Danses de Travers I, II, and III by Erik Satie (transcribed for marimba)

This is from Satie’s Pieces Froides (Cold Rooms), Danses de Travers (Crossed-up Dances). These short, yet compositionally brilliant pieces are easily transcribed for marimba; I only had to make two very small changes at the end of the third movement. Personally, I think the piece sounds wonderful on the instrument, the constant eight notes allow the resonance of the marimba to create a pedal effect. The low end of the marimba captures the darkness and coldness of the first movement, yet with tasteful mallet choices, the brightness and unsettling nature of the second and third movement is also achievable. I got the idea from Nancy Zeltsman’s book; she has included the first movement (but not the second or third). In my opinion, while the individual movements are breathtaking, the listener cannot adequately understand Satie’s full musical intent without all three.