All white now.
On Saturday, the inimitable Town Bikes had a film shoot for their upcoming DVD. It was a tribute to composer Erik Satie , shot by Cass Relax Baby and featuring a mob of us dressed in all white and frolicking around the Botanical gardens.
Some Satie background for your reference:
'For some people, Erik Satie is known as an eccentric who gave his works odd titles that seem almost derisive and ridicolous:
'Chilled Pieces, Drivelling Preludes (for a Dog), Dried up Embryos ...'
Many believe that this was not only a result of his bizarre wit but also a way of offending the music critics at the time. It was known that Satie didn't like music critics and that the feelings were mutual.
Those performing his works are well aware of his weird instructions to the performer.
The instructions are meant as a dialogue between the composer and the performer only:
'To whoever. I forbid anyone to read the text aloud during the musical performance. Failure to obey to my instruction will provoke my just indignation against anyone so presumptuous. No exception to this rule will be granted.'
From the short piano piece, titled Vexations (1893):
'To play this motif 840 times in succession, it would be advisable to prepare oneself beforehand, in the deepest silence, by serious immobilities.''
I didn't really know much about him 'til Gabi worded me up and even then all I really knew was this picture:
Plus the fact that he had a few strange habits:
'My only nourishment consists of food that is white: eggs, sugar, grated bones, the fat of dead animals, veal, salt, coco-nuts, chicken cooked in white water, fruit-mould, rice, turnips, camphorised sausages, pastry, cheese (white varieties), cotton salad, and certain kinds of fish (without their skin). I boil my wine and drink it cold mixed with the juice of the Fuschia. I am a hearty eater, but never speak while eating, for fear of strangling....I have also subscribed for some time to a fashion magazine. I wear a white cap, white stockings, and a white waistcoat.'
Combine that with a little Bike action and you end up with this:
I heart art.
912 days til the next election.
Comments
All I know about him before was that he did the music for the dada film Entr'acte, which has a scene with a runaway camel pulling a hearse. Think of an episode of the goodies made by pretentious frenchmen in high collars. Choice.
"know" should read "knew". Just so you'd knew I knew.
Didn't he also pen Trois Gymnopedies, one of my favourite pieces to play on the piano?
Bowie tried emulating the "white diet" thing during his "I don't know what I'm doing years" (74-75 in LA).
It was all white fluids (milk), white food (egg whites) and white powder for the thin white duke.
Around this time he also pissed in jars and refridgerated EVERY sample for fear that a satanic cult were trying to clone him.
See, kids, that's what happens when you cut up a line of coke along the full length of your diving board.
Well that has provided me with miles of entertainment. What the fuck?!! How do you find out about these freaks
Darling, is that you in the back with the bare legs and the feather bower in your hair?
Now that would be telling.
I may be in there somewhere. I may be the person taking the photo.
*throws smoke bomb, disappears in mysterious wispy explosion*
What a great composer, I remember my guitar teacher sitting me down and making me learn Trois Gymnopedies. It was one of the rare occasions that I was appreciative of the fact that Joffa was teaching me something
that I previously did not have an interest to learn.
Hey, Vexations isn't short if you play it the requisite 840 times - it takes about 18 hours. Someone played it in a cafe in Prahran about a year ago.
OK so this isn't a comment, per se, it's a request. ...
Dear MsFits,
It's a boring story, but thanks to the effortless power of Google, I have reason to believe you are related to the late, great Mary Hardy of IMT fame.
If that is so, I'd REALLY appreciate it if you could get in touch with me (email: dunks58@milesago.com).
I'm researching a profile on Mary for my website (www.milesago.com) and there is bugger-all information about Mary anywhere on the web. I have a few bare facts but really nothing substantial. Can you help, please? This lack of recognition is a shame as she was really one of the great comediennes of her era and I'd really like to be able to provide some decent information about her.
By way of a 'contra', I can supply you (assuming you don't have it) with a rather sweet videotape of Mary, ca. 1968, co-starring in the never-screened 1/2-hour TV pilot "Once Upon A Twilight", with pop group The Twilights. They sucked, BTW, but she's really good in it.
Anyway, if you can help out, or point me to some more info, I'd be eternally grateful.
many thanks
dunks
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