Enfantines

Erik Satie, known mainly for his Gnossiennes and Gymnopédies, composed three collections of three pieces each for children learning the piano in the fall of 1913. Although composed for children, these nine pieces clearly contain Satie’s own sound world so they can be more than enjoyed by adults.

All pieces are each composed for one ten-finger position, meaning that the ten fingers play ten adjacent white keys throughout the entire piece. The hands should not be moved during a full piece. In this sense, then, the pieces are pleasant and barely noticeable finger exercises for the beginner. A ‘piano keys-notes’ diagram at the head of each piece shows this ten-finger position of both hands. This makes the start when learning a piece easy and clear.

In this NOTUS* publication, the nine pieces are not arranged chronologically by date of composition as all classic editions are. In the NOTUS publication, the pieces have been rearranged according to increasing piano difficulty. This corresponds more closely to Satie's intention of practice pieces for children. This publication is situated between the end of the NOTUS Piano Foundation Textbook and the first part of the NOTUS Piano Textbook 1, so the level of ‘beginner’.

The booklet also contains a brief introduction to reading NOTUS Music Notation*.

*: NOTUS Music Notation is an independent new music notation that is easy and very quick to learn. It is equivalent to classical music notation (for all instruments and all levels of difficulty). It is ideally suited for the adult beginner and for all those who have difficulty learning complex classical music notation. To learn NOTUS: start with the NOTUS Piano Foundation Textbook 'Learn all notes and all keys. Quick and Easy!'