Playing hypocritically Eric Satie's piano music - surveyed by BRIAN HOWES '... all played straight and cleanly, as I expect Satie would have wished.'

Eric Satie was an eccentric both in his life and in his music. He hated sunshine and went out in the rain carrying his precious, unfurled umbrella. He was an isolate, and hated women. He was always immaculately dressed, but died an alcoholic and pauper. His room was left in a squalid and chaotic state. The titles of his piano works could be bizarre in the extreme. One of the pieces on this disc, Croquis et agaceries d'un gros bonhomme en bois ('Sketches and Annoyances of a Fat, Wooden Bloke') [listen -- track 7, 0:22-1:16] is a good example. His directions to pianists could be described as a touch unhelpful. That for Unappetising Chorale (not on this disc) is: 'To be played hypocritically'. It is dated 'March, 1914 in the morning on an empty stomach'.

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