erik satie
socrate (1918)



Portrait de Socrate (Susan Bickley, Alcibiade and Eileen Hulse, Socrate)
Bords de l'Ilissus (Eileen Hulse, Socrate and Susan Bickley, Phedre)
Mort de Socrate (Patricia Rosario, Phédon)

The 'symphonic drama' Socrate was written between January 1917 and spring 1918, and is one of Satie's best and most ambitious works. It was originally commissioned by the Princess Edmond de Polignac in October 1916. Written in three parts for voice (four sopranos) and small orchestra (or piano), the text is extracted from three Platonic dialogues translated by Victor Cousin and depicts the last days of the ancient Greek philosopher Socrates, who is condemned to death by the citizens of Athens for corrupting the young men of the city.

The subtitle 'symphonic drama' belies the understatement and economy of Socrate, which Satie aimed to make 'white and pure like antiquity', and is a paradigm of Apollinaire's cult of restraint. To achieve this whiteness, Satie claimed that he ate only white foods. The thirty minute composition reveals little drama in the music; rather, the drama is found almost entirely in the text. Socrate can also be compared to his earlier Rosicrucian music, as well as the more contemporary musique d'ameublement (furniture music). The result is an enduring work of simple, haunting and lucid beauty, and one totally lacking in pretension.

Satie was immensely proud of Socrate, and believed that the work had the potential to make him famous, and possibly rich. Indeed it was even intended to be the highlight of an American tour he proposed to Henri-Pierre Roché (the author of Jules et Jim) in December 1918, although none of these things came to pass.

The three parts of Socrate may be translated as Portrait of Socrates, The Banks of the Illissus and Death of Socrates. These texts were extracted from Plato's Symposium (32-33-35), Phaedrus (4-5) and Phaedo (3-23-25-28-65-67) respectively. The first (private) performance of parts of the work took place in April 1918 at the Princess de Polignac's salon, with Satie at the piano and Jane Bathori singing all four parts. The first public performance of the orchestra version came in June 1920. Cheap Imitation by John Cage is based on Socrate, as were two choreographies by Merce Cunningham, Idyllic Song and Second Hand.

Socrate also boasts a Cubist connection. Satie wrote that he owed this 'return to classical simplicity' to his 'Cubist friends' Pablo Picasso and Georges Braque, while Constantin Brancusi was inspired to create three sculptures by his work: Plato, Socrates and Socrates' Cup.

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