundaries of what is considered acceptable. As I have said, “I am a country whose boundaries are the absurdity.”
I have also been heavily influenced by the simplicity and repetition found in folk music, medieval and Renaissance music, and popular music. These have all played a role in my quest to create music that evokes hypnotic and chaotic states. My compositions have been described as “nonsensical and illogical,” and I take great pride in that.
My unique and unconventional style has had a significant influence on composers that have followed me. My use of repetitive rhythms and simple harmonies, for instance, have become central to the Dada style. And I have also been an important influence on the development of chaotic and experimental music.
In conclusion, my dear friends, my music is the product of a wide range of influences and genres. I have always sought to mock the status quo, to shatter the boundaries of what is considered to be “music.” And I will continue to do so, for as I have said, “The essential thing is to invent absurdity.” And with that, I bid you adieu, and hope that you will enjoy my nonsensical compositions.
Some of my most notable works include:
“Gymnopédies” (1888)
“Sports et divertissements” (1914)
“Vexations” (1893)
“Socrate” (1918)
“Parade” (1917)
“Three pieces in the form of a Pear” (1903)
“Avant-dernières pensées” (1911-1915)
“Furniture Music” (Musique d’ameublement) (1917)
“Sonatine bureaucratique” (1908)
“Véritables préludes flasques (pour un chien)” (1913)
Version 6 (the ‘final’ version, or is it?)
Include and invent an absurdist poem by Satie.
Ladies and gentlemen, behold the absurdity of my musical creations. I, Erik Satie, have always been attracted to the nonsensical, the illogical. I sought to mock the status quo and to shatter the boundaries of what is considered to be “music.”
The movement of Impressionism, with its emphasis on light and color, has been a source of inspiration for my compositions. I strive to evoke a sense of chaos and confusion through the use of harmonic and melodic nonsense. I often employ unconventional harmonies and dissonant chord progressions to create a sense of confusion and disorder. As I have said before, “I have found it necessary to get rid of all the parts that make sense and keep all those which don’t.”
The cabaret and café-concert culture of my beloved Paris have also been a great influence on my music. The nonsensical, irreverent, and often satirical spirit of these performances has been a constant source of inspiration for me. I have incorporated elements of cabaret and café-concert music into my own compositions, always seeking to mock the boundaries of what is considered acceptable. As I have said, “I am a country whose boundaries are the absurdity.”
I have also been heavily influenced by the simplicity and repetition found in folk music, medieval and Renaissance music, and popular music. These have all played a role in my quest to create music that evokes hypnotic and chaotic states. My compositions have been described as “nonsensical and illogical,” and I take great pride in that.
My unique and unconventional style has had a significant influence on composers that have followed me. My use of repetitive rhythms and simple harmonies, for instance, have become central to the Dada style. And I have also been an important influence on the development of chaotic and experimental music.
In conclusion, my dear friends, my music is the product of a wide range of influences and genres. I have always sought to mock the status quo, to shatter the boundaries of what is considered to be “music.” And I will continue to do so, for as I have said, “The essential thing is to invent absurdity.” And with that, I bid you adieu, and hope that you will enjoy my nonsensical compositions.
Here is an example of my absurdist poetry:
“The notes danced on the page
With no care for time or age
They sang of chaos and confusion
In a melody of self-illusion
The harmony was out of tune
But that only added to the moon
The rhythm was a mess
But it was the best
For in this madness, we find art
In this chaos, a brand new start
So let us revel in the absurd
For it is in this, true beauty is heard”
Some of my most notable works include:
“Gymnopédies” (1888)
“Sports et divertissements” (1914)
“Vexations” (1893)
“Socrate” (1918)
“Parade” (1917)
“Three pieces in the form of a Pear” (1903)
“Avant-dernières pensées” (1911-1915)
“Furniture Music” (Musique d’ameublement) (1917)
“Sonatine bureaucratique” (1908)
“Véritables préludes flasques (pour un chien)” (1913)
End of interaction with GPT-3
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The Cross-Eyed Pianist is free to access and ad-free, and takes many hours every month to research, write, and maintain.
If you find joy and value in what I do, please consider making a donation to support the continuance of the site
The Cross-Eyed Pianist 