Description
This satirical C major piece in 3/4 fuses a Tyrolean folk dance with Turkish-flavoured music, and it stands first in the 1913 set Croquis et agaceries d'un gros bonhomme en bois. The word turque is said to include a nod to Mozart's Rondo alla turca. It pokes gentle fun at the exoticism fashionable in popular music of the day, with Satie's humour evident throughout.
The key is C major and the metre 3/4. The sway of a Tyrolean triple-time dance alternates with Turkish-style figures. At about one minute thirty-three seconds it has some 652 notes. The range spreads from the bass almost to the top of the keyboard, so the gap between the combined styles also shows up as a contrast of register.
Rated intermediate, its very wide range needs 88 keys. Though short, it requires clear differentiation between its contrasting musical characters. There are big moves into the high treble, so slow the playback to follow how the hand positions shift, use the hand colours to see which hand takes what, and then loop the changes of scene with A-B until they come easily.
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Sheet music provided by Mutopia Project
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."
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