Gnossiennes For Guitar

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Eric Satie - Gnossienne No. 1

Eric Satie - Gnossienne No. 2

Eric Satie - Gnossienne No. 3

Eric Satie - Gnossienne No. 4

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A few years ago, I had this seemingly great idea to record Eric Satie's Gymnopedies and Gnossiennes using fourtracked layers of fingerpicked acoustic and heavily distorted electric guitars as a way of paying homage to some of my favourite songs ever written. Like most of my ideas it was at once bad, kind of pretentious, and almost immediately forgotten. So, it was with these vague memories of failed ambition that I first approached this 1982 recording of Satie songs by Pierre Laniau offered up recently for free download on UBUWEB. (Download the whole album here.)

Instead of the loud distorted compositions I had imagined, these recordings are relatively faithful classical guitar renditions of songs. But, rather than being disappointed, I was immediately reminded of why I love the songs in the first place. At once melancholy, simple and affecting, the songs also manage to avoid falling into the maudlin romantic territory that other classical music from the late nineteenth century often tends to. Perhaps it's because Satie's instructions left little room for the musician to take themselves seriously, asking them to play the songs at various points "Slow", "Very Shiny", "With Surprise", "Don't Go out" and "With Great Kindness."

Anyway, I know so little about this kind of music that I should probably just stop talking about it and, instead, implore you to listen. Especially to Gnossienne No. 4, which is my personal favourite.