Satie's Fantaisie-Valse
Satie's Fantaisie-valse for piano solo was composed in 1885. It was published in his father's publication La musiques des familles on July 28th of 1887 with the following comment: "Today we publish a charming Fantaisie-valse for piano by Erik Satie. This work by a very young musician is elegant in structure and gracious in rhythm, without dryness."
Érik Satie (1866 – 1925) was a French composer and pianist, as well as a colorful figure in the early twentieth century Parisian avant-garde. He is perhaps best known for his short piano pieces, such as the Gnossiennes.
Averse to the Romanticism of Richard Wagner, he produced fascinating music of a simple, timeless, directionless, repetitious, eccentric, whimsical, satirical, and humorous nature. He was a precursor to later artistic movements such as minimalism, repetitive music, and the Theatre of the Absurd.
