Éric Alfred Leslie Satie (eʁik sati) (17 May 1866 – Paris, 1 July 1925; signed his name
Erik Satie after 1884) was a French composer and pianist. Satie was a colourful figure in the early 20th century Parisian
avant-gardeAvant-garde means "advance guard" or "vanguard". The adjective form is used in English to refer to people or works that are experimental or innovative, particularly with respect to art, culture, and politics....
. His work was a precursor to later artistic movements such as
minimalismMinimalism describes movements in various forms of art and design, especially visual art and music, where the work is set out to expose the essence, essentials or identity of a subject through eliminating all non-essential forms, features or concepts...
,
repetitive musicRepetitive music is music that features a relatively high degree of repetition in its creation or reception. Examples includes minimalist music, krautrock, disco , some techno, some of Igor Stravinsky's compositions, barococo, and the Suzuki method...
, and the
Theatre of the AbsurdThe Theatre of the Absurd is a designation for particular plays of absurdist fiction, written by a number of primarily European playwrights in the late 1940s, 1950s, and 1960s, as well as to the style of theatre which has evolved from their work...
.
An eccentric, Satie was introduced as a "gymnopedist" in 1887, shortly before writing his most famous compositions, the
. Later, he also referred to himself as a "phonometrician" (meaning "someone who measures sounds") preferring this designation to that of a "musician", after having been called "a clumsy but subtle technician" in a book on contemporary French composers published in 1911.
In addition to his body of music, Satie also left a remarkable set of writings, having contributed work for a range of publications, from the
dadaDada or Dadaism is a cultural movement that began in Zurich, Switzerland, during World War I and peaked from 1916 to 1922. The movement primarily involved visual arts, literature—poetry, art manifestoes, art theory—theatre, and graphic design, and concentrated its anti-war politics through a...
ist
391391 was a periodical created and edited by the Dadaist Francis Picabia. It first appeared in January 1917 in Barcelona, and continued to be published until 1924...
to the American top culture chronicle
Vanity FairVanity Fair was an American society magazine published from 1913-1936. It was highly successful until the Great Depression led to it becoming unprofitable, and it was merged into Vogue magazine in 1936.-History:...
. Although in later life he prided himself on always publishing his work under his own name, in the late nineteenth century he appears to have used pseudonyms such as
and
in some of his published writings.
Early life and training
Satie was the son of Alfred Satie, and his wife Jane Leslie (née Anton) who was born in London to Scottish parents. Erik was born at
HonfleurHonfleur is a commune in the Calvados department in northwestern France. It is located on the southern bank of the estuary of the Seine across from le Havre and very close to the exit of the Pont de Normandie...
in Normandy; his home there is open to the public. When Satie was four years old, his family moved to Paris, his father having been offered a translator's job in the capital. After his mother's death in 1872, he was sent, together with his younger brother Conrad, back to Honfleur, to live with his paternal grandparents. There he received his first music lessons from a local
organistAn organist is a musician who plays any type of organ. An organist may play solo organ works, play with an ensemble or orchestra, or accompany one or more singers or instrumental soloists...
. When his grandmother died in 1878, the two brothers were reunited with their father in Paris, who remarried (a piano teacher) shortly afterwards. From the early 1880s onwards, Satie started publishing salon compositions by his step-mother and himself, among others.
In 1879 Satie entered the
Paris ConservatoireThe Conservatoire de Paris is a college of music and dance founded in 1795, now situated in the avenue Jean Jaurès in the 19th arrondissement of Paris, France...
, where he was soon labelled untalented by his teachers. Georges Mathias, his professor of piano at the Conservatoire, described his pupil's piano technique in flatly negative terms, "insignificant and laborious" and "worthless".
Émile DescombesÉmile Descombes was a French pianist and teacher.Little is known about his life, except that he is variously described as an "associate", "disciple" and possibly even one of the last pupils, of Frédéric Chopin....
called him "the laziest student in the Conservatoire". Years later Satie related that Mathias, with great insistence, told him that his real talent lay in composing. After being sent home for two and a half years, he was readmitted to the Conservatoire at the end of 1885, but was unable to make a much more favourable impression on his teachers than he had before, and, as a result, resolved to take up
military serviceMilitary service, in its simplest sense, is service by an individual or group in an army or other militia, whether as a chosen job or as a result of an involuntary draft . Some nations require a specific amount of military service from every citizen...
a year later. However, Satie's military career did not last very long; within a few months he was discharged after deliberately infecting himself with bronchitis.
Montmartre
In 1887 Satie left home to take lodgings in
MontmartreMontmartre is a hill which is 130 metres high, giving its name to the surrounding district, in the north of Paris in the 18th arrondissement, a part of the Right Bank. Montmartre is primarily known for the white-domed Basilica of the Sacré Cœur on its summit and as a nightclub district...
. By this time he had started what was to be an enduring friendship with the romantic poet Patrice Contamine, and had had his first compositions published by his father. He soon integrated with the artistic clientele of the
Le Chat NoirLe Chat Noir was a 19th-century cabaret, meaning entertainment house, in the bohemian Montmartre district of Paris...
Café-cabaret, and started publishing his
Gymnopédies. Publication of compositions in the same vein (
,
, etc.) followed. In the same period he befriended
Claude DebussyClaude-Achille Debussy was a French composer. Along with Maurice Ravel, he was one of the most prominent figures working within the field of impressionist music, though he himself intensely disliked the term when applied to his compositions...
. He moved to a smaller room, still in Montmartre , in 1890. By 1891 he was the official composer and chapel-master of the Rosicrucian Order "", led by , which led to compositions such as
,
, and the
.
By mid-1892 he had composed the first pieces in a compositional system of his own making (
), had provided incidental music to a chivalric esoteric play (two
), had had his first
hoaxA hoax is a deliberately fabricated falsehood made to masquerade as truth. It is distinguishable from errors in observation or judgment, or rumors, urban legends, pseudosciences or April Fools' Day events that are passed along in good faith by believers or as jokes.-Definition:The British...
published (announcing the
premiereA premiere is generally "a first performance". This can refer to plays, films, television programs, operas, symphonies, ballets and so on. Premieres for theatrical, musical and other cultural presentations can become extravagant affairs, attracting large numbers of socialites and much media...
of
, an anti-Wagnerian opera he probably never composed), and had broken with Péladan, starting that autumn with the
Uspud project, a "Christian Ballet", in collaboration with . While the comrades from both the and sympathised, a promotional brochure was produced for the project, which reads as a
pamphletA pamphlet is an unbound booklet . It may consist of a single sheet of paper that is printed on both sides and folded in half, in thirds, or in fourths , or it may consist of a few pages that are folded in half and saddle stapled at the crease to make a simple book...
for a new esoteric
sectA sect is a group with distinctive religious, political or philosophical beliefs. Although in past it was mostly used to refer to religious groups, it has since expanded and in modern culture can refer to any organization that breaks away from a larger one to follow a different set of rules and...
.
In 1893 he met the young
Maurice RavelJoseph-Maurice Ravel was a French composer known especially for his melodies, orchestral and instrumental textures and effects...
for the first time, Satie's style emerging in the first compositions of the youngster. One of Satie's own compositions of that period, the
VexationsVexations is a noted musical work by Erik Satie. Apparently conceived for keyboard , it consists of a short theme in the bass whose four presentations are alternatively heard unaccompanied and played with chords above...
, was to remain undisclosed until after his death. By the end of the year he had founded the (the Metropolitan Church of Art of the Leading Christ). As its only member, in the role of "Parcier et Maître de Chapelle" he started to compose a
(later to become known as the
), and wrote a flood of letters, articles and pamphlets showing off his self-assuredness in religious and artistic matters. To give an example: he applied for membership of the
Académie FrançaiseL'Académie française , also called the French Academy, is the pre-eminent French learned body on matters pertaining to the French language. The Académie was officially established in 1635 by Cardinal Richelieu, the chief minister to King Louis XIII. Suppressed in 1793 during the French Revolution,...
twice, leaving no doubt in the application letter that the board of that organisation (presided by
Camille Saint-SaënsCharles-Camille Saint-Saëns was a French Late-Romantic composer, organist, conductor, and pianist. He is known especially for The Carnival of the Animals, Danse macabre, Samson and Delilah, Piano Concerto No. 2, Cello Concerto No. 1, Havanaise, Introduction and Rondo Capriccioso, and his Symphony...
) as much as owed him such membership. Such proceedings without doubt rather helped to wreck his popularity in the cultural
establishmentThe Establishment is a term used to refer to a visible dominant group or elite that holds power or authority in a nation. The term suggests a closed social group which selects its own members...
. In 1895 he inherited some money, allowing him to have more of his writings printed, and to change from wearing a priest-like habit to being the "Velvet Gentleman".
Move to Arcueil
By mid-1896 all of Satie's financial means had vanished, and he had to move to cheaper and much smaller lodgings, first at the , and two years later, after he'd composed the two first sets of
in 1897, to
ArcueilArcueil is a commune in the Val-de-Marne department in the southern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the center of Paris.-Name:The name Arcueil was recorded for the first time in 1119 as Arcoloï, and later in the 12th century as Arcoïalum, meaning "place of the arches" , in...
, a suburb some five kilometres from the centre of Paris. During this period he re-established contact with his brother Conrad for numerous practical and financial matters, disclosing some of his inner feelings in the process. The letters to Conrad made it clear that he had set aside any religious ideas.
From 1899 on Satie started making money as a cabaret pianist, adapting over a hundred compositions of popular music for piano or piano and voice, adding some of his own. The most popular of these were
, text by Henry Pacory;
, text by Vincent Hyspa;
, a waltz;
", text by Dominique Bonnaud/Numa Blès;
, a march;
, text by Contamine de Latour lost, but the music later reappears in
; and many more, many of which have been lost. In his later years Satie would reject all his cabaret music as vile and against his nature, but for the time being, it was an income.
Only a few compositions that Satie took seriously remain from this period:
Jack-in-the-box, music to a
pantomimePantomime — not to be confused with a mime artist, a theatrical performer of mime—is a musical-comedy theatrical production traditionally found in the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, Jamaica, South Africa, India, Ireland, Gibraltar and Malta, and is mostly performed during the...
by Jules Dépaquit (called a "" by Satie),
, a short comic opera on a serious theme, text by Lord Cheminot,
The Dreamy Fish, piano music to accompany a lost tale by Lord Cheminot, and a few others that were mostly incomplete, hardly any of them staged, and none of them published at the time.
Both
and
The Dreamy Fish have been analysed by Ornella Volta as containing elements of competition with
Claude DebussyClaude-Achille Debussy was a French composer. Along with Maurice Ravel, he was one of the most prominent figures working within the field of impressionist music, though he himself intensely disliked the term when applied to his compositions...
, of which Debussy was probably not aware, Satie not making this music public. Meanwhile, Debussy was having one of his first major successes with
in 1902, leading a few years later to ‘who-was-precursor-to-whom’ debates between the two composers, in which
Maurice RavelJoseph-Maurice Ravel was a French composer known especially for his melodies, orchestral and instrumental textures and effects...
would also get involved.
In October 1905 Satie enrolled in
Vincent d'IndyVincent d'Indy was a French composer and teacher.-Life:Paul Marie Théodore Vincent d'Indy was born in Paris into an aristocratic family of royalist and Catholic persuasion. He had piano lessons from an early age from his paternal grandmother, who passed him on to Antoine François Marmontel and...
's Schola Cantorum de Paris to study classical
counterpointIn music, counterpoint is the relationship between two or more voices that are independent in contour and rhythm and are harmonically interdependent . It has been most commonly identified in classical music, developing strongly during the Renaissance and in much of the common practice period,...
while still continuing his cabaret work. Most of his friends were as dumbfounded as the professors at the Schola when they heard about his new plan to return to the classrooms, especially as d'Indy was an admiring pupil of
Saint-SaënsCharles-Camille Saint-Saëns was a French Late-Romantic composer, organist, conductor, and pianist. He is known especially for The Carnival of the Animals, Danse macabre, Samson and Delilah, Piano Concerto No. 2, Cello Concerto No. 1, Havanaise, Introduction and Rondo Capriccioso, and his Symphony...
, not particularly favoured by Satie. Satie would follow these courses at the Schola, as a respected pupil, for more than five years, receiving a first (intermediate) diploma in 1908. Some of his classroom counterpoint-exercises, such as the
, were published after his death. Another summary, of the period prior to the Schola, also appeared in 1911: the
, which was a kind of compilation of the best of what he had written up to 1903.
Something that becomes clear through these published compilations is that Satie did not so much reject
RomanticismRomanticism was an artistic, literary and intellectual movement that originated in the second half of the 18th century in Europe, and gained strength in reaction to the Industrial Revolution...
and its exponents like
WagnerWilhelm Richard Wagner was a German composer, conductor, theatre director, philosopher, music theorist, poet, essayist and writer primarily known for his operas...
, but that he rejected certain aspects of it. From his first composition to his last, he rejected the idea of
musical developmentIn European classical music, musical development is a process by which a musical idea is communicated in the course of a composition. It refers to the transformation and restatement of initial material, and is often contrasted with musical variation, which is a slightly different means to the same...
, in the strict definition of this term: the intertwining of different themes in a development section of a
sonata formSonata form is a large-scale musical structure used widely since the middle of the 18th century . While it is typically used in the first movement of multi-movement pieces, it is sometimes used in subsequent movements as well—particularly the final movement...
. As a result, his contrapuntal and other works were very short; the "new, modern"
FugueIn music, a fugue is a compositional technique in two or more voices, built on a subject that is introduced at the beginning in imitation and recurs frequently in the course of the composition....
s do not extend further than the exposition of the theme(s). Generally, he would say that he did not think it permitted that a composer take more time from his public than strictly necessary. Also
MelodramaThe term melodrama refers to a dramatic work that exaggerates plot and characters in order to appeal to the emotions. It may also refer to the genre which includes such works, or to language, behavior, or events which resemble them...
, in its historical meaning of the then popular romantic genre of "spoken words to a background of music", was something Satie avoided. His 1913
could be seen as an absurdistic spoof of that genre.
In the meantime, other changes had also taken place: Satie had become a member of a radical socialist party, and had socialised with the Arcueil community: Amongst other things, he'd been involved in the "" work for children. He also changed his appearance to that of the 'bourgeois functionary' with bowler hat, umbrella, etc. He channelled his medieval interests into a peculiar secret
hobbyA hobby is a regular activity or interest that is undertaken for pleasure, typically done during one's leisure time.- Etymology :A hobby horse is a wooden or wickerwork toy made to be ridden just like a real horse...
: In a filing cabinet he maintained a collection of imaginary buildings, most of them described as being made out of some kind of metal, which he drew on little cards. Occasionally, extending the game, he would publish anonymous small announcements in local journals, offering some of these buildings, e.g. a "castle in lead", for sale or rent.
Height of success and influence
Starting in 1912, Satie's new humorous miniatures for piano became very successful, and he wrote and published many of these over the next few years (most of them premiered by the pianist
Ricardo ViñesRicardo Viñes was a Spanish pianist. He first publicly performed many important works by Maurice Ravel, Claude Debussy, Erik Satie, Manuel de Falla, Déodat de Séverac and Isaac Albéniz. He was also the piano teacher of composer Francis Poulenc and pianist Léo-Pol Morin.He was born in Lleida,...
). His habit of accompanying the scores of his compositions with all kinds of written remarks was now well established so that a few years later he had to insist that these not be read out during performances. He had mostly stopped using barlines by this time. In some ways these compositions were very reminiscent of Rossini's compositions from the final years of his life, grouped under the name
Péchés de vieillesseIn Gioachino Rossini's Péchés de vieillesse , the opera composer gathered together 150 vocal and solo piano pieces into fourteen unpublished albums, under his self-deprecating and ironic title. The grouping of pieces in albums do not reflect the sequence or the dates of their composition, which...
.
However the acceleration in Satie's life did not come so much from the success of his new piano pieces; it was Ravel who inadvertently triggered the characteristics of Satie's remaining years and thus influenced the successive progressive artistic and cultural movements that rapidly manifested themselves in Paris over the following years. Paris was seen as the artistic capital of the world, and the beginning of the new century appeared to have set many minds on fire. In 1910 the "", a group of young musicians around Ravel, proclaimed their preference for Satie's earlier work from before the Schola period, reinforcing the idea that Satie had been a precursor of Debussy.
At first Satie was pleased that at least some of his works were receiving public attention, but when he realised that this meant that his more recent work was overlooked or dismissed, he looked for other young artists who related better to his more recent ideas, so as to have better mutual support in creative activity. Thus young artists such as
Roland-ManuelAlexis Roland-Manuel was a French composer and critic, though he is remembered mainly for his work in the latter area.-Biography:...
, and later
Georges AuricGeorges Auric was a French composer, born in Lodève, Hérault. He was a child prodigy and at age 15 he had his first compositions published. He studied at the Paris Conservatoire with Georges Caussade, and under the composer Vincent d'Indy at the Schola Cantorum...
, and
Jean CocteauJean Maurice Eugène Clément Cocteau was a French poet, novelist, dramatist, designer, playwright, artist and filmmaker. His circle of associates, friends and lovers included Kenneth Anger, Pablo Picasso, Jean Hugo, Jean Marais, Henri Bernstein, Marlene Dietrich, Coco Chanel, Erik Satie, María...
, started to receive more of his attention than the "".
As a result of his contact with Roland-Manuel, Satie again began publicising his thoughts, with far more irony than he had done before (amongst other things, the
and
).
With Jean Cocteau, whom he had first met in 1915, Satie started work on incidental music for a production of
ShakespeareWilliam Shakespeare was an English poet and playwright, widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's national poet and the "Bard of Avon"...
's
A Midsummer Night's DreamA Midsummer Night's Dream is a play that was written by William Shakespeare. It is believed to have been written between 1590 and 1596. It portrays the events surrounding the marriage of the Duke of Athens, Theseus, and the Queen of the Amazons, Hippolyta...
(resulting in the
). From 1916, he and Cocteau worked on the ballet
ParadeParade is a ballet with music by Erik Satie and a one-act scenario by Jean Cocteau. The ballet was composed 1916-1917 for Serge Diaghilev's Ballets Russes...
, which was premiered in 1917 by
Sergei DiaghilevSergei Pavlovich Diaghilev , usually referred to outside of Russia as Serge, was a Russian art critic, patron, ballet impresario and founder of the Ballets Russes, from which many famous dancers and choreographers would arise.-Early life and career:...
's
Ballets russesThe Ballets Russes was an itinerant ballet company from Russia which performed between 1909 and 1929 in many countries. Directed by Sergei Diaghilev, it is regarded as the greatest ballet company of the 20th century. Many of its dancers originated from the Imperial Ballet of Saint Petersburg...
, with sets and costumes by
Pablo PicassoPablo Diego José Francisco de Paula Juan Nepomuceno María de los Remedios Cipriano de la Santísima Trinidad Ruiz y Picasso known as Pablo Ruiz Picasso was a Spanish expatriate painter, sculptor, printmaker, ceramicist, and stage designer, one of the greatest and most influential artists of the...
, and choreography by Léonide Massine. Through Picasso Satie also became acquainted with other
cubistsCubism was a 20th century avant-garde art movement, pioneered by Pablo Picasso and Georges Braque, that revolutionized European painting and sculpture, and inspired related movements in music, literature and architecture...
, such as
Georges BraqueGeorges Braque[p] was a major 20th century French painter and sculptor who, along with Pablo Picasso, developed the art style known as Cubism.-Early Life:...
, with whom he would work on other, aborted, projects.
With
Georges AuricGeorges Auric was a French composer, born in Lodève, Hérault. He was a child prodigy and at age 15 he had his first compositions published. He studied at the Paris Conservatoire with Georges Caussade, and under the composer Vincent d'Indy at the Schola Cantorum...
,
Louis Durey-Life:Louis Durey was born in Paris, the son of a local businessman. It was not until he was nineteen years old that he chose to pursue a musical career after hearing a performance of a Claude Debussy work. As a composer he was primarily self-taught. From the beginning, choral music was of great...
,
Arthur HoneggerArthur Honegger was a Swiss composer, who was born in France and lived a large part of his life in Paris. He was a member of Les six. His most frequently performed work is probably the orchestral work Pacific 231, which is interpreted as imitating the sound of a steam locomotive.-Biography:Born...
, and
Germaine TailleferreGermaine Tailleferre was a French composer and the only female member of the famous composers' group Les Six.-Biography:...
Satie formed the
Nouveaux jeunesLes six is a name, inspired by The Five, given in 1920 by critic Henri Collet in an article titled "" to a group of six composers working in Montparnasse whose music is often seen as a reaction against the musical style of Richard Wagner and impressionist music.-Members:Formally, the Groupe des...
, shortly after writing
Parade. Later the group was joined by
Francis PoulencFrancis Jean Marcel Poulenc was a French composer and a member of the French group Les six. He composed solo piano music, chamber music, oratorio, choral music, opera, ballet music, and orchestral music...
and
Darius MilhaudDarius Milhaud was a French composer and teacher. He was a member of Les Six—also known as The Group of Six—and one of the most prolific composers of the 20th century. His compositions are influenced by jazz and make use of polytonality...
. In September 1918, Satie – giving little or no explanation – withdrew from the . Jean Cocteau gathered the six remaining members, forming the
Groupe des sixLes six is a name, inspired by The Five, given in 1920 by critic Henri Collet in an article titled "" to a group of six composers working in Montparnasse whose music is often seen as a reaction against the musical style of Richard Wagner and impressionist music.-Members:Formally, the Groupe des...
(to which Satie would later have access, but later again would fall out with most of its members).
From 1919 Satie was in contact with
Tristan TzaraTristan Tzara was a Romanian and French avant-garde poet, essayist and performance artist. Also active as a journalist, playwright, literary and art critic, composer and film director, he was known best for being one of the founders and central figures of the anti-establishment Dada movement...
, the initiator of the
DadaDada or Dadaism is a cultural movement that began in Zurich, Switzerland, during World War I and peaked from 1916 to 1922. The movement primarily involved visual arts, literature—poetry, art manifestoes, art theory—theatre, and graphic design, and concentrated its anti-war politics through a...
movement. He became acquainted with other artists involved in the movement, such as
Francis PicabiaFrancis Picabia was a French painter, poet, and typographist, associated with both the Dada and Surrealist art movements.- Early life :...
(later to become a
SurrealistSurrealism is a cultural movement that began in the early 1920s, and is best known for the visual artworks and writings of the group members....
),
André DerainAndré Derain was a French artist, painter, sculptor and co-founder of Fauvism with Henri Matisse.-Early years:...
,
Marcel DuchampMarcel Duchamp was a French artist whose work is most often associated with the Dadaist and Surrealist movements. Considered by some to be one of the most important artists of the 20th century, Duchamp's output influenced the development of post-World War I Western art...
,
Jean HugoVictor Jean Hugo is a South African professional golfer.Hugo matriculated at Paul Roos Gymnasium in Stellenbosch, South Africa in 1994 and graduated three years later with a BA Degree from the University of Stellenbosch prior to becoming a professional golfer...
and
Man RayMan Ray , born Emmanuel Radnitzky, was an American artist who spent most of his career in Paris, France. Perhaps best described simply as a modernist, he was a significant contributor to both the Dada and Surrealist movements, although his ties to each were informal...
, among others. On the day of his first meeting with Man Ray, the two fabricated the artist's first readymade:
The GiftThe Gift is an early readymade by Man Ray , consisting of an iron with fourteen thumb tacks glued to its sole, made in 1921 in Paris....
(1921). Satie contributed writing to the Dadaist publication
391391 was a periodical created and edited by the Dadaist Francis Picabia. It first appeared in January 1917 in Barcelona, and continued to be published until 1924...
. In the first months of 1922 he was surprised to find himself entangled in the argument between Tzara and
André BretonAndré Breton was a French writer and poet. He is known best as the founder of Surrealism. His writings include the first Surrealist Manifesto of 1924, in which he defined surrealism as "pure psychic automatism"....
about the true nature of avant-garde art, epitomised by the failure of the Congrès de Paris. Satie originally sides with Tzara, but manages to maintain friendly relations with most players in both camps. Meanwhile, an "" had formed around Satie, with young musicians like
Henri SauguetHenri Sauguet , was a French composer. Born in Bordeaux as Henri-Pierre Poupard, he adopted his mother's maiden name as his pseudonym. His output includes operas, ballets, four symphonies , concertos, chamber and choral music and numerous songs, as well as film music...
,
Maxime JacobMaxime Jacob, or Dom Clement Jacob, was a French composer and organist....
,
Roger DésormièreRoger Désormière was a French conductor.Désormière was born in Vichy in 1898. He studied at the Paris Conservatoire, where his professors included Philippe Gaubert , Xavier Leroux and Charles Koechlin , and Vincent d'Indy...
and Henri Cliquet-Pleyel.
Finally he composed an "" ballet (
) in collaboration with Picabia, for the of
Rolf de MaréRolf de Maré , sometimes called Rolf de Mare, was a Swedish art collector and leader of the Ballets Suédois in Paris in 1920–1925. In 1933 he founded the world's first museum for dance in Paris.-Biography :...
. In a simultaneous project, Satie added music to the surrealist film
by
René ClairRené Clair born René-Lucien Chomette, was a French filmmaker.-Biography:He was born in Paris and grew up in the Les Halles quarter. He attended the Lycée Montaigne and the Lycée Louis-le-Grand. During World War I, he served as an ambulance driver. After the war, he started a career as a journalist...
, which was given as an intermezzo for
.
Personal life
Satie and
Suzanne ValadonSuzanne Valadon was a French painter born Marie-Clémentine Valadon at Bessines-sur-Gartempe, Haute-Vienne, France. In 1894, Valadon became the first woman painter admitted to the Société Nationale des Beaux-Arts...
, an artists' model and artist in her own right, and a long-time friend of Miguel Utrillo (and mother of
Maurice UtrilloMaurice Utrillo, , born Maurice Valadon, was a French painter who specialized in cityscapes. Born in the Montmartre quarter of Paris, France, Utrillo is one of the few famous painters of Montmartre who were born there....
), began an affair early in 1893. After their first night together, he proposed marriage. The two did not marry, but Valadon moved to a room next to Satie's at the . Satie became obsessed with her, calling her his
, and writing impassioned notes about "her whole being, lovely eyes, gentle hands, and tiny feet". During their relationship, Satie composed the
as a kind of prayer to restore peace of mind, and Valadon painted a portrait of Satie, which she gave to him. After six months she moved away, leaving Satie broken-hearted. Afterwards, he said that he was left with "nothing but an icy loneliness that fills the head with emptiness and the heart with sadness". It is believed this was the only intimate relationship Satie ever had.
Death
After years of heavy drinking, Satie died on 1 July 1925 from cirrhosis of the liver. He is buried in the cemetery in Arcueil. There is also tiny stone monument designating a grassy area in front of an apartment building- 'Parc Erik Satie'. Over the course of his 27 years in residence at
ArcueilArcueil is a commune in the Val-de-Marne department in the southern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the center of Paris.-Name:The name Arcueil was recorded for the first time in 1119 as Arcoloï, and later in the 12th century as Arcoïalum, meaning "place of the arches" , in...
, no one had ever visited his room. After his death, Satie's friends discovered compositions that were totally unknown or thought to have been lost. The orchestral score to Parade was thought, by Satie, to have been left on a bus years before. These were found behind the piano, in the pockets of his velvet suits, and in other odd places, and included the
VexationsVexations is a noted musical work by Erik Satie. Apparently conceived for keyboard , it consists of a short theme in the bass whose four presentations are alternatively heard unaccompanied and played with chords above...
;
Geneviève de Brabant and other unpublished or unfinished stage works;
The Dreamy Fish; many
Schola CantorumThe Schola Cantorum de Paris is a private music school in Paris. It was founded in 1894 by Charles Bordes, Alexandre Guilmant and Vincent d'Indy as a counterbalance to the Paris Conservatoire's emphasis on opera...
exercises; a previously unseen set of "canine" piano pieces; and several other works for piano, many untitled. Some of these would be published later as additional
,
,
, and
furniture musicFurniture music, or in French musique d’ameublement , is background music originally played by live performers...
.
Media
Piano works
Recordings of Satie's piano works have been released by Cristina Ariagno, Jean-Pierre Armengaud, Jean-Joël Barbier,
Aldo CiccoliniAldo Ciccolini , is an Italian-French pianist.-Biography:Aldo Ciccolini was born in Naples. His father, who bore the title of Marquis of Macerara, worked as a typographer. He took his first lessons with Maria Vigliarolo d'Ovidio, and entered Naples Conservatory in 1934 at the age of 9, by special...
,
Claude CoppensClaude Coppens is a Belgian pianist and composer.Coppens studied at the Royal Conservatory in Brussels with Marcel Maas and in Paris with Marguerite Long....
(live recording), Reinbert de Leeuw, Eve Egoyan,
Philippe EntremontPhilippe Entremont is a French pianist and conductor. He has made many recordings during his career, notably one in 1961 of Tchaikovsky's Piano Concerto No. 1, with Leonard Bernstein and the New York Philharmonic....
,
Frank GlazerFrank Glazer is an American pianist, composer, and professor of music.Glazer was born in Chester, Wisconsin on February 19, 1915, the sixth child of Benjamin and Clara Glazer, Jewish immigrants from Lithuania. The family moved to Milwaukee in 1919...
, Olof Höjer,
Michel LegrandMichel Jean Legrand is a French musical composer, arranger, conductor, and pianist...
,
Jacques LoussierJacques Loussier is a French pianist and composer. He is well-known for his jazz interpretations in trio formation of many of Johann Sebastian Bach's works, such as the Goldberg Variations.-Early life and education :...
,
Anne QueffélecAnne Queffélec is a French pianist, born in Paris.-Biography:She started playing piano at the age of five. In 1964, she enrolled in the Paris Conservatoire. She won the first prize for piano in 1965 and the first prize for chamber music in 1966. She continued her education with Paul Badura-Skoda...
, Bill Quist,
Pascal RogéPascal Rogé is a French pianist. His playing includes the works of compatriot composers Saint-Saëns, Fauré, Debussy, Ravel, Satie, and Poulenc, among others. However, his repertoire also covers the German masters Haydn, Mozart, Brahms, and Beethoven.- Biography :Rogé first appeared in public in...
, João Paulo Santos,
Yūji Takahashiis a Japanese composer, performer, pianist and author.Studied under Roh Ogura and Minao Shibata at the Toho Gakuen School of Music. In 1960, he made his debut as a pianist by performing Bo Nilsson's Quantitaten. He lived in Europe from 1963 to 1966 where he worked with Iannis Xenakis. He gave the...
,
Branka Parlić,
Jean-Yves Thibaudet-Early life:Jean-Yves Thibaudet was born in Lyon, France, to non-professional musical parents. His father played the violin, and his mother, of German origin and a somewhat accomplished pianist herself, introduced the instrument to Jean-Yves....
and Daniel Varsano, among others.
Orchestral and vocal
- A recording of historical importance is , re-issued by EMI
The EMI Group, also known as EMI Music or simply EMI, is a multinational music company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It is the fourth-largest business group and family of record labels in the recording industry and one of the "big four" record companies. EMI Group also has a major...
as a 2-CD set, containing among other pieces: Geneviève de BrabantGeneviève de Brabant is an opéra bouffe, or operetta, by Jacques Offenbach, first performed in Paris in 1859. The plot is based on the medieval legend of Genevieve of Brabant....
(in a version before Contamine's text had been recovered), Le piège de MéduseLe piège de Méduse is a short play of which Erik Satie wrote both the text and the incidental music.The text of the play was written as a "comédie lyrique" in one act, February-March 1913...
, Messe des pauvres, etc.
- Many other recordings exist: (Michel Plasson
Michel Plasson is a French conductor.Plasson was a student of Lazare Lévy at the Conservatoire de Paris. In 1962, he was a prize-winner at the International Besançon Competition for Young Conductors. He studied briefly in the United States, including time with Charles Münch...
/ ), Satie: Socrate [etc.] (Jean-Paul FouchécourtJean-Paul Fouchécourt is a French tenor, mostly as an opera singer. He was born on August 30, 1958, at Blanzy in the Burgundy region. He is best known for singing French Baroque music, especially the parts called in French haute-contre, written for a very high tenor voice with no falsetto...
/ Ensemble), and recordings of songs, e.g., by Anne-Sophie Schmidt.
Arrangements in popular music
- In 1968, Blood Sweat & Tears released their eponymous second album, which included an adaptation of Erik Satie's (arranged by Dick Halligan
Richard Halligan is an American musician and composer, best known as a founding member of the jazz-rock band Blood, Sweat & Tears....
) which they titled as Variations on a Theme by Erik Satie (First and Second Movements). The first movement is a straightforward elaboration of the basic theme using flutes, an acoustic guitar and a triangle. The second is a far more abstract variation using only brass instruments. In 1969, Halligan received a Grammy Award for Best Instrumental Performance for the piece.
- In 1974, the jazz flutist Hubert Laws
Hubert Laws is an American flutist and saxophonist with a 40+ year career in jazz, classical, and other music genres. Alongside Herbie Mann, Laws is probably the most recognized and respected jazz flutist...
recorded an arrangement by Bob JamesBob James is the name of:*Bob James , jazz keyboardist, arranger and producer of music*Bob James , former baseball player for the Expos, Tigers, and White Sox...
of the "" in his "In the Beginning" double album. The band featured keyboardist Bob JamesBob James is the name of:*Bob James , jazz keyboardist, arranger and producer of music*Bob James , former baseball player for the Expos, Tigers, and White Sox...
, guitarist Gene Bertoncini-Biography:Bertoncini was born in New York City, where he was raised in a musical family. His father played guitar and harmonica. Bertoncini began playing guitar at age seven and by age sixteen was appearing on television. He graduated from high school and attended the University of Notre Dame,...
, bassist Ron CarterRon Carter is an American jazz double-bassist. His appearances on over 2,500 albums make him one of the most-recorded bassists in jazz history, along with Milt Hinton, Ray Brown and Leroy Vinnegar. Carter is also an acclaimed cellist who has recorded numerous times on that...
, drummer Steve GaddSteve Gadd is an American session and studio drummer, notable for his work with popular musicians from a wide range of genres.-Biography:...
, three strings, and Hubert's brother Ronnie LawsRonald Wayne "Ronnie" Laws is an American jazz, blues and funk saxophonist. He is the younger brother of jazz flautist Hubert Laws.-Biography:...
on tenor sax.
- In 1979 the band "Sky" (Tristan Fry, Francis Monkman, Kevin Peek, Herbie Flowers, and John Williams) included a version of , which was arranged by John Williams, on the band's first album, which was entitled "Sky"
- In 1980, Gary Numan
Gary Numan is an English singer, composer, and musician, most widely known for his chart-topping 1979 hits "Are 'Friends' Electric?" and "Cars". His signature sound consisted of heavy synthesizer hooks fed through guitar effects pedals.Numan is considered a pioneer of commercial electronic music...
's 7-inch "We Are Glass"We Are Glass" is a Gary Numan single released in 1980. Its up-tempo beat, scratchy guitars and pitch-bending synthesizer effects made it a prime example of the synthpop of the time....
" featured " (First Movement)" on the B-side.
- In 1990, Movement 98's (Paul Oakenfold
Paul Mark Oakenfold is a British record producer and a trance DJ.-Early Career: 1979–84:Paul Oakenfold's career was set to be a chef, after having hopes of becoming part of a band. He describes his early life as a "bedroom deejay" in a podcasted interview with Vancouver's 24 Hours, stating he grew...
and Steve OsborneSteve Osborne is a multi-platinum selling British record producer. He has worked with a wide variety of musicians, such as New Order, Doves, U2 and KT Tunstall. During the 1990s, Osborne was half of the Perfecto Records team, a production and remix collaboration with Paul Oakenfold; the artists...
) single "Joy and Heartbreak" used the opening phrase of Trois Gymnopedies as the intro and instrumental.
- In 1994, Malcolm McLaren
Malcolm Robert Andrew McLaren was an English performer, impresario, self-publicist and manager of the Sex Pistols and the New York Dolls...
arranged Gnossinne 3&4 in his concept album Paris.
- In 1999, electronic music act Plaid
Plaid is a London-based British electronic music duo comprising Andy Turner and Ed Handley. They are former members of The Black Dog and used many other names, such as Atypic and Balil , before settling on Plaid...
's CD "Restproof Clockwork" included a track called "Tearisci" which is an uncredited version of Satie's "Pièces Froides, No. 2: Danses De Travers: III. Encore".
- In 2000, ex-Genesis
Genesis are an English rock band that formed in 1967. The band currently comprises the longest-tenured members Tony Banks , Mike Rutherford and Phil Collins . Past members Peter Gabriel , Steve Hackett and Anthony Phillips , also played major roles in the band in its early years...
guitarist Steve HackettStephen Richard Hackett is a British singer-songwriter and guitarist. He gained prominence as a member of the British progressive rock group Genesis, which he joined in 1970 and left in 1977 to pursue a solo career...
released the album, "Sketches of Satie", performing Satie's works on acoustic guitar, with contributions by his brother JohnJohn Hackett is a British flautist, the younger brother of guitarist Steve Hackett. Although his primary instrument is the flute, he also plays guitar, bass and keyboards...
on fluteThe flute is a musical instrument of the woodwind family. Unlike woodwind instruments with reeds, a flute is an aerophone or reedless wind instrument that produces its sound from the flow of air across an opening...
.
- The English electronic duo Isan
Isan are an English electronic music duo. The name was initially explained as Integrated Services Analogue Network - a play on ISDN, reflecting their preference for analogue synthesisers....
recorded versions of the three for a 2006 7-inch single, "" on the Morr MusicMorr Music is an independent record label based in Berlin, Germany, founded in 1999 by Thomas Morr. Most artists on the label fall into the categories of intelligent dance music, electronica and dreampop, but all reflect Thomas Morr's personal taste...
record label.
- The 2nd movement of his has been used in the original soundtrack of 2010 Japanese animated film
is the Japanese abbreviated pronunciation of "animation". The definition sometimes changes depending on the context. In English-speaking countries, the term most commonly refers to Japanese animated cartoons....
The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya by Kyoto Animation, abbreviated , is a Japanese animation studio located in Uji, Kyoto Prefecture, Japan. It was established in 1981, became a limited company in 1985 and then became a corporation in 1999. Presided by Hideaki Hatta, the company is affiliated with noted studio Sunrise and is also parent to the studio...
studio. The full Gymnopédies as long as Gnossiennes are included in the 2nd CD of this OST.
- Ogive Number 2 (incorrectly labelled Ogive Number 1) was re-recorded electronically by William Orbit
William Orbit is an English musician, composer and record producer, perhaps best known to most for his work on Madonna's album Ray of Light. He has also co-produced several unreleased Madonna songs originally recorded for other albums...
on his album Pieces in a Modern StylePieces in a Modern Style is the sixth album by electronic instrumentalist William Orbit. He is credited as arranger, programmer, producer, and performer of the album. Released in 2000 by WEA and Warner Music UK in Europe and Maverick Records in the United States, it was responsible for...
- In 2011, singer-songwriter Tori Amos
Tori Amos is an American pianist, singer-songwriter and composer. She was at the forefront of a number of female singer-songwriters in the early 1990s and was noteworthy early in her career as one of the few alternative rock performers to use a piano as her primary instrument...
released an album entitled Night of HuntersNight of Hunters is the 12th solo studio album by American singer-songwriter Tori Amos, released on September 20, 2011, in the United States, through Deutsche Grammophon Records...
, where her song "Battle of Trees" is a variation on Gnossienne no. 1.
See also
- Ambient music
Ambient music is a musical genre that focuses largely on the timbral characteristics of sounds, often organized or performed to evoke an "atmospheric", "visual" or "unobtrusive" quality.- History :...
- Dada
Dada or Dadaism is a cultural movement that began in Zurich, Switzerland, during World War I and peaked from 1916 to 1922. The movement primarily involved visual arts, literature—poetry, art manifestoes, art theory—theatre, and graphic design, and concentrated its anti-war politics through a...
- Impressionist music
Impressionism in music was a tendency in European classical music, mainly in France, which appeared in the late nineteenth century and continued into the middle of the twentieth century. Similarly to its precursor in the visual arts, musical impressionism focuses on a suggestion and an atmosphere...
- List of compositions by Erik Satie
- Surrealism
Surrealism is a cultural movement that began in the early 1920s, and is best known for the visual artworks and writings of the group members....
Writings by Satie
- A Mammal's Notebook: Collected Writings of Erik Satie (Serpent's Tail; Atlas Arkhive, No 5, 1997) ISBN 0-947757-92-9 (with introduction and notes by Ornella Volta, translations by Anthony Melville, contains several drawings by Satie)
- (Paris: Fayard/Imes, 2000; 1265pp) ISBN 2-213-60674-9 (an almost complete edition of Satie's letters, in French)
Books and Articles on Satie
- Allan, Kenneth R. “Metamorphosis in 391: A Cryptographic Collaboration by Francis Picabia, Man Ray, and Erik Satie.” Art History 34, No. 1 (February, 2011): 102-125.
- Davis, Mary E., Erik Satie. Reaktion Books – Critical Lives. June 2007. ISBN 9781861893215
- Gillmor, Alan M., Erik Satie (Twayne Pub., 1988, reissued 1992; 387pp) ISBN 0-393-30810-3
- Myers, Rollo H., Erik Satie. (Dover Publications, New York 1968.) ISBN 0-486-21903-8
- Orledge, Robert
Robert Orledge is a leading scholar of early twentieth century French music.He was born in Bath, Somerset on 5 January 1948 and educated at the City of Bath Boys' School and at Clare College, Cambridge where he gained a BA Music degree in 1968 and an MA in 1972...
, Satie Remembered (London: Faber and Faber, London, 1995)
- Orledge, Robert, Satie the Composer Cambridge University Press: 1990; 437pp – in the series Music in the Twentieth Century [ed.] Arnold Whittall) ISBN 0-521-35037-9
- Templier, Pierre-Daniel (translated by Elena L. French and David S. French), Erik Satie (The MIT Press, 1969, reissued 1971) ISBN 0-262-70005-0 and (New York: Da Capo Press, 1980 reissue) ISBN 0-306-76039-8. Note: Templier extensively consulted Conrad, Erik Satie's brother, when writing this first biography that appeared in 1932. The English translation was, however, criticised by John Cage
John Milton Cage Jr. was an American composer, music theorist, writer, philosopher and artist. A pioneer of indeterminacy in music, electroacoustic music, and non-standard use of musical instruments, Cage was one of the leading figures of the post-war avant-garde...
; in a letter to Ornella Volta (25 May 1983) he referred to the translation as disappointing compared to the formidable value of the original biography.
- Volta, Ornella and Simon Pleasance, Erik Satie (Hazan: The Pocket Archives Series, 1997; 200pp) ISBN 2-85025-565-3
- Volta, Ornella, transl. Michael Bullock, Satie Seen Through His Letters (Marion Boyars, 1989) ISBN 0-7145-2980-X
- Whiting, Steven, Satie the Bohemian: from Cabaret to Concert Hall (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1999; 596pp). A fully researched account of Satie's musical career in what then was regarded as popular music.
Other
Information and listening
Scores