Transversal Times: Beyond Borders
Transversal Time is a new work for voice and ensemble by UK harpist and composer Rhodri Davies. Inspired by Davies’ childhood spent surrounded by watches and clocks all stating different times – both his grandfather and his father repaired and sold watches – Transversal Time takes as its starting point different clocks which adhere to different time systems, including Standard Time, Decimal Time, and Hex Time. Its lyrics will draw upon the writings of Francois Jullien, in particular his book In praise of Blandness: Proceeding from Chinese Thought and Aesthetics, where he writes about the ancient Chinese notion of the richness of a bland sound, a bland meaning, a bland painting and a bland poem.