Gymnopédie No. 1 (complete)

Erik Satie · Level 3 (Late beginner) · Impressionist · Piano

The first Gymnopédie (1888) complete, “slow and painful”. A piece by Erik Satie, pioneer of musical simplicity and humour. B minor, 3/4, 47 bars (about 2 minutes), complete score.

▶ Play this piece with the interactive score

How to practise it

• Listen first: the site plays it while the score scrolls.
• Wait mode: the score waits for you at every note, at your own pace.
• Tempo challenge: play in time, with a score and a map of the bars you got right.
• Soft, even tone and an unchanging pulse: the beauty comes from simplicity. One hand sometimes plays two voices: hold the long notes for their full value and let the main line sing louder than the accompaniment. The left hand makes wide leaps: look at the landing note in advance and move early, without rushing the rhythm. For chords, shape the hand in the air before landing, all notes together.

More pieces by Erik Satie

• Celle qui parle trop – The Woman Who Talks Too Much (Chapitres tournés en tous sens, No. 1)
• Le porteur de grosses pierres – The Carrier of Large Stones (Chapitres tournés en tous sens, No. 2)
• Regrets des enfermés – Regrets of the Prisoners (Chapitres tournés en tous sens, No. 3)
• Sa Taille (Three Distinguished Waltzes of a Jaded Dandy)
• Danse maigre (Croquis et agaceries)
• Tyrolienne turque
• Españaña (Croquis et agaceries)
• Ses Jambes (Three Distinguished Waltzes of a Jaded Dandy)

Source : Mutopia Project · Public Domain