Description
The third and last of the Gymnopédies, marked "slow and solemn." The two Debussy orchestrated were the first and this one — and in his arrangement he reversed the order, placing the third first. The anecdote says something about how Satie's music looked to his contemporaries.
Centred on A minor, the harmony never quite settles into the weight of the minor mode, shifting instead through pale colours. The structure of accompaniment in triple time with a melody drifting above is common to all three; here, as befits a finale, the music moves towards quietly settling. Around 320 notes fill about three minutes.
As in the other two, the task is to endure doing nothing. This piece adds a further question: how to close. Fade the volume, slacken the tempo, or change nothing at all? Played as a set of three, the choice made here decides the impression the whole leaves behind.
A broad collection of standalone piano pieces not belonging to any specific set, offering hundreds of varied character pieces to explore and compare.
Browse all songs in Piano Pieces →Sheet Music
Sheet music provided by Mutopia Project
What this piece teaches
Gymnopédie No. 3, marked "slow and solemn". As in No. 1, a melody drifts over a triple-time accompaniment, but here, centred on A minor, the harmony never settles into the weight of the minor and moves through paler colours. The lesson is drawing a different colour from the same kind of writing.
How to practise it
- Play it straight after No. 1 and listen to how the change of harmony alone changes the mood.
- Decide how to close: fade the volume, slacken the tempo, or change nothing at all. Loop the ending with A-B and try each.
About the Composer
Erik Satie (1866-1925)
Erik Satie was a French composer from Honfleur who worked in Montmartre's cabarets while pursuing a highly individual musical aesthetic. Known for spare, understated music and whimsically titled works, he later influenced minimalist and ambient music. This site includes the Gymnopédies and Gnossiennes, along with "Danse maigre."
View all works by Satie →