Archive for July, 2010


Origin of Erik Satie’s "Gnossiennes"



The ‘trois Gnossiennes’ (1890) is a set of dance-like pieces of similar character, like the earlier composed ‘trois Sarabandes’ (1887) and ‘trois Gymnopédies’ (1888). The ‘trois Gnossiennes’ were first published by Satie as a set through Rouart, Lerolle & Cie. in 1913.

The Gnossiennes continue in the minimalist style of the Gymnopédies but add ornaments that give the pieces a destinctly oriental feel. Although the pieces are obviously composed in a 4/4 time signature, Satie did not indicate it in the score. He also omitted barlines, leaving one big “bar” for the entire piece. This gives the impression of great freedom for the pianist. The comments written above the score, like ‘Du bout de la pensée’ (from the tip of the thought) and ‘Postulez en vous même’ (wonder about yourself) also give much room for interpretation. This has proven to be true since there are few pieces in piano literature that have been interpretated in such diverse ways as the Gnossiennes.

The name ‘Gnossiennes’ can be explained in multiple ways. The ancient Greek word for ‘knowledge’ is ‘gnosis’. Gnosticism was the name of a religious-philosophical belief which has its origins in Greek philosophy as well as early Christian and Jewish Apocalyptic thoughts. In this belief ‘Gnosis’ stands for ‘True knowledge’, which is supposed to lead man to true emancipation. Gnosticism also played a great role in the beliefs of Joséphin Péladan’s (1859-1918) ‘Rose et croix’ sect. Satie’s collaboration with Péladan led him to take an interest in partly-heretical views. It is possible that the title of these works is an hommage to gnosticism.

The most common explanation however is that the title refers to the ritual dances performed by the inhabitants of the island of Crete, with its capitol city Knossos, famous in Greek mythology for the story of its labyrinth, Theseus and the minotaur. In 1890 Crete was in the news because of archeological excavations. Other works by Satie from the same period were named after dances as well. Namely the ‘Sarabande’, a dance which was first introduced in Portugal in 1586 and the ‘Gymnopédie’ which has its origins in ancient Sparta. Even so, it is very unlikely that Satie, a member of the ‘Rose et croix’ from 1891 to 1892, was unaware of the gnosticism relation when the second Gnossienne was first publicly performed in 1893.

In 1967 french composer Robert Caby (1905-1992) revealed many of Satie’s posthumous and often untitled works, taken from sketchbooks and manuscripts. He named three of these pieces Gnossienne. These became Gnossienne 4, 5 and 6 respectively. The piece known as the fourth Gnossienne was composed in 1891, the fifth in 1889 and the sixth in 1897. These pieces were first published in 1968 by ed. Salabert.


Choosing the right Band name!

(Source:Wolfgangsvault.com/photography)
If you are planning to form a band, whether its a rock band, reggae, grunge rock, etc., you MUST first think of the right name for your band that will catch the fancy of your would be fans/market.
Like any other industry, some names are good and some are not. Stay away from names that leave you with a negative feeling or names that will raise the eyebrows of the listeners. Try to choose a name that is positive and reflects the moods and music of your band. Picking a name that is controversial can also be good, but be careful not to choose a name that gives off harmful signals.
If you can combine a great name with a great logo, you’ve got the best of both worlds. A memorable logo helps with band identification and also serves as a handy marketing/merchandising tool for you.
You begin the name selection process by asking each of your band member to compile a list of names. Spend a couple of days or even weeks putting each individual list onto a master list. Then, during a band meeting, begin reading off the names to see if any of them strikes a chord. If you didn’t came up with something from this meeting, don’t force it. Some of the most famous band names came accidentally.
Then, once you come up with a name you all agree on, live with it for a while before you go spending lots of money on flyers and business cards. Is this name really you? Does it say anything about the type of your music? Is it easy to pronounce and to memorize? The point is : You’ve got to live with the name of your band—you’ve got to be proud to see it, to say it and to write it. And that’s all that really matters.(Source:Mediawebsource)


Blues Bass Guitar and How to Play It



There are a variety of different ways to learn how to play bass guitar and the varieties all can have an impact on how you learn. For instance, if you wish to play blues music bass lessons for blues music would be really focused on your style but bass lessons can be taken for all styles, genres and levels.

There are even differences in wanting to be solo musician playing around the house for fun and playing in a band which will cause variations in how you should learn your new instrument. You may wish to concentrate on bass scales or perhaps you just want to help the drums anchor the sound. It may sound like a tough choice if you are unaware of what style you want to learn but it may help you in the long run.

If you want to become an excellent bass guitarist then you should always strive to learn new and interesting skills on your instrument. It is clearly not enough to know how to play your favorite instrument; you should always be looking to find new techniques and ways of playing.

Learn blues bass guitar and rock the house

You may prefer a particular style of music over many others and when you begin learning a new instrument but perhaps over time, you will develop a fondness for other styles or genres. This means that in the future you may feel the benefits from experiencing some different styles of playing bass guitar in your development period. This means that bass lessons can be invaluable at any stage of your playing career as there is always time to learn new skills and styles. People should always try to evolve and develop new skills and even their musical preferences can change over time. This is where learning styles like bass scales can open up a whole new style of playing. A person should always try to keep an open mind when it comes to learning different skills and styles.

Of course, no matter how many new skills and tricks you pick up, you should never forget about the basic either. A bass guitarist who is unable to play the basic styles and techniques will be found out very quickly and they will find it difficult to join bands or jam with other musicians. Always remember that no matter what new skills you pick up along the way you need to be able to play the basics.

Blues bass guitar can be fun.

At any point, you don’t know when you will be asked to join in with other musicians or perhaps help out other bands at short notice. Whether having this flexibility helps makes you popular at or just enables you to have some fun and good times, having a variety of skills is a great talent to have. Having a range of bass lessons can make a massive difference to your skill levels so if you want to become one of the best bass players in your area, you know what you have to do. Whether you want to learn flashy new skills or maybe even just learn about bass scales, it’s possible to do everything you could have ever wanted.

There is a great number of different skills involved with playing the bass guitar that it would be nigh on impossible to master everyone but having fun is surely the most important issue.