Harmony of the Spheres

Featuring the inventive and original music of Richard Rijnvos, and soloists Naomi Sato (traditional Japanese sho), and Timothy Chan (Chinese sheng), Harmony of the Spheres provocatively links music and thought of distant past and present day. Rijnvos’ music includes the premiere of Aphrodite for solo sho and strings, a work which references the proportions of the solar system and the ‘drones’ emitted by the orbits of the planets (musica universalis) as theorized by the ancient Greek philosopher Pythagoras. The concert also pairs Rijnvos’ Riflesso sull’ incontro, a companion piece to Edgard Varèse’s iconic 100-year old composition Octandre, and includes Owen Underhill’s Gossamer Thread- Yousi Shu for solo sheng and ensemble, a composition based on a rare unorthodox form of Chinese calligraphy developed in the early twelfth century that resembles floating cobwebs.