Gymnopédie No. 1 and Gnossienne No. 3 by Erik Satie (1866-1925) By Valérie Duchâteau. After studying at the Paris Conservatory in his youth, Erik Satie, an already accomplished musician, went to perfect his knowledge of counterpoint and orchestration at the Schola Cantorum with Vincent d'Indy and Albert Roussel… at the age of 40! Artistically, Satie was a singular personality trying to escape the aesthetic domination of the Wagnerian movement, which he certainly considered too grandiloquent for him. His harmonic innovations, his formal liberties and the simplicity of his themes made a great impression on impressionist musicians such as Claude Debussy and Maurice Ravel. The name "gymnopédie" refers to religious festivities practiced in Sparta, in Ancient Greece, while "gnossienne" designates a philosophical-religious concept. In the manuscript of this last work without barlines, Satie wrote in red ink evocative instructions for the performer ("Equip yourself with clairvoyance", "Open your head", etc.). Surprisingly, Satie once wrote: "In art, I like simplicity; the same in cooking"...