Customer Reviews

Erik Satie: Gnossiennes; Gymnopédies; Ogives; Trois Sarabandes; Petite ouverture à danser

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

As a spectator watching the judging of a musical contest we sometimes notice that one of the performers quite simply possesses that `inner music.' All of the contestants may possess very good technical ability, may present themselves well, and may also construct a very good programme. Ye that one stands out from the other performers by an innate musicality that distinguishes them from among their peers. This is the case here with Reinbert de Leeuw. He possesses that extra something, which transforms the notes from off of the page into living music. His elasticity of timing and phrasing seems to suggest that he has carefully weighed and considered every note and its significance within the total piece alongside of its unique contribution towards this larger picture. It is as if he's lived with this music for so many years that it has become an integral part of his psyche. He quite simply is the music. Like a wonderful dance between the three, he brings so much to the music and yet allows Satie's music to breathe through him also. Yet more than this, he has fused with the spirit of this music. Nonetheless, he seems to have found the right balance, for he is not subservient to the spirit of the music neither is he too dominating in his own approach but rather has released something that was inherent in the individual music right from the start. Such a tremendous sensitivity towards interpreting what Satie intended really brings this music alive. It breathes and in that breathing communicates so much. It is also extremely relaxing and nurturing. A fantastic CD to put on when feeling stressed and looking to chill out to beautiful music. There is a very real sense of this music being truly beautiful; altogether approaching something of a mystical experience - for those able to so resonate. I am forced to say that it offers a transcendent approach to Satie's wonderful music. Previously, I'd heard Satie's music and found it `interesting,' but very cold, distant and cerebral. However, with de Leeuw I entered into the life of Satie and any sense of empty, abstract noises was left behind and the landscape of the music of life opened up before me. The space between the notes, the piano, and me - the listener - melted into a rare intimacy such as I would expect from Mompou playing Mompou or De Hartmann playing his Gurdjieff piano music. I can't recommend de Leeuw's playing of Satie too much. I'd say that every house should have a copy of this one!

The perfect album to hear after many a hard day. Reinbert de Leeuw plays these pieces at extremely slow tempi, but it seems as if this is the way they should be heard. Very relaxing, meditative, soothing, hypnotic. I cannot have my Satie any other way. This is a great album.

Some credit Satie with the invention of Ambient music. After hearig this recording one can hear Saties' true intent. Everyone else rushes through his music as if they just don't get it. Reinbert de Leeuw lets the notes breath into little droplets of emptiness. I have been looking for this C.D for years Thanx Amazon.

These pieces are all about interpretation. Played wrong (quick and hard), and you get light, forgettable, "witty" music; played right, something just "clicks," the music starts to breathe, and you get something seductive and malevolent that whispers threats directly to the id. Forget the negative reviews here; Satie intended for these pieces to be played gravely, and it shows. De Leeuw intimately understands the mysticism of this music.

The interpretation of Gnossiennes is worth the price of this CD. The slow, soulful rendition of that piece is the best anywhere. However, I agree with a previous reviewer that the downtempo approach does not work for other Satie favorites. The slow motion, low energy rendition of other pieces can be maddening.

just about the most haunting romantic sexy music ever, this version is outstandingly slow, which gives it that pause for anticipation and makes it my very favourite rendition. Brilliant!

Having just saw the movie, "Hugo", which used parts of Staie's "Gnossiennes";"Gymnopedies" in the soundtrack, I always wondered why this was missing from my Classical collection. My only mistake was not reading the reviews here and at talkclassical.com. Had I read M.Dixon's review here first it would have saved me from a waste of money.
Right from the start I thought Mr. de Leeuw's pace was unusally slow. It's as if he's trying to increase the drama, like someone who talk's unusually slow to increase the importance of a point they are trying to make. As it turns out I am not the only one who thinks this, though there are those who think his pace is maverlous as well. Interpretations of a classical pieces or any piece of music are always debatable. That's part of the fun. This I can live with and if it were about this single point I'd be happy.
The thing that riles me most is the recording quality itself. While most probably won't care or have a playback system that can reproduce the problem. I like M.Dixon, find the recording quality to be very poor. Though recorded digitally, there seems to be a background tape hiss that is totally distracting. Then there is the rythmic noise, from something within the venue or an artifact of the recording process, that follows the playing of Mr. de Leeuw. I have as yet to descern exactly what the noise is that follows his playing of certain notes/chords. It's extremely distracting. Then there is track seven, Ogives - 1, with its total EQ disaster. Not accounting well enough for the total dB differences they engineered wrong and as a result it causes low to heavy distortion (clipping) if played at any real volume level. Using my Grado headphones and the inexpensive headphone amp of a CD player it seems okay but putting it through either a hi-end SS or a med-high end tubed system it causes some serious distortions. I own many CD's/LP's and this the worst I have ever encountered. Really? This is the best they could do? Wow, what a mess.

Mr. de Leeuw's slow, spacious interpretations have caused some controversy. They shouldn't have. Satie practically invented ambient music; these interpretations nail the slow, sensual qualities of Satie's early piano music. They're my first choice among some tough competition.

Unfortunately, the sound engineers missed a horrible low frequency rumble that made it onto the final master of this digital recording. If you listen to this disc on a system capable of reproducing low frequency sound, this will be annoying.

Fortunately, de Leeuw recorded all of these works, plus many others, on an older analog recording that became a 2 disc set, also for Phillips. Buy that recording instead. There's a small amount of tape hiss, but it's far more tolerable than the strong low bass rumble in this recording.

Satie's beautifully melancholic piano music is made sooooo dull by Mr Leeuw's elephantine playing, and this lethargic speed completely ruins my enjoyment of it. There is nothing in the music to warrant such a gross miscalculation of tempo. I'd recommend other recordings of Satie's music which more faithfully adhere to his intentions (Roge etc.)

I'm new to Satie and don't have an opinion yet on the artistic interpretation. However, I was a little disappointed at how much silence there was in this album. It feels like the recording level was much too low, and there is between about 5 and 15 seconds of silence at the beginning of each track. If you're looking for a quiet, meditative album to listen to in the background, this would probably fit the bill; but if you want to include this in a playlist with anything else, or want to listen to it in the foreground, the low levels and excessive silence will just make it awkward.