Max's Musings

Soundtrack, Feb 18, Gymnopédies

Dante, the protagonist in "Dreamin' Life Away" , is a multiple failure as an artiist.

He hears a street-musician pianist playing this song in the subway that takes him to Tulsa in the 1950s, and remembers being laughed at when he played it for his audition to Juilliard. The music has a grave, despondent tone, which fits with the kind eerie vibe of this story. In addition, the title reference an ancient Greek term for the naked dance young Spartan warriors did. That connects it to the tension between Dante and his (apparenlty) murdered lover. So the mood and the title fit with "Chapter 7--So What, Gymnopédies" .

Satie wrote these three dances for piano in the 1890s, when his popularity was fading. However, other musicians have taken up the work. Most notably, Blood Sweat and Tears included a version in their 1969 album, which is the version linked below. That same album includes other amazing songs, including their version of Laura Nyro's "And When I Die."