The French composer Erik Satie was an extraordinary figure whose work defies categorisation.
With his famous Gymnopédies on one hand and his eccentric and frankly unperformable (not difficult, just very long) Vexations on the other, Satie was a man who veered from one extreme to the other.
His daily habits were just as far reaching – his diet supposedly consisted only of white food: ‘eggs, sugar, shredded bones, the fat of dead animals, veal, salt, coconuts, chicken cooked in white water, mouldy fruit, rice, turnips, sausages in camphor,’ he wrote, and Satie was the official composer of the weird sect, the Mystical Order of the Rose.
Witness, also, Satie's various dress phases over the years: a fondness for wearing priestly robes was followed by seven identically coloured velvet suits. The composer’s final ‘look’ was the neat bourgeois gentilhomme, sporting bowler hat, wing collar and umbrella.
Here’s a little taster of this curious chap’s oddly captivating output: the best of Satie, in six works.
Best of Satie
1. Gymnopédies
These were the works that broke Satie away from 19th-century harmonic and structural norms – the Gymnopédies are dreamy, simple, almost simplistic works for piano in 3/4 time with an ironic title that refers to a festival in ancient Sparta where young naked men danced and competed against each other.
2. Furniture Music (Musique d’ameublement)
Satie was the inventor, they say, of ambient music. Here he is providing some background music for various parts of a dinner party – the arrival of the guests, during the meal and so on. Designed to blend into the atmosphere like a rug or chair, Musique d'ameublement was a bold, humorous jab at traditional concert music, and audiences didn’t quite get it at the time.
3. Véritables préludes flasques pour un chien (Truly Flabby Preludes for a Dog)
Satie’s ‘truly flabby preludes for a dog’ are the second volume of his musical shaggy dog stories, published eventually by Durand after they had rejected his first volume of Préludes flasques. They’re odd pieces, slightly angular, jocular and with hints of the orient.
4. La diva de l’empire
La Diva de l’Empire is one of Satie’s wittiest cabaret songs, blending French flair with a cheeky British twist. With its jaunty rhythm and playful lyrics, it captures Satie’s love of satire and music hall charm. Here’s Elly Ameling singing this wonderful cabaret song – you don’t need us to introduce the piece. Elly does that admirably.
5. Vexations
For some reason, Satie thought it a good idea to require the pianist to play his Vexations theme 840 times in succession. Not surprisingly, it’s not often performed, although you can sample the theme below. Just imagine this 840 times. Compelling, no?
6. Gnossiennes
Satie’s Gnossiennes are haunting, introspective piano pieces that break free from traditional structure. With no time signatures and unconventional harmonies, they drift in a dreamlike, mysterious space. Their exotic, almost hypnotic quality reflects Satie’s fascination with ancient and mystical themes. Minimal yet deeply expressive, the Gnossiennes showcase his unique voice—gentle, strange, and quietly revolutionary in the world of piano music.
9. Parade
Erik Satie’s Parade is a wild, wonderfully odd ballet that smashed conventions when it premiered in 1917. Collaborating with Cocteau, Picasso, and Diaghilev, Satie mixed circus sounds, typewriters, and sirens with bold, playful music. Critics were baffled, audiences shocked—but underneath the chaos lies brilliance. Parade is a witty, surreal masterpiece that helped pave the way for modern art and music.
8. Trois Morceaux en forme de poire
Some fun to end with. And by God do we need it. This exotic, charming piece was written for piano duet, although it comprises seven movements rather than the three stated in the title. That crazy Frenchman!
Erik Satie pic: Roger Viollet Collection/Getty Images
