*A Tribute to Erik Satie
Listen to an hour of musical tributes to the late 19th, early 20th Century French composer, eccentric, and proto-minimalist Erik Satie. Hear pieces inspired by Satie from composers Toby Twining and accordionist/composer Guy Klucevsek, along with deft arrangements of Satie’s Gymnopedies, Gnossiennes, and Nocturnes by a whole host of others, including DJ Spooky and Arturo O’Farrill & the Afro Latin Jazz Orchestra.
Satie was known as “the gray velvet gentleman” because of the suits he favored. According to Meurig Bowen, writing in the Guardian, Satie purchased seven of these gray velvet suits at the same time, and would wear one for years until it wore out, moving on to the next. Multi-reed artist Dan Willis and a cast of other musicians, called “the Velvet Gentlemen,” take the name of their band from that Satie peculiarity. Listen to some exercises in musical mind-melding, where Willis and company take the spirit of the melodies and arrange first a Gymnopedie, then a Gnossienne and a Nocturne for reeds, drums, accordion, and electric guitar.
Hear a “20th Century dreamscape” by Canadian multi-instrumentalist and noted producer Daniel Lanois on pedal steel guitar, simply "Satie," in tribute to the French pianist, from his latest release, Goodbye to Language. Lanois has worked with artists including Brian Eno, U2, Peter Gabriel, Emmylou Harris, and Bob Dylan, among others. Also, listen to a tribute from accordionist/composer Guy Klucevsek's latest release, Teetering on the Verge of Normalcy, and his work "Hymnopedie for Erik Satie," which features violinist Todd Reynolds.
Then, listen to a piano piece called "Satie Blues," written for Margaret Leng Tan on piano and toy piano by Toby Twining. There’s also a remix of Gnossienne No. 3 by DJ Spooky, as well as an arrangement of the same by Arturo O’Farrill & the Afro Latin Jazz Orchestra. Plus, listen to a microtonal reimagining of a Satie Gymnopedie by American composer Mathew Rosenblum, whose influences range from Javanese music, the music produced by Sonic Youth, the music of LaMonte Young, and that of Erik Satie. All that, and more.
PROGRAM #3902, a tribute to Erik Satie (First Aired 09-21-2016)
ARTIST: Erik Satie / Frank Glazer
WORK: Gymnopedie #1 [2:00]
RECORDING: Satie: Complete Piano Music
SOURCE: Vox SVBX 5422
INFO: Available at Amazon.com
ARTIST: Dan Willis and Velvet Gentlemen
WORK: First Gymnopedie (arr. Dan Willis) [6:26]
RECORDING: The Satie Project I
SOURCE: Daywood Drive DDR 1001
INFO: daywooddrive.com OR CDbaby.com
ARTIST: Guy Klucevsek, ft. Todd Reynolds, violin
WORK: Hymnopedie for Erik Satie [3:53]
RECORDING: Teetering on the Verge of Normalcy
SOURCE: Starkland 225
INFO: starkland.com
ARTIST: Dan Willis and Velvet Gentlemen
WORK: Nocturne #4 (arr. Dan Willis) [3:02]
RECORDING: The Satie Project I
SOURCE: Daywood Drive DDR 1001
INFO: daywooddrive.com OR CDbaby.com
ARTIST: Daniel Lanois
WORK: Satie [4:11]
RECORDING: Goodbye To Language
SOURCE: Anti- / Red Floor Records 87471
INFO: daniellanois.bandcamp.com
ARTIST: Margaret Leng-Tan
WORK: Toby Twining: Satie Blues [6:00]
RECORDING: The Art of Toy Piano
SOURCE: Point Music #456 345
INFO: Out of print, but try Amazon.com
ARTIST: Dan Willis and Velvet Gentlemen
WORK: First Gnossienne (arr. Dan Willis) [4:08]
RECORDING: The Satie Project I
SOURCE: Daywood Drive DDR 1001
INFO: daywooddrive.com OR CDbaby.com
ARTIST: DJ Spooky
WORK: Gnossienne (Satie) [6:02]
(remix of Gnossienne No. 3)
RECORDING: Sound Unbound: Excerpts and Allegories from the Sub Rosa Archives
SOURCE: Sub Rosa SR 281
INFO: subrosa.net
Bed Music - ARTIST: Marc Sloan
WORK: Gnossienes, excerpt [1:17]
RECORDING: Trees of Nerve Endings
SOURCE/INFO: marcsloan.net
ARTIST: Pascal Comelade
WORK: The Gray Velvet Gentleman [2:00]
RECORDING: Sentimientos
SOURCE: Dys #05. LP release
INFO: Out of print.
ARTIST: Mathew Rosenblum | Wendy Richman, viola; Timothy Feeney, percussion Shirley Yoo, piano
WORK: Rosenblum: Two Harmonies Gymnopedie for Art Jarvinen [3:51]
RECORDING: Circadian Rhythms
SOURCE: New World 80736
INFO: newworldrecords.org
ARTIST: Arturo O'Farrill & Afro Latin Jazz Orchestra
WORK: Gnossienne #3 (Tientos) [5:00]
RECORDING: The Offense of the Drum
SOURCE: Motema Music
INFO: motema.com