modal stasis
English composer
Definition
The deliberate avoidance of tonal direction and harmonic goal in Satie's music. Chords are juxtaposed without functional progression, creating a static, timeless quality quite unlike the directional harmony of the Romantic tradition.
Interpretive Guidance
Modal stasis requires the performer to resist the Romantic impulse to shape phrases toward a goal. In the Gymnopédies and Gnossiennes, each chord is equally weighted — there is no tension and release, only presence. Play each harmony as a colour rather than a function: it simply is, rather than wanting to become something else. Any crescendo toward a chord destroys the effect immediately.