Recorded in 1993, John White's refined performances of Erik Satie's piano works were released on Arte Nova in 1995. Except for the familiar Gnossiennes No. 4 and No. 5, most of the pieces here were selected from the less frequently played works; therefore, listeners seeking the famous and widely arranged Trois Gymnopédies will need to look elsewhere. But many of the pieces convey the same poignant feeling and rarefied atmosphere that Satie cultivated in the Gymnopédies, most notably in the Prélude de La Porte héroïque du ciel, the Sonneries de la Rose + Croix, and the Four Preludes. White's playing in all these miniatures is uniformly clean, evenly controlled in tone, and almost deadpan in expression, which is suitable for this enigmatic and subdued music. The quiet mood of these pieces and the ambience of this recording may appeal to fans of music for relaxation, and of works by similar composers, such as
Federico Mompou or Manuel Blancafort, whose piano pieces have a similar simplicity and chaste quality, though with fewer eccentric harmonies, odd interruptions, and contrary melodies. Arte Nova's recording is clear and crisp, so White's sound is ideally reproduced with virtually no extraneous noises.