G. I. GURDJIEFF 23 Pieces Pour for Piano 10" vinyl RARE

$

50

G.I. GURDJIEFF
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RARE 10" on Editions Janus - Paris No. 008

G.I. GURDJIEFF: 23 PIÈCES POUR PIANO, VOL. I.   Author: Gurdjieff / de Hartmann Published by Paris Editions Janus N.D., C. 1950. Volume one of two containing 10 selections; 10 inch, 45 rpm LP.   _________   The LP does not state who performers are; According to 'Gurdjieff: An Annoted Bibliography' these were receorded by Carol Robinson but the forthcoming book, 'It's Up to Ourselves' by Jessmin and Dushka Howarth states that some pieces were performed by Carol Robinson and some by Jeanne de Salzmann; There is an indication that Mrs. de Salmzmann performed the concert pieces and Mrs. Robinson the movements but this is likely not definitive.   Disk is in very good condition with no major visible surface flaws. There is a bit of noise, but no major pops or cracks. The card envelope (dust jacket) is in very good condition with only a bump here or there, but very vibrant as rthe photos will attest.   Don't let this one get away!!!








  His name was George Ivanovich Gurdjieff (pronounced "gur-jeef" or "gur-jeff"), and he proved to be one of the most challenging, paradoxical, and enigmatic spiritual teachers of our time. His principal biographer called him "a fraud, a liar, a cheat, a scoundrel" - and then went on to note his "sympathy, compassion, charity," and his "eccentric code of honor."1 He is chiefly remembered for imparting, through the most extraordinary and difficult methods, the fundamentals of an esoteric system known as the Fourth Way - also called, austerely, "the Work."   What is this Fourth Way? Gurdjieff said there were three comparatively common ways to spiritual attainment: the way of the fakir, that is, the man who masters his physical organism to the point where he can, say, stand "motionless in the same position for hours, days, months, or years."2 The second is the way of the monk, the man who masters his emotions through prayer and devotional practices. The third way is the way of the yogi, the man who gains control of his mind.   Yet, Gurdjieff believed, none of these ways is complete in itself. A man, for example, may master his mind - he may genuinely know something - but may be incapable of putting it into action. Or his emotions may be developed, but his intellect may remain at a primitive state. To compound these difficulties, each of these first three ways requires withdrawal from the world, from day-to-day life.   Then there is the Fourth Way - "the way of the sly man." It does not require withdrawal from the world, but can be pursued in the midst of ordinary life. And instead of working with just the mind, the emotions, or the body, it works with all three. It is, Gurdjieff claimed, faster and more efficient than the other ways. "The 'sly man' knows the secret," said Gurdjieff, "and with its help outstrips the fakir, the monk, and the yogi."3   So who was this Gurdjieff man? What secret did he possess, and was he able to pass it on?   About his early life little is known. Even his surname is questionable; perhaps it was originally "Gurdjian" or even "Georgiades," the racial salad of the Caucasus - where Gurdjieff was born - occasionally imposing the convenience or necessity of name-changes upon its inhabitants. His birth date? His passport said 1877, but some believe he was born as early as 1873 or as late as 1886. His birthplace can be fairly well established as Alexandropol (now Leninakan), a small town on the Russo-Turkish border. His father was Greek, his mother Armenian.4   So much can be said. But of the rest of the first thirty-seven years (more or less) of Gurdjieff's life, we have no other authority than his own written works, particularly the autobiography Meetings with Remarkable Men. Entertaining and profound as it is, much of this book is clearly not literal truth. Curious seekers and even serious scholars have invoked speculation, rumor, and sheer fiction to fill the gap.   The most intriguing part of Gurdjieff's legend is one he fostered himself: that he began, at an early age, on a search for some deeper truth about man and the universe. Along with a small band of fellow seekers, he eventually made his way to a school in Central Asia called the Sarmoun Brotherhood and there learned the secrets he would later impart to his students.











    That is a reflection in the vinyl surface, not a scuff.

de Hartmann Tsabropoulos

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