Vexations
Encyclopedia
Vexations is a noted musical work by Erik Satie
. Apparently conceived for keyboard (though the single page of manuscript does not specify an instrument), it consists of a short theme in the bass whose four presentations are alternatively heard unaccompanied and played with chords above. The theme and its accompanying chords are written using strikingly eccentric and impractical enharmonic
notation. The piece is undated, but scholars usually assign a date around 1893 on the basis of musical and biographical evidence.
The piece bears an inscription which says that "In order to play the theme 840 times in succession, it would be advisable to prepare oneself beforehand, and in the deepest silence, by serious immobilities" (Pour se jouer 840 fois de suite ce motif, il sera bon de se préparer au préalable, et dans le plus grand silence, par des immobilités sérieuses). From the 1960s onward, this text has mostly been interpreted as an instruction that the page of music should be played 840 times, though this may not have been Satie's intention.
form, by John Cage
in Contrepoints N°6). The first American publication of the piece was in Art News Annual, vol. 27 (1958), again in facsimile. The first English publication was as an engraved example in an article by Peter Dickinson in Music Review, vol. 28 (1967). In 1969 the publisher Éditions Max Eschig produced the first commercial edition of the work, placing it second in a collection of three so-called "Pages mystiques". Since there is no musicological evidence linking Vexations to the other works in the volume, its appearance in that context indicates nothing more than an editor's desire to publish Satie's uncollected compositions in three-part assemblages like the Gymnopedies, Gnossiennes, etc.
, David Tudor
, Christian Wolff
, Philip Corner
, Viola Farber, Robert Wood, MacRae Cook, John Cale
, David Del Tredici
, James Tenney
, Howard Klein
(the New York Times
reviewer, who coincidentally was asked to play in the course of the event) and Joshua Rifkin
, with two reserves, on September 9, 1963. Cage set the admission price at $5 and had a time clock installed in the lobby of the theatre. Each patron checked in with the clock and when leaving the concert, checked out again and received a refund of a nickel for each 20 minutes attended. "In this way," he told Lloyd, "People will understand that the more art you consume, the less it should cost." But Cage had underestimated the length of time the concert would take. It lasted over 18 hours. One person, an actor with The Living Theater, Karl Schenzer, was present for the entire performance.
Finally, considering the many questions that remain regarding the composition, it could be seen in a tradition of Riddle music, somewhere between the "riddle fugues" of Bach
's Musikalische Opfer
and Elgar
's Enigma Variations
.
). Satie made no effort to get either "Vexations" or "Bonjour Biqui" published during his life, scarcely, or not at all, communicating about their existence (there were more of his compositions sharing this fate).
As to the total duration of the work, and whether it is to be played loud or silent, it is hard to ascertain what Satie's intentions were:
Although, formally, there is no unambiguous indication either that the Vexations should be played on the piano, there is however little doubt that this is the intended instrument, an execution on another keyboard instrument
- like e.g. the then popular harmonium
- not being impossible.
Ornella Volta (from the Archives Erik Satie in Paris
) prepares a dossier with several studies regarding this work and its executions. This dossier, that as of July 2005 has not yet been published, will contain a full analysis and a facsimile reproduction of the original partition.
The team at MakerBot Industries
has programmed one of their robots to perform Vexations. It was performed for the public for the first time at a 2010 New York
Maker Faire
. The performance was based on the one by Armin Fuchs in Dresden in the year 2000.
Erik Satie
Éric Alfred Leslie Satie was a French composer and pianist. Satie was a colourful figure in the early 20th century Parisian avant-garde...
. Apparently conceived for keyboard (though the single page of manuscript does not specify an instrument), it consists of a short theme in the bass whose four presentations are alternatively heard unaccompanied and played with chords above. The theme and its accompanying chords are written using strikingly eccentric and impractical enharmonic
Enharmonic
In modern musical notation and tuning, an enharmonic equivalent is a note , interval , or key signature which is equivalent to some other note, interval, or key signature, but "spelled", or named, differently...
notation. The piece is undated, but scholars usually assign a date around 1893 on the basis of musical and biographical evidence.
The piece bears an inscription which says that "In order to play the theme 840 times in succession, it would be advisable to prepare oneself beforehand, and in the deepest silence, by serious immobilities" (Pour se jouer 840 fois de suite ce motif, il sera bon de se préparer au préalable, et dans le plus grand silence, par des immobilités sérieuses). From the 1960s onward, this text has mostly been interpreted as an instruction that the page of music should be played 840 times, though this may not have been Satie's intention.
Publication
Satie did not publish the work in his lifetime, and is not known ever to have performed or mentioned it. The piece was first printed in 1949 (in facsimileFacsimile
A facsimile is a copy or reproduction of an old book, manuscript, map, art print, or other item of historical value that is as true to the original source as possible. It differs from other forms of reproduction by attempting to replicate the source as accurately as possible in terms of scale,...
form, by John Cage
John Cage
John Milton Cage Jr. was an American composer, music theorist, writer, philosopher and artist. A pioneer of indeterminacy in music, electroacoustic music, and non-standard use of musical instruments, Cage was one of the leading figures of the post-war avant-garde...
in Contrepoints N°6). The first American publication of the piece was in Art News Annual, vol. 27 (1958), again in facsimile. The first English publication was as an engraved example in an article by Peter Dickinson in Music Review, vol. 28 (1967). In 1969 the publisher Éditions Max Eschig produced the first commercial edition of the work, placing it second in a collection of three so-called "Pages mystiques". Since there is no musicological evidence linking Vexations to the other works in the volume, its appearance in that context indicates nothing more than an editor's desire to publish Satie's uncollected compositions in three-part assemblages like the Gymnopedies, Gnossiennes, etc.
First public performance
Vexations appears to have had no performance history before the idea gained ground that the piece was required to be played 840 times. The first of the 'marathon' performances of the work in this way was produced by John Cage and Lewis Lloyd at the Pocket Theatre in Manhattan by the Pocket Theatre Piano Relay Team, organized by Cage. Pianists included: John CageJohn Cage
John Milton Cage Jr. was an American composer, music theorist, writer, philosopher and artist. A pioneer of indeterminacy in music, electroacoustic music, and non-standard use of musical instruments, Cage was one of the leading figures of the post-war avant-garde...
, David Tudor
David Tudor
David Eugene Tudor was an American pianist and composer of experimental music.- Biography :Tudor was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He studied piano with Irma Wolpe and composition with Stefan Wolpe and became known as one of the leading performers of avant garde piano music. He gave the...
, Christian Wolff
Christian Wolff (composer)
Christian G. Wolff is an American composer of experimental classical music.-Biography:Wolff was born in Nice in France to German literary publishers Helen and Kurt Wolff, who had published works by Franz Kafka, Robert Musil, and Walter Benjamin. After relocating to the U.S...
, Philip Corner
Philip Corner
Philip Corner is an American composer, action musician, trombone/alphornist, sometime vocalist, pianist-improvisor, theorist-educator, graphic score designer, and visual artist, collage&assembleur, calligrapher.-Biography:After The High School of Music & Art in New York City, Philip Corner...
, Viola Farber, Robert Wood, MacRae Cook, John Cale
John Cale
John Davies Cale, OBE is a Welsh musician, composer, singer-songwriter and record producer who was a founding member of the experimental rock band The Velvet Underground....
, David Del Tredici
David Del Tredici
David Del Tredici, born March 16, 1937 in Cloverdale, California, is an American composer. According to Del Tredici's website, Aaron Copland said David Del Tredici "is that rare find among composers — a creator with a truly original gift...
, James Tenney
James Tenney
James Tenney was an American composer and influential music theorist.-Biography:Tenney was born in Silver City, New Mexico, and grew up in Arizona and Colorado. He attended the University of Denver, the Juilliard School of Music, Bennington College and the University of Illinois...
, Howard Klein
Howard Klein
Howard Klein is an American television producer. He is best known for being executive producer of the award-winning HBO television series Carnivàle.-Producer credits :* King of the Hill * Loaded Weapon 1...
(the New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
reviewer, who coincidentally was asked to play in the course of the event) and Joshua Rifkin
Joshua Rifkin
Joshua Rifkin is an American conductor, keyboard player, and musicologist. He is best known by the general public for having played a central role in the ragtime revival in the 1970s with the three albums he recorded of Scott Joplin's works for Nonesuch Records, and to classical musicians for his...
, with two reserves, on September 9, 1963. Cage set the admission price at $5 and had a time clock installed in the lobby of the theatre. Each patron checked in with the clock and when leaving the concert, checked out again and received a refund of a nickel for each 20 minutes attended. "In this way," he told Lloyd, "People will understand that the more art you consume, the less it should cost." But Cage had underestimated the length of time the concert would take. It lasted over 18 hours. One person, an actor with The Living Theater, Karl Schenzer, was present for the entire performance.
Meaning
Satie never explained the piece's title. Conjectures regarding the meaning of the Vexations (and their title) were construed long after Satie's death (in most cases supported by little evidence), amongst others:- The notation of the chords makes liberal use of enharmonicEnharmonicIn modern musical notation and tuning, an enharmonic equivalent is a note , interval , or key signature which is equivalent to some other note, interval, or key signature, but "spelled", or named, differently...
spellings, making it difficult to read immediately.
- The Vexations could be interpreted as SatieErik SatieÉric Alfred Leslie Satie was a French composer and pianist. Satie was a colourful figure in the early 20th century Parisian avant-garde...
's coming to terms with WagnerismWagnerismWagnerism has a number of meanings:* the philosophical ideals put forward by Richard Wagner which indicate the traits of a "true" German, among other aesthetic ideas.* an attachment, sometimes fanatical, to the music of Wagner....
, which was riding high in the musical life of those days: Satie loathed all kinds of "Germanic" music (so not only Richard WagnerRichard WagnerWilhelm Richard Wagner was a German composer, conductor, theatre director, philosopher, music theorist, poet, essayist and writer primarily known for his operas...
's, but also the music of Wagner's German antipodesAntipodesIn geography, the antipodes of any place on Earth is the point on the Earth's surface which is diametrically opposite to it. Two points that are antipodal to one another are connected by a straight line running through the centre of the Earth....
). He loathed even more the FrenchFranceThe French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
contemporary composerComposerA composer is a person who creates music, either by musical notation or oral tradition, for interpretation and performance, or through direct manipulation of sonic material through electronic media...
s emulating what he experienced as Wagner-like romanticismRomantic musicRomantic music or music in the Romantic Period is a musicological and artistic term referring to a particular period, theory, compositional practice, and canon in Western music history, from 1810 to 1900....
(e.g. Camille Saint-SaënsCamille Saint-SaënsCharles-Camille Saint-Saëns was a French Late-Romantic composer, organist, conductor, and pianist. He is known especially for The Carnival of the Animals, Danse macabre, Samson and Delilah, Piano Concerto No. 2, Cello Concerto No. 1, Havanaise, Introduction and Rondo Capriccioso, and his Symphony...
, César FranckCésar FranckCésar-Auguste-Jean-Guillaume-Hubert Franck was a composer, pianist, organist, and music teacher who worked in Paris during his adult life....
,...). In this interpretation the Vexations would be Satie's (ironicIronyIrony is a rhetorical device, literary technique, or situation in which there is a sharp incongruity or discordance that goes beyond the simple and evident intention of words or actions...
?) defiance. He could outdo music as lengthy and intense as e.g. Wagner's RingDer Ring des NibelungenDer Ring des Nibelungen is a cycle of four epic operas by the German composer Richard Wagner . The works are based loosely on characters from the Norse sagas and the Nibelungenlied...
or LisztFranz LisztFranz Liszt ; ), was a 19th-century Hungarian composer, pianist, conductor, and teacher.Liszt became renowned in Europe during the nineteenth century for his virtuosic skill as a pianist. He was said by his contemporaries to have been the most technically advanced pianist of his age...
's Années de PèlerinageAnnées de PèlerinageAnnées de pèlerinage is a set of three suites by Franz Liszt for solo piano. Liszt's complete musical style is evident in this masterwork, which ranges from virtuosic fireworks to sincerely moving emotional statements. His musical maturity can be seen evolving through his experience and travel...
, using only the limited (one would be tempted to say "minimalistMinimalist musicMinimal music is a style of music associated with the work of American composers La Monte Young, Terry Riley, Steve Reich, and Philip Glass. It originated in the New York Downtown scene of the 1960s and was initially viewed as a form of experimental music called the New York Hypnotic School....
", but that would be an anachronismAnachronismAn anachronism—from the Greek ανά and χρόνος — is an inconsistency in some chronological arrangement, especially a chronological misplacing of persons, events, objects, or customs in regard to each other...
) resources that were compatible with his own views on the true nature of French music - and/or, corresponding to his then more than modest means. Note that it is all but clear that his ideas about the limpid nature of French music had fully developed in this early stage. Whatsoever, the Vexations can be seen as an attack on - or a parodicParodyA parody , in current usage, is an imitative work created to mock, comment on, or trivialise an original work, its subject, author, style, or some other target, by means of humorous, satiric or ironic imitation...
emulation of - what in Wagnerian music is known as the "unendliche Melodie" (the never-ending melody), which is a melody supported by a sheer endless progressionChord progressionA chord progression is a series of musical chords, or chord changes that "aims for a definite goal" of establishing a tonality founded on a key, root or tonic chord. In other words, the succession of root relationships...
of complex chords - which harmonicallyHarmonyIn music, harmony is the use of simultaneous pitches , or chords. The study of harmony involves chords and their construction and chord progressions and the principles of connection that govern them. Harmony is often said to refer to the "vertical" aspect of music, as distinguished from melodic...
doesn't exactly lead anywhere. In mood and compositional technique this brings the Vexations near to the - certainly mocking - "Choral inappétissant" ("unsavoury Choral", Autograph Audio), the first (introductory) piece of "Sports et divertissements", which he composed more than 20 years later, after he had studied conventional harmonyHarmonyIn music, harmony is the use of simultaneous pitches , or chords. The study of harmony involves chords and their construction and chord progressions and the principles of connection that govern them. Harmony is often said to refer to the "vertical" aspect of music, as distinguished from melodic...
for several years.
- The Vexations were written in a period where Satie's approach to harmony was at least exotic, related rather to a modalMusical modeIn the theory of Western music since the ninth century, mode generally refers to a type of scale. This usage, still the most common in recent years, reflects a tradition dating to the middle ages, itself inspired by the theory of ancient Greek music.The word encompasses several additional...
line of thought than to conventional harmonyHarmonyIn music, harmony is the use of simultaneous pitches , or chords. The study of harmony involves chords and their construction and chord progressions and the principles of connection that govern them. Harmony is often said to refer to the "vertical" aspect of music, as distinguished from melodic...
. In order to understand what follows it should be appreciated that, in those days, the only two established harmonic systems in western music were either the (older) modal systemMusical modeIn the theory of Western music since the ninth century, mode generally refers to a type of scale. This usage, still the most common in recent years, reflects a tradition dating to the middle ages, itself inspired by the theory of ancient Greek music.The word encompasses several additional...
- which was up for some kind of revival, by e.g. Gabriel FauréGabriel FauréGabriel Urbain Fauré was a French composer, organist, pianist and teacher. He was one of the foremost French composers of his generation, and his musical style influenced many 20th century composers...
-, one the one hand, and the conventional harmonicHarmonyIn music, harmony is the use of simultaneous pitches , or chords. The study of harmony involves chords and their construction and chord progressions and the principles of connection that govern them. Harmony is often said to refer to the "vertical" aspect of music, as distinguished from melodic...
system of tonal musicTonalityTonality is a system of music in which specific hierarchical pitch relationships are based on a key "center", or tonic. The term tonalité originated with Alexandre-Étienne Choron and was borrowed by François-Joseph Fétis in 1840...
, firmly installed since the late baroqueBaroque musicBaroque music describes a style of Western Classical music approximately extending from 1600 to 1760. This era follows the Renaissance and was followed in turn by the Classical era...
era, on the other (the - Germanic - twelve tone system being still more than a decade away, while also Claude DebussyClaude DebussyClaude-Achille Debussy was a French composer. Along with Maurice Ravel, he was one of the most prominent figures working within the field of impressionist music, though he himself intensely disliked the term when applied to his compositions...
- much nearer to Satie - appears not to have questioned classic tonality till shortly after the Vexations were written, see: http://www.ithaca.edu/music/mtsnys/2003mtg/abstracts/20th-c.html#deMedicis). Harmonically the Vexations appear to be an exercise in non-resolvingResolution (music)Resolution in western tonal music theory is the move of a note or chord from dissonance to a consonance .Dissonance, resolution, and suspense can be used to create musical interest...
tritoneTritoneIn classical music from Western culture, the tritone |tone]]) is traditionally defined as a musical interval composed of three whole tones. In a chromatic scale, each whole tone can be further divided into two semitones...
s, one of the anathemaAnathemaAnathema originally meant something lifted up as an offering to the gods; it later evolved to mean:...
ta of conventional harmonyHarmonyIn music, harmony is the use of simultaneous pitches , or chords. The study of harmony involves chords and their construction and chord progressions and the principles of connection that govern them. Harmony is often said to refer to the "vertical" aspect of music, as distinguished from melodic...
(i.e.: in conventional harmony tritoneTritoneIn classical music from Western culture, the tritone |tone]]) is traditionally defined as a musical interval composed of three whole tones. In a chromatic scale, each whole tone can be further divided into two semitones...
s are not forbidden as such, but they should be immediately resolvedResolution (music)Resolution in western tonal music theory is the move of a note or chord from dissonance to a consonance .Dissonance, resolution, and suspense can be used to create musical interest...
in the next chord, which doesn't happen in the Vexations). In historical modalMusical modeIn the theory of Western music since the ninth century, mode generally refers to a type of scale. This usage, still the most common in recent years, reflects a tradition dating to the middle ages, itself inspired by the theory of ancient Greek music.The word encompasses several additional...
music tritoneTritoneIn classical music from Western culture, the tritone |tone]]) is traditionally defined as a musical interval composed of three whole tones. In a chromatic scale, each whole tone can be further divided into two semitones...
s were cursed as such, known as Devils in music (and thus totally anathemaAnathemaAnathema originally meant something lifted up as an offering to the gods; it later evolved to mean:...
). It is not certain whether the various sectSectA sect is a group with distinctive religious, political or philosophical beliefs. Although in past it was mostly used to refer to religious groups, it has since expanded and in modern culture can refer to any organization that breaks away from a larger one to follow a different set of rules and...
s and cultCultThe word cult in current popular usage usually refers to a group whose beliefs or practices are considered abnormal or bizarre. The word originally denoted a system of ritual practices...
s frequented by Satie in those days would have had theological objections and/or sympathies towards these particular "Devils", and/or to the fact that the "motif" is subdivided in parts of 1313 (number)13 is the natural number after 12 and before 14. It is the smallest number with eight letters in its name spelled out in English. It is also the first of the teens – the numbers 13 through 19 – the ages of teenagers....
beatBeat (music)The beat is the basic unit of time in music, the pulse of the mensural level . In popular use, the beat can refer to a variety of related concepts including: tempo, meter, rhythm and groove...
s. Maybe Satie's intent was nothing more than to prove that any harmonic and rhythmRhythmRhythm may be generally defined as a "movement marked by the regulated succession of strong and weak elements, or of opposite or different conditions." This general meaning of regular recurrence or pattern in time may be applied to a wide variety of cyclical natural phenomena having a periodicity or...
ic system was only a matter of habit for the hearer (and not resulting from innate or divine preconception, as his contemporaries would think): so that after listening 840 times to a chordal system that is at odds with any habitual one, and set in an odd metreMetre (music)Meter or metre is a term that music has inherited from the rhythmic element of poetry where it means the number of lines in a verse, the number of syllables in each line and the arrangement of those syllables as long or short, accented or unaccented...
, one would possibly start to experience this new system to be as natural as any other - an experiment he was likely to have taken seriously, and maybe directly or indirectly influenced DebussyClaude DebussyClaude-Achille Debussy was a French composer. Along with Maurice Ravel, he was one of the most prominent figures working within the field of impressionist music, though he himself intensely disliked the term when applied to his compositions...
and/or RavelMaurice RavelJoseph-Maurice Ravel was a French composer known especially for his melodies, orchestral and instrumental textures and effects...
. An intended reference to RossiniGioacchino RossiniGioachino Antonio Rossini was an Italian composer who wrote 39 operas as well as sacred music, chamber music, songs, and some instrumental and piano pieces...
's piano pieces "Des tritons s’il vous plaït (Montée-descente)" (also exploring tritoneTritoneIn classical music from Western culture, the tritone |tone]]) is traditionally defined as a musical interval composed of three whole tones. In a chromatic scale, each whole tone can be further divided into two semitones...
s) or "Un rien sur le mode enharmonique" is very unlikely, while not yet published at that time. A reference to LisztFranz LisztFranz Liszt ; ), was a 19th-century Hungarian composer, pianist, conductor, and teacher.Liszt became renowned in Europe during the nineteenth century for his virtuosic skill as a pianist. He was said by his contemporaries to have been the most technically advanced pianist of his age...
's "Bagatelle sans tonalitéBagatelle sans tonalitéBagatelle sans tonalité is a piece for solo piano written by Franz Liszt in 1885. The manuscript bears the title "Fourth Mephisto Waltz" and may have been intended to replace the piece now known as the Fourth Mephisto Waltz when it appeared Liszt would not be able to finish it; the phrase...
" ("bagatelleBagatelleBagatelle is a billiards-derived indoor table game, the object of which is to get a number of balls past wooden pins into holes...
s without a keyKey (music)In music theory, the term key is used in many different and sometimes contradictory ways. A common use is to speak of music as being "in" a specific key, such as in the key of C major or in the key of F-sharp. Sometimes the terms "major" or "minor" are appended, as in the key of A minor or in the...
", see: http://www.ithaca.edu/music/mtsnys/2003mtg/abstracts/20th-c.html#berry), written a decade earlier, is possible, but, apart from being uncertain that Satie ever heard about this music (or have had more than incidental knowledge of its underlying "Zukunftsharmoniesystem" theory, which was rather the idea of making tonality wane by means of excessive consecutive modulationModulation (music)In music, modulation is most commonly the act or process of changing from one key to another. This may or may not be accompanied by a change in key signature. Modulations articulate or create the structure or form of many pieces, as well as add interest...
s, extending the Wagnerian style), arguably the Vexations - lacking any form of conventional modulation - are written in a keyKey (music)In music theory, the term key is used in many different and sometimes contradictory ways. A common use is to speak of music as being "in" a specific key, such as in the key of C major or in the key of F-sharp. Sometimes the terms "major" or "minor" are appended, as in the key of A minor or in the...
of C (which would be something like "C tritonal", while neither Minor nor Major, nor any Modal key), I, V and IVTonalityTonality is a system of music in which specific hierarchical pitch relationships are based on a key "center", or tonic. The term tonalité originated with Alexandre-Étienne Choron and was borrowed by François-Joseph Fétis in 1840...
being the bass-notes starting respectively 3 groups of 4 quarter-note beats from the start of every measure on, moving towards an unresolved IIITonalityTonality is a system of music in which specific hierarchical pitch relationships are based on a key "center", or tonic. The term tonalité originated with Alexandre-Étienne Choron and was borrowed by François-Joseph Fétis in 1840...
in the 13th and final beat. Note that this clash of the Vexations with any prior harmonic system is rarely discussed, not even in public concert reviews: maybe after all Satie was right, habituation to some atonalityAtonalityAtonality in its broadest sense describes music that lacks a tonal center, or key. Atonality in this sense usually describes compositions written from about 1908 to the present day where a hierarchy of pitches focusing on a single, central tone is not used, and the notes of the chromatic scale...
would settle in one day or another - although it has to be said that a decade after composing the Vexations Satie would make a considerable effort to conform to the tonalTonalityTonality is a system of music in which specific hierarchical pitch relationships are based on a key "center", or tonic. The term tonalité originated with Alexandre-Étienne Choron and was borrowed by François-Joseph Fétis in 1840...
system (but that could have been intended partly as a reductio ad absurdumReductio ad absurdumIn logic, proof by contradiction is a form of proof that establishes the truth or validity of a proposition by showing that the proposition's being false would imply a contradiction...
).
- Although the date of composition is uncertain (supposedly mid 1893), the Vexations appear to have been composed shortly after a brief, but intense, relation with Suzanne ValadonSuzanne ValadonSuzanne Valadon was a French painter born Marie-Clémentine Valadon at Bessines-sur-Gartempe, Haute-Vienne, France. In 1894, Valadon became the first woman painter admitted to the Société Nationale des Beaux-Arts...
, the nearest Erik Satie ever got to a relation with a woman. One of the testimonies of this relation is, apart from the pictures they drew of each other, Satie's optimistic composition "Bonjour Biqui" (April 1893), Biqui being a nickname for his beloved, and the composition being an echo of how Satie customarily greeted her. This composition takes, on paper, almost as much room as the Vexations, but contains no indication that it should be played more than once; thus, when executed, it is (effectively) infinitely shorter than the Vexations. Still, both compositions could be seen to have a mantraMantraA mantra is a sound, syllable, word, or group of words that is considered capable of "creating transformation"...
-like quality, one gay and the other arid (although it is questionable as to how Satie would have appreciated the idea of a "mantraMantraA mantra is a sound, syllable, word, or group of words that is considered capable of "creating transformation"...
"). Regardless, it would not be all that surprising that Satie—being "vexé" ("angry", or even "spiteful") about being rejected by his "Biqui"—wanted to disenchant himself from what she had meant to him, by composing a piece that would help him forget all such frivolous feelings. Possibly he was relieving himself with a kind of musical curseCurseA curse is any expressed wish that some form of adversity or misfortune will befall or attach to some other entity—one or more persons, a place, or an object...
(given the implications of "Devils" and the unlucky number "13" described in the previous paragraph).
- It is also possible that Satie was spoofing the Perpetuum mobilePerpetuum mobilePerpetuum mobile , moto perpetuo , mouvement perpétuel , movimiento perpetuo , literally meaning "perpetual motion", means two distinct things:#pieces of music, or parts of pieces, characterised by a continuous steady stream of notes, usually at a...
genre: many 19th century composers had composed such - then very popular - separate pieces with an 'indefinite' number of repeats, mostly leaning on enthralling virtuosity: references like "immobilities"; a DEFINITE (but disproportionately high) number of repeats; an unconventional harmony; "very slow", instead of the usual very rapid movement of a Perpetuum mobilePerpetuum mobilePerpetuum mobile , moto perpetuo , mouvement perpétuel , movimiento perpetuo , literally meaning "perpetual motion", means two distinct things:#pieces of music, or parts of pieces, characterised by a continuous steady stream of notes, usually at a...
; etc..., all might indicate that Satie was making a parodyParodyA parody , in current usage, is an imitative work created to mock, comment on, or trivialise an original work, its subject, author, style, or some other target, by means of humorous, satiric or ironic imitation...
of this genre, spiting the cheap effects of content-less virtuosity in an uninspired harmonic and rhythmical scheme, that his contemporaries would use to suggest "rapture" to their public.
- The deeply rooted idea (from its first publication on) that the Vexations might have been intended by Satie as an experiment regarding boredom appears to find little support in the ideas expressed by Satie himself (condemning composers that bored their public in any way). But this might be an explanation why Satie never published the Vexations.
- Other (no less cumbersome, as anachronisticAnachronismAn anachronism—from the Greek ανά and χρόνος — is an inconsistency in some chronological arrangement, especially a chronological misplacing of persons, events, objects, or customs in regard to each other...
) explanations involve DadaDadaDada or Dadaism is a cultural movement that began in Zurich, Switzerland, during World War I and peaked from 1916 to 1922. The movement primarily involved visual arts, literature—poetry, art manifestoes, art theory—theatre, and graphic design, and concentrated its anti-war politics through a...
ism (which was only invented by the end the 2nd decade of the 20th century); Musique d'ameublementFurniture musicFurniture music, or in French musique d’ameublement , is background music originally played by live performers...
(also not before the end of the 2nd decade of the 20th century, at which time Satie described it as a novelty); conceptual artConceptual artConceptual art is art in which the concept or idea involved in the work take precedence over traditional aesthetic and material concerns. Many of the works, sometimes called installations, of the artist Sol LeWitt may be constructed by anyone simply by following a set of written instructions...
(not before 1960s); etc... - In other words: one could as well, and less anachronisticAnachronismAn anachronism—from the Greek ανά and χρόνος — is an inconsistency in some chronological arrangement, especially a chronological misplacing of persons, events, objects, or customs in regard to each other...
, call the Vexations a "typical" fin de siècleFin de siècleFin de siècle is French for "end of the century". The term sometimes encompasses both the closing and onset of an era, as it was felt to be a period of degeneration, but at the same time a period of hope for a new beginning...
product.
- Why Satie chose 840 as the number of repetitions has also been subject to conjecture: no conclusive argument shows why he would have preferred this number to any other. The fact that 840 is the productProduct (mathematics)In mathematics, a product is the result of multiplying, or an expression that identifies factors to be multiplied. The order in which real or complex numbers are multiplied has no bearing on the product; this is known as the commutative law of multiplication...
of the numbers from 4 to 7 does not shed much additional light on the meaning that the number 840 might have had to SatieErik SatieÉric Alfred Leslie Satie was a French composer and pianist. Satie was a colourful figure in the early 20th century Parisian avant-garde...
, though it has to be noted that the esotericEsotericismEsotericism or Esoterism signifies the holding of esoteric opinions or beliefs, that is, ideas preserved or understood by a small group or those specially initiated, or of rare or unusual interest. The term derives from the Greek , a compound of : "within", thus "pertaining to the more inward",...
sectSectA sect is a group with distinctive religious, political or philosophical beliefs. Although in past it was mostly used to refer to religious groups, it has since expanded and in modern culture can refer to any organization that breaks away from a larger one to follow a different set of rules and...
s or cultCultThe word cult in current popular usage usually refers to a group whose beliefs or practices are considered abnormal or bizarre. The word originally denoted a system of ritual practices...
s Satie had been involved in up till the moment that he wrote the Vexations could be supposed to have some interest in numerologyNumerologyNumerology is any study of the purported mystical relationship between a count or measurement and life. It has many systems and traditions and beliefs...
. When Satie started his own sect, the Metropolitan Church of Art of Jesus the ConductorMetropolitan Church of Art of Jesus the ConductorLÉglise Métropolitaine d'Art de Jésus Conducteur or the Metropolitan Church of Art of Jesus the Conductor, alternatively translated as the Metropolitan Church of Art of Jesus, Leader , was founded by Erik Satie, the French composer and pianist.- History :L'Église Métropolitaine d'Art de Jésus...
, supposedly around the same time as composing the Vexations, he appeared sure in his use of numbers (e.g. in the printed pamphlet listing the numbers of each type of adherent the sect was to have acquired, some of these numbers going back to biblical data). An article by Martha Curti (now Mother Felicitas) on the numerology of 840, may shed more light on the subject (see 'Prelude to a non-vextion.' The famous long work by Satie, experiencing it and analyzing it. Implications for understanding it and criticism of other attempts. Included is Martha (Mother Felicitas) Curti's dissertation on the number 840.)
Finally, considering the many questions that remain regarding the composition, it could be seen in a tradition of Riddle music, somewhere between the "riddle fugues" of Bach
Johann Sebastian Bach
Johann Sebastian Bach was a German composer, organist, harpsichordist, violist, and violinist whose sacred and secular works for choir, orchestra, and solo instruments drew together the strands of the Baroque period and brought it to its ultimate maturity...
's Musikalische Opfer
The Musical Offering
The Musical Offering , BWV 1079, is a collection of canons and fugues and other pieces of music by Johann Sebastian Bach, all based on a single musical theme given to him by Frederick II of Prussia , to whom they are dedicated...
and Elgar
Edward Elgar
Sir Edward William Elgar, 1st Baronet OM, GCVO was an English composer, many of whose works have entered the British and international classical concert repertoire. Among his best-known compositions are orchestral works including the Enigma Variations, the Pomp and Circumstance Marches, concertos...
's Enigma Variations
Enigma Variations
Variations on an Original Theme for orchestra , Op. 36, commonly referred to as the Enigma Variations, is a set of a theme and its fourteen variations written for orchestra by Edward Elgar in 1898–1899. It is Elgar's best-known large-scale composition, for both the music itself and the...
.
Execution
There is no indication that Satie intended the Vexations for public performance (and certainly not as a "tour de force" of endurance to impress - or bore to death - a public) - the introductory text he wrote, as quoted above, rather indicating it was intended as a one-person experience (e.g. as a restrained way to work off anger, or, in order to get one's ears tuned to an unconventional harmonic system and metreMetre (music)
Meter or metre is a term that music has inherited from the rhythmic element of poetry where it means the number of lines in a verse, the number of syllables in each line and the arrangement of those syllables as long or short, accented or unaccented...
). Satie made no effort to get either "Vexations" or "Bonjour Biqui" published during his life, scarcely, or not at all, communicating about their existence (there were more of his compositions sharing this fate).
As to the total duration of the work, and whether it is to be played loud or silent, it is hard to ascertain what Satie's intentions were:
- No metronomicalMetronomeA metronome is any device that produces regular, metrical ticks — settable in beats per minute. These ticks represent a fixed, regular aural pulse; some metronomes also include synchronized visual motion...
tempoTempoIn musical terminology, tempo is the speed or pace of a given piece. Tempo is a crucial element of any musical composition, as it can affect the mood and difficulty of a piece.-Measuring tempo:...
indication: the score mentions "Très lent" (very slow), which could mean anything while the composition has not a melody that could be experienced as falling in one or another "natural" cadence - at least not at first sight: some (e.g. the pianist Armin Fuchs, who executed the work in its entirety several times) argue there is a natural cadence nonetheless (26 quarter-note beats per minute in Fuchs' case, which extends total execution to 28 hours). - It is not clear whether Satie intended the bass-line (equal to both halves of the composition) to be repeated in between of EVERY half vexation: his precise instruction is "À ce signe il sera d'usage de présenter le thème de la Basse" - "At this sign customarily the theme of the Bass will be presented" (the "sign" occurring in between of every half Vexation): "être d'usage" not really being an obligation. There is more to be said about this sign: modern executions and editions of the score usually interpret that for every Vexation the "thème de la Basse" is to be played twice, while the original manuscript of Satie indicates the "sign" for playing this theme three times: once preceding (and quite above) the "motif", and once after every half of the "motif", which seems to indicate that the "thème de la Basse" has to be played before the "motif" is played the first time (which is usually done), but also that it is the "thème de la Basse" concluding the complete cycle (and not the 840th pass of the second half of the motif, as it is usually interpreted). This would extend the total execution time with about half a minute.
- Even the 840 repeats have been questioned, for several reasons: in a "MantraMantraA mantra is a sound, syllable, word, or group of words that is considered capable of "creating transformation"...
" or "habituation" approach there is not much sense in counting exactly how many times one repeats the "motif" to oneself. Also the indication Satie gives does not implicate it is mandatory to repeat 840 times: it is only a remark about the kind of preparation that is needed in the event that one wants to play it 840 times consecutively to oneself. There is no certainty Satie ever played the Vexations (or knew them executed), either with or without repeats (probably neither, because in the course of such action it probably would have emerged that the A on the 6th beat of the second half of the motif needs an accidentalAccidental (music)In music, an accidental is a note whose pitch is not a member of a scale or mode indicated by the most recently applied key signature. In musical notation, the symbols used to mark such notes, sharps , flats , and naturals , may also be called accidentals...
one way or another: either a pitch-changing accidental, like for the A's immediately before - beat 2 - or after - beat 8 - this A, either a natural, to make the middle melody of the second half of the motif identical to the high-pitch melody of the first half. Probably in most performances the imaginary natural is played, see for example this online PDF version of the Vexations, having added the ♮). - No indication whatsoever regarding at what volume it has to be played.
- It is not clear whether exactly the same speed and volume for every repetition is advisory: in the "vexation"-anger comparison mentioned above, it would not be impossible to imagine moods (expressed by tempo and volume, and additional expression by means of arpeggioArpeggioAn arpeggio is a musical technique where notes in a chord are played or sung in sequence, one after the other, rather than ringing out simultaneously...
, rubato, and the like) swinging from "rage" to "dejection", and everything in between, all along the same sitting, in a sort of "Etudes d'execution transcendante"-style - while obviously the standard interpretation, which is a monotonous execution (keeping to the same tempoTempoIn musical terminology, tempo is the speed or pace of a given piece. Tempo is a crucial element of any musical composition, as it can affect the mood and difficulty of a piece.-Measuring tempo:...
and volume) throughout, maximally avoiding romanticRomantic musicRomantic music or music in the Romantic Period is a musicological and artistic term referring to a particular period, theory, compositional practice, and canon in Western music history, from 1810 to 1900....
implication, is more than arguably correct too. - While the bass-note ending the motif is a major third above the first bass-note of the motif, even an execution with a modulating progression for every repeat would not be unthinkable: Satie nowhere indicates that the "motif" (which is by definition a musical entity NOT tied to a particular key) or the "bass theme" is to be executed at the same pitch every time.
Although, formally, there is no unambiguous indication either that the Vexations should be played on the piano, there is however little doubt that this is the intended instrument, an execution on another keyboard instrument
Keyboard instrument
A keyboard instrument is a musical instrument which is played using a musical keyboard. The most common of these is the piano. Other widely used keyboard instruments include organs of various types as well as other mechanical, electromechanical and electronic instruments...
- like e.g. the then popular harmonium
Harmonium
A harmonium is a free-standing keyboard instrument similar to a reed organ. Sound is produced by air being blown through sets of free reeds, resulting in a sound similar to that of an accordion...
- not being impossible.
Ornella Volta (from the Archives Erik Satie in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
) prepares a dossier with several studies regarding this work and its executions. This dossier, that as of July 2005 has not yet been published, will contain a full analysis and a facsimile reproduction of the original partition.
The team at MakerBot Industries
MakerBot Industries
MakerBot Industries is a Brooklyn, New York-based company founded in January 2009 by Bre Pettis, Adam Mayer, and Zach "Hoeken" Smith producing open source hardware, specifically 3D printers...
has programmed one of their robots to perform Vexations. It was performed for the public for the first time at a 2010 New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
Maker Faire
Maker Faire
Maker Faire is an event created by Make magazine to "celebrate arts, crafts, engineering, science projects and the Do-It-Yourself mindset".-Past events:The first was held April 22 – 23, 2006, at the San Mateo Fairgrounds...
. The performance was based on the one by Armin Fuchs in Dresden in the year 2000.
External links
- Description of the Vexations by Stephen Whittington, including a reduced image of the manuscript
- Serious Immobilities: On the centenary of Erik Satie's Vexations by Stephen Whittington
- A short harmonicHarmonyIn music, harmony is the use of simultaneous pitches , or chords. The study of harmony involves chords and their construction and chord progressions and the principles of connection that govern them. Harmony is often said to refer to the "vertical" aspect of music, as distinguished from melodic...
analysis of Vexations and a music sample (half a vexation) can be found on: http://www.satie-archives.com/web//samples.html - Understanding Satie's 'Vexations by Robert Orledge - This article includes an elaborate analysis of the Vexations compositional system, a facsimile and transcription of the Bonjour Biqui composition, etc...
- The Vexations recording homepage containing, amongst other interesting topics, a life recorded MIDI-version of the Vexations, and the EEG of the pianist Armin Fuchs during the 28 hours he played them, leading to the conclusion that a tranceAltered state of consciousnessAn altered state of consciousness , also named altered state of mind, is any condition which is significantly different from a normal waking beta wave state. The expression was used as early as 1966 by Arnold M. Ludwig and brought into common usage from 1969 by Charles Tart: it describes induced...
can't be avoided when keeping scrupulously to Satie's instructions. - Vexations and its performers by Gavin BryarsGavin BryarsRichard Gavin Bryars is an English composer and double bassist. He has been active in, or has produced works in, a variety of styles of music, including jazz, free improvisation, minimalism, historicism, experimental music, avant-garde and neoclassicism.-Early life and career:Born in Goole, East...
- web vex web form that allows a user to generate arbitrary length realizations of vexations (between 16 and 9999 repetitions).
- Complete Vexations MIDI version of Vexations.
- Pianoless Vexations performed on any instrument BUT the piano. At the Sculpture Center in New York on 6/11/2006.
- Vexations performance by Spencer Holden A recent 24 hour performance of Vexations by a young artist.
- Nicolas Horvath 's Vexations The first Vexations performance to have been integrally shoutcasted live on the internet without any cut or stop.