This year marks 90th year since BGM pioneer Erik Satie`s death

Korean traditional folk song "Doraji Taryeong" was played last week at the St. Mark`s Square in Venice, Italy. A group of people had asked a concert party there composed of piano, violin and double bass to play a Korean song.

운하의 도시에서 고국 민요를 듣는 느낌이 묘했습니다. 누군가가 “커피 마시는데 ‘브금’ 죽이네!” 했습니다. “브금이 뭐예요? 불금도 아니고?” “아, BGM 말이에요. 백그라운드 뮤직(배경음악)!” 오늘날 어디에나 음악이 있습니다. 카페에서도, 숙녀복이나 구두 매장에서도 흥겹고 달콤한 선율이 들려옵니다. 이른바 BGM입니다. 오디오의 보급 덕에 연주자가 매번 수고하지 않아도 음악을 재생할 수 있게 된 덕이죠.

It felt odd but wonderful to hear a Korean folk song performed at "the city of canals." One person said, "This is real good! A wonderful song with a cup of coffee. The BGM is just fantastic! I mean, the background music." Yes. Music is everywhere today. You can hear merry tunes in cafes, clothing stores and shoe stores. They are all BGM. Thanks to spread of audios, music can be played without the performer having to be present every time.

BGM was a non-existent concept in the 19th century. Noblemen prior to the era of Haydn and Mozart, invited guests to their home for dinner party and hired musicians to perform there. However, as the concept of "noble musicians, a mental hero" spread, music appreciation became an activity that required extreme concentration.

French composer Erik Satie (1866-1925) made efforts to fundamentally change this kind of concept. The created the concept of "furniture music" or "musique d`ameublement" in French. He said that music should be experienced like furniture that is there all the time but not noticed. Today, music can be heard everywhere, and this originates from Satie`s endeavors.

His piano piece "The Gymnopédies" is really comfortable to listen to just like furniture. Simplicity, pureness and sharpness are the features of his music. Such artistic musician promoted welfare activities in slum areas in Paris in the 20th century, which was little known to the world. July 1 marks the 90th year since Satie`s death.

Let us listen to his piano pieces this week. Though the titles of his music are odd, including "Desiccated embryos (Embryons Desseches)" and "Flabby preludes for a dog (Préludes flasques pour un chien)," they are all very comfortable to listen to.