Mastodawn

"Eschewing the standard terminology of classical notation — appassionato, agitato, affettuoso, and so on — [French composer and pianist Erik Satie]’s music instead applies expression markings such as “white and immobile,” “as if you were congested,” and “on yellowing velvet.”"

https://jacobin.com/2025/05/erik-satie-classical-music-surrealism/

#music #musicians #composers #ErikSatie #language

Erik Satie, the People’s Composer

The absurd titles of Erik Satie’s compositions would provoke howls of laughter at concerts in early 20th-century Paris. Some critics condemned Satie’s eccentricities — but a new book argues that his wit is what makes his experimental work so important.