Michael Gees – ‘ImproviSatie’

Welcome to ‘Dodd’s DSD Discoveries’, a review series from NativeDSD Senior Music Reviewer Bill Dodd. This series focuses on Bill’s latest selections, with new reviews regularly.

When I saw the recent release of the Philipp Rüttgers Trio’s excellent jazz reimagining of music by Erik Satie, Re: Satie, Picturing the Invisible (see the link below), I remembered this older release, ImproviSatie, by Michael Gees. This one isn’t Jazz. Gees isn’t playing Satie, and he’s not reshaping Satie. Gees is improvising! It’s like he thinks about his own reactions to Satie and lets his fingers make the music that flows from those feelings.

It’s not easy to put into words. To me, he’s not trying to make more Satie music. He’s telling us what he feels from Satie. As I’ve said before, my favorite part of playing the piano as a kid was improvising, and that’s perhaps why I feel close to this album. Yes, you will hear a familiar Satie phrase from time to time, but what you won’t hear is someone making clever twists on that music. His own liner notes tell a more complete story.

It’s quiet, it’s gentle, and it’s the kind of music that makes the room feel a little softer. It’s good company. Take a little time and listen to the samples. If you enjoy the atmosphere that Satie can create, you may feel right at home here. And remember, these are one-off improvisations. The Challenge Classics recording quality is excellent!

Native also has these two excellent albums of his solo piano works:

And try out the Philipp Rüttgers Trio’s jazz album!