Erik Satie (1866–1925)
Erik Satie was a French composer and pianist, renowned for his unconventional and often humorous approach to music, which was ahead of its time and played a pivotal role in the development of modern music. Born on May 17, 1866, in Honfleur, France, Satie’s work was marked by a distinctive simplicity, originality, and wit, often challenging traditional forms and musical expectations.

Satie’s compositions are characterized by their minimalist, repetitive structures, unconventional harmonies, and unexpected juxtapositions of moods. His best-known works, such as Gymnopédies, Gnossiennes, and Trois morceaux en forme de poire, are celebrated for their introspective atmosphere, gentle rhythms, and subtle, evocative textures. These pieces, particularly the Gymnopédies, are considered some of the earliest examples of Impressionism in music, and they influenced not only the composers of his time, including Claude Debussy, but also the development of later movements such as minimalism and ambient music.

Beyond his music, Satie was a colorful and eccentric figure, known for his distinctive personality and his willingness to break with tradition. His work often reflected his unconventional philosophy of life, and he frequently infused his music with humor, surrealism, and even absurdity. He coined terms like "furniture music" to describe his experimental, ambient-style compositions, which anticipated the avant-garde developments of the 20th century.

Satie was a key figure in the French avant-garde movement and collaborated with notable artists, including Jean Cocteau and Pablo Picasso. Although he struggled financially and was often overlooked during his lifetime, his influence grew posthumously, and today he is regarded as one of the most innovative and idiosyncratic composers of the early 20th century.

The Erik Satie profile on SoundCloud is dedicated to showcasing his timeless compositions, offering a variety of interpretations of his works. From the iconic piano solos to orchestral arrangements, this profile brings Satie’s unique musical vision to life, allowing listeners to experience the subtle beauty, humor, and innovation that define his legacy.precursor to later artistic movements such as minimalism, repetitive music, and the Theatre of the Absurd.

Justin Muncy is a Los Angeles based EDM Producer/Artist and DJ. Inspired by EDM Pop, Progressive House, Electro House, Synth Pop, Future Bass, and Rock & Roll, Justin combines his broad musical tastes to create highly melodic dance music.
 
Justin has toured with Pop artists: Rebecca Black, and Rainsford; completed session guitar work with numerous artists in a variety of genres including: Pop, Alternative, Rock, CCM, Singer/Songwriter, Country, and Worship; and has appeared on E!’s Nightly Pop accompanying Rebecca Black and Disney's "Oh My Disney" with AJ Rafael.
 
Justin's work behind the scenes as a producer includes the single "Anyway" by Rebecca Black which has accumulated over 1 million streams world wide and was featured on KIIS FM, Dean Guevarra's "Remember (Born To Save), and a remix of Lord & Lady's "The Lift."

A self-taught pianist from the age of 7, Dustin O’Halloran’s personal histories give us some clue to the thickly-woven tapestries of his music: he has lived in LA (where he studied art at Santa Monica College and formed the much-adored Devics with Sara Lov), Italy (in the depths of rural Emilia Romagna) and Berlin. His arresting, heartbreaking music is as much an elegant exercise in nuance and grace as it is a pure, intuitive, personal expression – and here is where we see some explanation into Dustin’s quiet rise to notoriety and his continued ascension.



Having gained serious recognition with his stunning score to Sofia Coppola’s 2006 film Marie Antoinette (which sits neatly alongside his soundtrack work for William Olsen’s An American Affair (2010) and Drake Doremus’ Sundance-winning Like Crazy (2011),



Dustin has quickly become one of the most recogniseable names in the broad-reaching “post-classical” field, a definition of the genre rather than vice-versa. Now sitting alongside peers and friends Max Richter, Hauschka and Johann Johannsson (who, incidentally, aided Dustin in mixing his newest album) on FatCat’s dedicated orchestral imprint 130701, new album Lumiere is a glowing addition to O’Halloran’s musical canon, at once an amalgamation of everything that his music has been leading up to, and an unprecedented step forwards in terms of timbral palette and harmony. Featuring NYC’s ACME Quartet, Stars Of The Lid’s Adam Wiltzie and prodigious young composer Peter Broderick among the guest musicians, the scale of Lumiere is expansive: “it made me realize how important it is to find players that truly understand what you do and to create a language with them,” writes Dustin.



Dustin’s rock background - primarily with Bella Union’s “dream-pop” outfit Devics – has yielded an unassuming, perceptive approach to composing modern classical pieces. Inspired by, among others, Arvo Part,  Philip Glass, Hans Otte, John Luther Adams, Olivier Messiaen, Ennio Morricone, Gavin Bryars, there is no lack of articulation or academic musicality in Dustin’s work, but there is also none of the aloofness or detachment that is so readily perceived around contemporary classical music. This can perhaps be attributed to the environments in which Dustin has worked - Lumiere is full of those rare elements of life shared by both vibrant cities and lush countrysides: colour, both organic and rich, sensorial intrigue and a deep awareness of space. Or perhaps it is a product of Dustin’s synaesthesia, a condition he first noticed around the time of his performance at New York’s Guggenheim Museum for their Kandisnky retrospective and 50th anniversary gala. Able to visualize his compositions as vividly as a painter might see his own work, Dustin’s expressiveness is beyond compare.



Lumiere will be Dustin’s third solo full-length, following Bella Union albums released in 2004 and 2006 respectively (Piano Solos vol. 1 and Piano Solos vol. 2). These two records were originally opportunity for Dustin to express a non-Devics creative streak: gently and privately pieced together piano suites written and recorded on a beautifully-restored 1920’s Sabel piano in his Italian farmhouse. The compositions, however, gradually grew into fully-formed solo pieces as Dustin’s ambitions and designs developed. The path, of course, would eventually lead him to Lumiere’s majestic, swooning ensemble arrangements and a focus-shift away from the piano as his work’s primary timbre without losing any of the affection for the instrument that bore his first two records.



A sublime solo live album - entitled Vorleben – will be released by FatCat / 130701 in June.

Max Richter trained in composition and piano at Edinburgh University, at the Royal Academy of Music, and with Luciano Berio in Florence.

On completing his studies, Max co-founded the iconoclastic classical ensemble Piano Circus, where he stayed for ten years, commissioning and performing works by Arvo Pärt, Brian Eno, Philip Glass, Julia Wolfe and Steve Reich.

In the late 90s he worked with a number of electronic artists, notably Future Sound of London on their album 'Dead Cities". He subsequently collaborated with FSOL over a period of two years, also contributing to the albums "The Isness" and "The Peppermint Tree and Seeds of Superconsciousness". Max also collaborated with Mercury Prize winner Roni Size, on "In the Mode".

In June 2002, Max released his debut solo album, "memoryhouse", recorded with The BBC Philharmonic Orchestra. This was followed in March 2004 by FatCat's release of "The Blue Notebooks", with featured readings by Tilda Swinton.

In 2005 Max produced Vashti Bunyan's outstanding comeback album "Lookaftering".

2006 saw the release of "Songs From Before" based on Haruki Murakami texts read by Robert Wyatt. That same year, Max began performing "from The Art of Mirrors", an evolving score to previously unseen Super 8mm films of Derek Jarman.

Max's more recent work continues to stretch the notions of what Classical music is.  ‘24 Postcards In Full Colour’, released in August 2008, is an experimental work made up of 24 composed ringtones.

Max works widely in film music, installation and the theatre, most recently on INFRA, made with Wayne MacGregor and Julian Opie for The Royal Ballet, London. The Ballet was the subject of a BBC 'making of' documentary.

Max was named 2008 European Composer Of The Year for his score to Ari Folman's Waltz With Bashir, for which he was also nominated for the Prix France Musique.

More info: www.nilsfrahm.com

Management: 
felix(at)agentur-grimm(dot)com


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