Description
Je te veux (I want you) is a valse chantée by the French composer, Erik Satie (1866 – 1925). It was written at the height of the Parisian Belle Époque, at some point between 1897 and 1902. At the time Satie was struggling to make ends meet: he’d twice failed to graduate from the Paris Conservatoire on account, his tutors remarked, of his laziness and lack of talent. Satie resorted to arranging, playing and composing for the cabaret at ‘Le Chat Noir’ nightclub. Although his output at that time couldn’t be described as ambitious, it was engaging and popular – and it kept the money coming in. In later life Satie rejected all of his music from this period as being vile and contrary to his true nature.
Despite his later objections Je te veux is still very popular today and was certainly one of the most commercially successful pieces he produced during this period. It is a sentimental waltz with – what were then considered – erotic lyrics by Henry Pacory. It is thought that he wrote the song for Paulette Darty – a Parisian burlesque chanteuse, whose accompanist Satie had been for some time.
Written originally for voice and piano, Satie produced several other versions of the piece, no doubt needing to capitalise on its popularity. He added a middle, trio, section to his version for solo piano – which is also included in this arrangement for clarinet quartet by Graham Sheen.
