Gymnopédie No. 1
Erik Satie · French, 1888 · solo guitar
Techniques
Rocking between Gmaj7 and Dmaj7
bars 1–4 →The piece opens on two chords that alternate bar by bar: Gmaj7 (3xx432) and Dmaj7 (xx0222). Play them softly and let each one ring through the whole bar.
A bass note on every first beat
bars 5–16 →The bass sounds on beat one and the melody floats above it. Satie's low piano notes are an octave higher here, so most of them fall on open strings.
Long notes that have to ring
bars 19–21 →The melody holds notes across the bar line. Keep the fretting finger down until the next melody note, even while the bass changes.
The two endings
bars 32–39 →The repeat is written out: bars 32–39 are the first ending and bars 71–78 the second, which closes in D minor.
Key and harmony
D major, rocking between Gmaj7 and Dmaj7. The middle passes through E minor and A minor, and the second ending closes in D minor. The shading on the circle of fifths shows how many of the 78 bars use each chord.
Chords and positions
Practice plan
Four steps, about a week each at 15 minutes a day. Each link opens the player at that bar and tempo.
-
STEP 150 BPM
The two chords
Play the Gmaj7–Dmaj7 introduction until the change is quiet and even.
Open bars 1–8 at 50 BPM → -
STEP 256 BPM
The first melody
Add the melody over the alternating chords.
Open bars 9–20 at 56 BPM → -
STEP 360 BPM
The middle and the first ending
Learn the turn to D minor and the first ending.
Open bars 21–39 at 60 BPM → -
STEP 466 BPM
The whole piece
Play all 78 bars, slowly and evenly, as Satie asks: lent et douloureux.
Open bars 1–78 at 66 BPM →
Related pieces
Guitar arrangement by easytabs.studio from the Mutopia Project piano edition typeset by Evin Robertson (public domain).