Transversal Time was composed by Rhodri Davies in 2017. For its starting point it assigns different time systems – Standard Time, Decimal Time and Hex Time – to individual musicians. As a composition it encompasses many of those sensations and perceptions of time that are embodied by music. Improvising musicians develop acute sensitivities to body clock, breath, pulses and the silent transformations of time-between-time. So a musician’s heightened, fluid time becomes enfolded in this narrative situated within the house of clocks, all of them ‘telling’ different times. Also buried under the surface of the piece is François Jullien’s book, In Praise of Blandness, an exploration of the ancient Chinese value system based on simplicity, extreme subtlety and the paradox of sounds that deepen in the mind of the listener if they are not fully sounded, better still left silent so that they retain something secret and virtual within. “In short,” writes Jullien, “they remain heavy with promise.” (David Toop)

Performed by: Ryoko Akama (electronic), Rhodri Davies (pedal harp, electric harp), Sarah Hughes (zither) Sofia Jernberg (vocals), Pia Palme (contrabass recorder), Adam Parkinson (programming), Lucy Railton (cello), Pat Thomas (piano, electronics), Dafne Vicente-Sandoval (bassoon).

Released by Contront Recordings. Co-commissioned by Huddersfield Contemporary Music Festival, Chapter and Counterflows and supported by PRS Foundation’s Beyond Borders.

Live performance recorded on the 13th of April 2018 at Chapter, Cardiff by Simon Reynell. Mastered by Simon Reynell