Gnossienne No. 2

Background

The second Gnossienne was written around 1890, alongside the first and third, by the young Erik Satie. Like them it was written without bar lines or a time signature, and it opens with one of his characteristic instructions: Avec étonnement, "with astonishment". Other remarks of the same kind appear as the piece goes on. They are not technical directions so much as gentle nudges towards a mood.

At the time, much of musical Paris was under the spell of Wagner, whose music was rich, loud and very long. Satie's Gnossiennes go the other way: a few notes, soft dynamics, simple repeated patterns and no development in the usual sense. That plainness puzzled many listeners then, and it is exactly what attracts many listeners now. This one is the gentlest of the three, rocking like a lullaby from some imagined far-off place.

How to practise it

The edition used here sets the music in 12/8 time: four slow beats in each bar, each beat made of three eighth notes. Count "1-and-a, 2-and-a, 3-and-a, 4-and-a" while you learn it, and feel the four big beats rather than twelve small ones.

The melody opens with a held note and then rocks gently between two neighbouring notes:

Those six eighth notes are the heart of the piece. Play them as evenly and softly as you can, with the fingers close to the keys, almost like a slow trill. Try fingers 2 and 3, or 3 and 4, and keep the same choice every time the figure returns.

Underneath, the left hand holds a low bass note for the whole bar and adds two quiet chords, one on beat 2 and one on beat 3.

Practise moving from the bass up to the chords without hurry, and listen for the change of harmony under the rocking melody.

In the middle of the piece the music moves into keys with sharps, and the melody runs smoothly up and down in eighth notes, a little more freely. Then the opening returns, and the piece ends quietly on E.

A plan:

1. Left hand alone at about half speed, counting four slow beats.
2. The melody alone, especially the rocking figures.
3. Hands together at half speed, then three-quarter speed, then full speed.
4. Learn each new block once; several of them come back.

Change the pedal with each new bass note, and keep the sound hushed throughout. The magic of this piece is in its stillness, so resist any urge to push the tempo.

Satie's first piece in this style has its own notes on the Gnossienne No. 1 page.