Satie

Married and divorced three times, he is survived by two sons, Satie and Sharron.

Early in the pandemic, he spun his “house concert” livestreams into a marathon of Satie’s “Vexations” that raised money for artist relief.

Melodies are simple and elegant, like those of Satie.

McDermott’s childhood memories are matched by naïvely excited music; the flotation tank, by a soporific étude; the simulated coma, by music so shapeless yet alluring that it could have been written by Satie.

Here, Satie revels in repetition and propulsion, employing patterning techniques later made trademarks of Steve Reich or Terry Riley.