Welcome to A Body of Time.

This work is an ongoing project that gently examines music’s relationship with time. When I began thinking about this work, I was considering the way a musical score is, at its essence, a time-keeping device. Thinking about how rhythm is embedded in music notation while also capturing a moment in the composer’s life was the starting point and I realised these small videos I’d been making since 2016 functioned in the same manner. Time loops in on itself as this recorded material provides both rhythmic impetus and an aesthetic impression the performers.

I am often rearranging paradigms of performance in my practice, and through this examination of the score I am again undoing traditional power hierarchies implicit in Western classical music. In A Body of Time, and much of my work, the role of the composer shifts to that of facilitator. I propose this video score as an alternative notation, which leaves the musical priorities to be determined by the performer and instead provides a framework from the composer. Presenting the work in this manner encourages the listener to see the performer-composer relationship akin to a conversation between the two parties, creating a framework of generosity and liberty in which each can speak freely.

As such, there is no wrong way to perform this work, but I have included some recommendations here in the guidelines section.