Erik Satie is a composer whose star is on the rise. In 1980, when these recordings by pianist John McCabe were first released, he was, apart from the inscrutable Gymnopédie No. 1 and a few other works, mostly a footnote to the Debussy chapter in the history books. Since then it has gradually emerged that "The Velvet Gentleman" (the name came from Satie's predilection for wearing identical gray velvet suits), with his layer of snark concealing a profound sadness and a willingness to shock the bourgeoisie, has a great deal to ...
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Erik Satie is a composer whose star is on the rise. In 1980, when these recordings by pianist John McCabe were first released, he was, apart from the inscrutable Gymnopédie No. 1 and a few other works, mostly a footnote to the Debussy chapter in the history books. Since then it has gradually emerged that "The Velvet Gentleman" (the name came from Satie's predilection for wearing identical gray velvet suits), with his layer of snark concealing a profound sadness and a willingness to shock the bourgeoisie, has a great deal to say to the modern listener. This disc, combining two McCabe LPs, offers a generous selection of Satie's piano music, from the familiar Gymnopédies and Sports et Divertissements to less-standard items like the Pièces froides (Cold Pieces) of 1897. Generally the listener of a quarter century later will find that McCabe did quite well, especially considering that he did not have a surfeit of models to follow at the time. He gets the slightly distant melancholy of Satie, and he brings...
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