Erik Satie

by Mary E. Davis

A musical composer who dabbled in the Dada movement, a Bohemian ‘gymnopédiste’ of fin-de-siècle Montmartre, and a legendary dresser known as ‘The Velvet Gentleman’ for his sartorial choices, Erik Satie was nearly unprecedented in technique, style and philosophy among European composers in the early twentieth century. Yet his legacy has largely languished in the shadows of Stravinsky, Debussy and Ravel. Mary E. Davis now brings Satie to life in this fascinating new biography that demonstrates that his musical innovations reached as far as his influence.Satie redefined the boundaries of the composer’s art, devising new methods of artistic expression that melded ordinary elements and rarefied genres of words, visual art and music. Davis argues that Satie’s modernist aesthetic was grounded in the contradictions apparent in his life – such as enrolling in the conservative Schola Cantorum after working as a cabaret performer – and is reflected in his irreverent essays, drawings and music.Erik Satie explores how the composer was embraced by both the avant-garde and Parisian elite, an experience that immersed him in the worlds of high fashion and cutting-edge modernist art, and subsequently gave him the aesthetic impetus to create the new musical style of Neoclassicism. Satie also crucially employed the power of the image through his infamous fashion statements, Davis contends, to establish his place in the art world, and in this connection between couture and culture, Satie was at the heart of a nascent celebrity culture.A fascinating and informative portrait, with numerous illustrations that include art by Satie himself, Erik Satie reassesses the accepted history of modernist music and restores the composer to his rightful pioneering status.

Genres: Music, Biography, Nonfiction, France, History, Art, Biography Memoir

186 pages, Kindle Edition

First published June 15, 2007

Reviews

[Kimley · Rating 4 out of 5]

And so my obsession begins...

[Marc Weidenbaum]

This is a brief, breezy survey of a figure in music whose apparent breeziness -- the ease with which his music insinuates itself into a listening environment -- is the subject of ongoing debate. Putting aside the indelible melodies of his ethereal Gymnopédies (an inherent contradiction that is the source of his genius), Satie is the proto-Dadaist, the forerunner to Fluxus, and the great godfather of ambient. And Erik Satie taught us the cure for love: just play his Vexations 840 times.

We don't learn much about his youth, but his adulthood in Paris is closely related, from his friendships to his living quarters to the way the various stages of his life are demarcated by changes in his wardrobe. Davis's work is valuable not just as an easy orientation to the storied figure, but also because of her focus on works that are less likely to pop up on classical radio stations.

[Tosh · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a very quick read and fascinating biography and study on Erik Satie and his work as well as his social group: Cocteau, Picasso, Picabia, etc. Satie, where now one can hear in every groovy cafe around the world, was considered the edge in Avant-Garde music. A man of incredible eccentric methods, was tailor made for the DADA period. In fact he's was the fresh wind coming into the 20th Century from the old and stale 19th Century. And any man who invented the concept of background music is a friend of mine!

But this is really an outstanding book about a very interesting man - and who was also a fantastic composer.

[Jesús Carlos · Rating 3 out of 5]

El libro me sirvió para conocer la vida de este gran pianista y lo logró. Fue admirable su vida, su creatividad y extravagancia , fue un innovador musical y al parecer un escritor muy satírico y burlón

Me hubiera gustado que hubiera expuesto más textos suyos, pero se concentró en la parte musical que seguramente fue muy interesante pero que me costó trabajo seguir

Si lo que desean es un libro que te muestre quien fue Satie, este es el indicado

[Chris Nagel · Rating 4 out of 5]

The butler did it.

Like not enough biographies of musicians, this one involves Satie's life and music both. Without getting very technical about the music (which in Satie's case isn't very technical anyway), Mary E. Davis explains how Satie composed, how he used source material like cabaret or pop songs, and to a certain extent what his artistic goals were. She also discusses his life as an artist among the beaux-arts, décadents, avant-garde, and Dada that he played with.

The bio never gets deeply into any particulars of any of this, which is rather like Satie, ain't it?

[Lina · Rating 2 out of 5]

The language is too hard to read. Not an easy reading.

[Michael Denvir · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fascinating life

I thoroughly enjoyed reading about this magical composer. Inspiring and sometimes sad. A real human being ahead of his time.

[Eman Aboulsaad · Rating 4 out of 5]

Despite not being an expert on Satie, the book was an interesting insight into the lives of artists during the era, their ups and downs. What stiked me the most was, depsite his success, Satie practically had nothing at the time of his death, despite the fame and articles to his name. The book was a bit of a tough read at times given the numerous references to technical musical terms which someone who hasn't studied music might not comprehend. Other than that, a fresh read.

[Ibrahim Z · Rating 3 out of 5]

A solid read, but the focus was more on the music than the man. I realize the two are inseparable, but you really don't learn anything about Satie the person that you can't on Wikipedia.

[Ola · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very nice, short and well-written intro to Satie.

[Alex Khlopenko · Rating 5 out of 5]

Rereading it for the second time and it is as fun as learning it first. Almost as good as listening to Satie's music.

*off to buy 17 velvet suits*

[Eduard Hakobyan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Satin interesting person. Recomend

[Svetlana · Rating 4 out of 5]

Хорошо, но очень кратко.