Gymnopédie No. 3
Erik Satie's Gymnopédie No. 3 (1888), marked Lent et grave (slow and grave), is a quiet piece in 3/4, Octotune grade 4 of 8. It is nearly all white keys: a low bass, a soft chord and a slow melody in every measure.
At a glance
| Composer | Erik Satie (1866–1925) |
|---|---|
| Difficulty | Beginner: grade 4 of 8 |
| Key | Key signature: no sharps or flats |
| Time | 3/4 |
| Tempo | 60 quarter-note beats a minute, as the app starts it (it can go slower) |
| Length | 60 measures, about 3:00 |
| Hands | both hands |
| Right hand | A3 to A5 |
| Left hand | G1 to G4 |
| On the path | Unit 9, Ledger lines |
It reaches past the staff: see ledger lines explained.
Levels in the app
| Version | Grade | Levels |
|---|---|---|
| Gymnopédie No. 3 | 4 of 8 | Melody, Melody and bass, Full |
Practice notes
Satie wrote his three Gymnopédies in 1888. The third is marked Lent et grave: slow and grave. Debussy later orchestrated it, together with No. 1.
How it is built. The same rocking pattern as its sisters: a low bass note on beat 1, a soft chord in the middle of the keyboard on beat 2, held through beat 3. The melody enters above them after a few measures of that pattern alone. Almost every note is a white key, with no key signature: only two accidentals are written in the whole piece.
The tricky parts
- Low bass notes. The left hand reaches down to a low G and A, far under the bass staff. Read them down from low C, on the second ledger line below it.
- The leap from bass note to chord, every measure. Find the chord by feel.
- Long notes. Melody notes of a whole measure or more. Count them out.
- Quiet. Everything is soft; the melody sings just above the chords.
Practice plan
- The melody alone with the Melody level in Wait for me. This is how Unit 9 plays it.
- The left hand's bass and chords, slowly, looking ahead to each bass note.
- Together, at a slow speed, then Play along.
In the path: Unit 9 for grown-ups plays the melody, a lesson in ledger lines. The lowest bass notes go below the ones the path teaches. Also try Gymnopédie No. 1.
Questions
Is Gymnopédie No. 3 easy?
It is a Beginner piece, Octotune grade 4 of 8, and the easiest of the three to read: almost every note is a white key. The work is the left hand's leaps and a calm, even tone.
Did Debussy orchestrate the Gymnopédies?
Yes, two of them: No. 1 and No. 3. The piano originals came first, in 1888.
Credits and license
- Music: Erik Satie (1866–1925)
- Typeset by Evin Robertson for the Mutopia Project
- License: Public Domain
- Source and printable sheet music: the Mutopia Project’s page for this piece