元亨利貞 易經計畫 場刊 The Book of Changes Programme Note

E -HOUSE PROGRAMME

THE BOOK OF CHANGES

Director’s Note

The I Ching Feel

Mathias Woo, Winter 2015

It was only when I began studying the I Ching that I realised that in the olden times Chinese people would start learning the I Ching at a very young age. Real national education should, therefore, focus on Chinese classical studies. Among Chinese classical studies, the I Ching is the foundation of them all. The education we have received since we were young focusses primarily on knowledge from the West. We feel so remote from Chinese classical studies, especially the texts of the I Ching which are so diverged from the western way of thinking. The amazing thing is that the gua (trigrams) of the I Ching are kind of similar to computer programming (coding), and the binary system used in the I Ching can also be found in the basics of our digital world today. The binary system of the I Ching has been transformed by the West into a mathematical language for understanding the world. By contrast Chinese people transformed the binary system into numerology for understanding destiny through divination. Scientific pursuits in the West aim to change the world; whereas Chinese numerology aims to change destiny. The Chinese revolutions 100 years ago changed the Chinese world. Chinese classical studies have been alienated completely, and Chinese people have been fully westernised. Everything in China now is implanted from the West, including education, housing, clothing.

Only those who are retired and can afford the luxury of time would be “interested” in studying the I Ching. Things never stay constant. The vigour of the I Ching lies in the fact that the book is not a kind of dead text.

Instead, it is a kind of living text. Every generation can re-learn and discover something new from the methods inherent in the book.

The I Ching is inter-disciplinary: the gua (the trigrams) is a type of mathematics; the text is written with a sense of poetic literariness; a story book made up of 64 stories with each story featuring six short stories. All of these make the I Ching a combined work of science, literature, philosophy and history.

Such a unique “Classic” finds no counterpart in other world civilisations.

We now live in a world full of instant changes which happen faster and faster all the time. Are the changes for better or worse? In what ways would human civilisation change and move forward at a point of its development nowadays? Chinese people need to focus on the study of the I Ching again in the coming century. The pursuit of mere economic growth in the West has to change, otherwise human beings cannot sur-

vive any longer. The four characters of Yuan Heng Li Zhen provide hints for reflecting on the current dilemma.

What is so special about the I Ching is that its essence is not confined to the text. The I Ching can be “acted out / performed / played”, felt, contemplated. It is a guide for action and behaviour that can be calculated. When the interaction between time, space, thought and

Zuni Icosahedron

www.zuni.org.hk

conceiving stage, some images and passages came up in my mind.

Some were abstract ones that could not be expressed through texts and images. Feelings must belong to this kind of abstract thing.

Feelings cannot be understood.

Feelings do not have a concrete existence.

Time and space manifest themselves only when changes take place.

Do time and space manifest themselves simultaneously?

Or they come in a sequence?

Space appears only after time has come?

Time appears only when there is space?

Is there a beginning to time?

Will eternal changes ever change?

You are sitting inside the theatre with your eyes closed with your heart open with your ears listening with your heart feeling the surrounding space with deep breathing one two three four five six seven eight nine days Open your eyes and see what cannot be seen; and see what can be seen.

Space. Breathing is time itself.

Eyes are space itself. Ears are feelings. It is magical.

Director, Designer & Text

Mathias Woo

The Book of Changes rundown sketch by Mathias Woo

action takes place, changes will be created.

Western culture emphasizes the dualities of goodness and evil; right and wrong. Are the dualities of yin and yang in the I Ching in interaction or opposition? To achieve harmony, yin and yang need to be complementary to each other, not battling each other with yin destroying yang, and yang destroying yin. The world’s present state of uncontrolled development is caused by the hegemonism of “Economy”. Other elements are missing to play a complemen-

tary or balancing role. Perhaps in the past when communism and capitalism, though on opposite ends, were complementary to each other and remained mutually interactive, the world was able to maintain some proper order to an extent. Today, run by the hegemony of capitalism and individualism, the world has gone so out of control. Global warming is one of the major problems that seems to have absolutely no solution. This is the yin and yang principle of the I Ching.

When this performance The Book of Changes was still in a

Co-Artistic Director cum Executive Director of Zuni Icosahedron, Mathias Woo leads a career as a scriptwriter, director, producer as well as curator, and is recognised for a portfolio of more than 60 original theatre works, which have been invited to cities around the globe including Tokyo, Singapore, Taipei, Berlin, Brussels, Krakow of Poland, Milan of Italy and Mainland China. Mathias’s theatre works explore subjects as wide-range as literature, history, architecture, religion, current political affairs. Woo is renowned for incorporating multimedia into theatre creation. The multimedia architectural musical series The Life & Times of Louis I. Kahn and Looking for Mies became the hallmark in the scene of Hong Kong theatre. His recent productions include Eighteen Springs, 1587, A Year of No Significance (an adaptation from historian Ray Huang’s book of the same title), Hua-Yen Sutra , East Wing West Wing Series, and Kunqu opera Tang Xianzhu’s Dream on Dreams, and A Tale of The Forbidden City. In 2009, Woo initiated and curated “Architecture is Art Festival”, the first of its kind themed on architecture in Hong Kong, which re-examines architecture from an artistic point of view, manifesting various artistic possibilities of architecture with different forms. In 2008, Mathias was invited to participate in the 11th International Architecture Exhibition of the Venice Biennale. In 2012, Mathias with Looking for Mies awarded by the Hong Kong Design Centre DFA Merit Award winners were selected. In 2013, Woo was awarded the Arts and Cultural Figure of the Year in Shenzhen and Hong Kong Lifestyle Award by Southern Metropolitan Daily.

Designing theatre costume for the first time Costume Designer

anothermountainman

At the beginning when the world was in its primordial chaos, humans covered the body with clothes in response to natural environments.

As a link between the body and the earth, clothes, made of rough linen and cotton, are part of nature, similar to mud, stone and mountain. Through talking about clothes, their past, present and future, the images of change of the I-Ching are being manifested...

anothermountainman (Stanley Wong)

Illustration: anothermountainman

After five years as a graphic designer, Wong started his career in the advertising industry and worked as a Chief Executive and Creative Director for many international advertising companies for fifteen years. Later, with his passion and enthusiasm for creative designs, Wong became a director for television commercials and established 84000 Communications in 2007 and branched out his artistic career.

Wong is the recipient of more than 600 Asian and international awards for his art, design, photography and advertising works. Many of his art works have been exhibited overseas in international museums and are now part of their permanent collection. In May 2012, Wong was also awarded the Artist of the Year 2011 (Visual Arts) from Hong Kong Arts Development Awards and the Hong Kong Contemporary Art Awards 2012 from Hong Kong Museum of Art. Additionally, anothermountainman is also very passionate in photography, focusing on the social issues. For the past 10 years, Wong gained international awareness with his ‘red white blue’ artwork collection, representing the ‘positive spirit of Hong Kong.’ He came to international attention with his “red white blue” series, which he presented at the 51st Venice Biennale in 2005 representing Hong Kong.

8:15pm

Grand Theatre Hong Kong Cultural Centre December 11-12, 2015 Accessible Performance with Cantonese Audio Description for December 12 Running time is approximately 80 minutes with no intermission. No language.

HONG KONG, December 11 - 12, 2015

THE BOOK OF CHANGES

Soloists in Action

II

Vocal Performance Producer

Rosaline Pi

A conception of true ensemble singing Rosaline Pi, November 28th, 2015 Keywords: tone color change, tonal blending, cross-over singing, singing atonality in music, true ensemble singing, Soloists in Action I have always wanted to set up a singing ensemble group like the one Zuni’s The Book of Changes project requires: solo singers are trained and developed to sing collaboratively as a small ensemble in which while each individual voice counts, it is the group voice that gets people’s attention.

I believe the art of singing culminates in a solo singer when she can sing contributively in an ensemble: the singer has the technical ability to fully control her voice and the music sensitivity to sing contributively. (In this article, for simplicity sake, I am using a “she” to stand for singers in general.)

She has the musical ears of wanting to fine tune her voice in order to blend into each other’s voice (tonal blending), strong musical sense that urges her to copy each other’s articulation, uncompromising sense of rhythmic pulsation that drives her to sing across voice parts seamlessly.

The purpose of tonal blending is to reach a stage of perfect harmony among the voices. For this, the first thing that is required of the individual singer is that she is in tune.

However, to be perfectly in tune with each other, this is not enough. It requires some of the singers to fine tune (to change the pitch by a few Hertz) her voice. Technically, this can be done in two ways: (1) to slightly adjust the force she applies at the palate to produce the desired pitch; (2) to slightly change her voice’s tone color by varying the size of her resonating cavity. Changing the size of the resonating cavity will, first of all, change the overtone combinations in the sound produced. And this action will also cause a slight change of the fundamental frequency itself. As a result of blending, no one voice stands out, tonality is adhered and harmony is enforced.

Furthermore, as a result of imitative articulation among the voices and seamless voice crossing, the group voice sounds as one. It is as if there is only one voice singing continuously across the different voice parts.

This kind of “true ensemble singing” can only be done by competent classically trained solo bel canto singers with high music sensitivity. When things are done correctly, while the presence of one’s voice goes unnoticed (because this is totally blended into the others’), its absence will (because harmony and color of sound suffer).

But why would anyone of the caliber of a solo singer be interested to sing in an ensemble? This is because it is the greatest joy to make good music together with fellow musicians alike. The experience is like playing in a string quartet: TOGETHER the musicians make music. True ensemble singing is NOT choral singing: it is bel canto singing applied fully to part singing. True ensemble singing is also not what we normally call a cappella singing. This is because reaching perfect harmony within a much wider vocal range and complex tonal structure is more difficult in the former.

I believe Soloists in Action is the first attempt in HK, or even in the world, for true ensemble singing. I am grateful that the Zuni Project has given me the opportunity to work out this idea of mine.

The unique singing challenges in the Zuni Project – atonality and cross-over singing In addition to true ensemble singing, singing in the Zuni’s project faces two other major challenges: singing atonality in music and cross-over singing.

Singing atonality in music Yu’s (Yu Yat-yiu) music written for this Project fits the Project’s theme (The Book of Changes) perfectly. Though the

music is written for six solo singers, to do justice to Yu’s music, it is the total sound of the singers that needs to come across: if the music is to leave the audiences with the feeling of “changes”, the changes are not those brought forth among voices, but changes in the total sound. Hence tonal blending is important: the audiences need not hear any individual voice, but one voice from six singers.

By tonal blending, I refer to the situation where frequencies (including overtones) produced in all voices are simple fractions of each other at any given time. This requires the singer to be, first of all, in pitch herself, and, secondly, fine tune her pitch, if required, at the note in order to hear a totally blended sound. As a result of tone blending, tonality and harmonization is warranted. The reverse is also true: it is the quest in the singer for tonality and harmonization perfection that makes her want to tonally blend with the other voices.

But, now, here comes the real problem: the music written is not exactly tonal, yet it is not exactly atonal, per atonality’s exact definition. It is basically tonal but the tonality changes once every few bars, yet the change cannot be said to be what we normally know as modulations in music theory. If the singer is perfect pitch, which is rarely the case, she can, in theory, sight sing the music. However, her intonation would be too perfect to harmonize with the other voices for the tonality then given that this has just been changed in the music. And if the singer is relative pitch, this is where the fine tuning I mentioned above comes to play. But it is still necessary that she has good ears to want to fine tune in the first place and can do so successfully. To recognize tonality and closely observe it at any time during singing, to practice hard enough to remember the tonality shifts and, at times, to sing simply by interval skips from one note to the next are the three musical abilities required of the singers to do justice to Yu’s music. But when everything is done correctly, all things suddenly start to make sense: one finds herself thrown into a world of total sound, a sound world of changes.

Cross-over singing In one simple sentence, I define cross-over singing as: to be able to sing a High C straight into a microphone whose main function is to amplify the voice. Hence, in a nutshell, cross-over singing is when the popular way of singing crosses over to the classical repertoire.

The higher the pitch, the more is the energy required to produce it. If the volume (v) of a sound is determined by the amplitude (A) of the sound wave, then, the energy required to produce a pitch of frequency (f) with a volume of (v) is directly proportional to the square of (f) and square of (A). Hence to sing, in the same volume, the note of High C would require 16 times the energy to sing the note of Middle C. Furthermore, the energy in a sound sung is the energy that is required to produce the sound in the first place.

In the classical way of singing, such as opera singing, amplifying microphone is not needed. In fact, this simply cannot be used. When an opera singer, doing her usual job, sings her High C, she produces a super high energy sound.

If she sings straight into an amplifying microphone, the result is disastrous, unless the High C she sings is done with much less energy. But how can one produce a high pitched note with less energy? This is where the technique of cross-over singing comes into play: one can sing the same high note with less energy using techniques such as focusing, mezza voce and pharyngeal singing. (Here I am not including falsetto singing as I think this technique should only be the singer’s last technical resort.) A typical

Rosaline Pi received her Bachelor of Music (Voice) from McGill University.

She also studied Physics at the same time and was awarded a Bachelor’s and Master’s degree.

She is currently one of the most active sopranos on local scene. She performs extensively in the Baroque repertoire, Lieder and art songs. She regularly performs Baroque vocal masterpieces such as Bach’s Cantatas, St. John Passion, St. Matthew Passion, B Minor Mass, Christmas Oratorio, Easter Oratorio, many of Handel’s full length operas such as Alexander’s Feast, Semele, Samson, Judas Maccabaeus, and motets of Baroque composers such as Alessandro Scarlatti and Boccherini.

Apart from performances, Pi gives vocal lectures regularly on thought history in music and vocal techniques. She is the originator and promoter of her “Simple Physics for

Singing” vocal technique.

Her vocal technique lectures are sold-out events.

Since 2001, Pi has been a regular vocal music critic with the classical music radio. Pi taught voice at the Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts, Baptist University and the Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK). She wrote for the Hong Kong Economic Journal Monthly on vocal music in her personal column “A Journey for the Voice”. She now has her personal column on the Master-Insight online cultural platform. In recent years, Pi started to write to comment on Hong Kong’s political issues. Her political commentaries are often published in the Hong Kong Economic Journal. In 2014, Pi published her book in Chinese on the Romanticism in Schubert’s Lieder and her CD “An die Musik – Schubert Lieder

by Rosaline Pi”. In the CD, “singing and recording the original classical songs using the way popular songs are sung and recorded” is something that has never been done in the history of singing and recording.

Pi received her MA degree in Philosophy from CUHK in 2007. She is currently a Ph. D. candidate in their Philosophy Department.

Her research focus is on the late Heidegger and, in particular, using phenomenology to explain the phenomenon of “empathy”.

kind of music that requires cross-over singing is one that has a vocal range of that of the classical repertoire and yet the singer is required to sing into an amplifying microphone on stage. An example of this is a musical such as Phantom of the Opera.

Musical singers habitually sing in the cross-over way. The energy in their singing sound is small. But this is fine as their voice is electrically amplified. These singers can never sing their pieces without the amplifying microphone and be heard from stage. The problem is reversed in the case of a classical singer. She is trained to sing with support while force is applied at the palate to produce the sound. By reducing this force at the palate alone will NOT give her a lower-in-energy high note: she simply produces no note. This is why for classical singers, singing the musicals or pop songs are NOT easy for them. Even if they do sing, the effect is not at all pleasing to the ears as that from a musical or pop singer.

In the Zuni production, since this is a multi-media production, there is technically a need, from the show’s production perspective, for our classically trained singers to sing into amplifying microphones. Hence, they need to know they have to sing with reduced force, especially for the high notes. Technically this is demanding: the singing crosses over to cross-over singing.

(First Nine: The dragon lying hid, it is not the time for active doing.)

Music Director & Composer

Yu Yat-yiu

Ever since he graduated from the Chinese University of Hong Kong in 1992, Yu Yat-yiu has been active in performing arts, working with The Nonsensemakers as director, Edward Lam Dance Theatre as dramaturge and Zuni Icosahedron as composer and sound designer. Yu also composes music for many Hong Kong pop singers, such as Anthony Wong and Miriam Yeung. Apart from that, he also participates in film scorings, and has recently become a columnist of Next Magazine, Milk X Magazine. His recent publications include The Art of Eating and Hong Kong Talks Music.

THE BOOK OF CHANGES

III

HONG KONG, December 11 - 12, 2015

VOCAL PERFORMANCE: SOLOISTS IN ACTION CANNY CHAN

MAY CHAN

JORDEN TSE

Canny Chan graduated from the Hong Kong Baptist University Master of Music. She received scholarships for her junior music programme at Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts, studying voice with Ms Katusha Tsui Fraser. Later on, she continues her vocal study with Ms Jovita Leung and Mr Alex Tam. With her excellent result, she obtained the ATCL diploma both in voice and piano performance from Trinity College of Music and Grade 8 in piano accompaniment. Canny also active in the local choir such as Hong Kong Philharmonic orchestra Chorus, the Hong Kong Chamber Choir and Opera Hong Kong. Canny also studied conducting under Mr Law Wai Lun.RMANCE

May performed the role of Flora and Mercedes in the Musica Viva productions of Verdi’s La Traviata and Bizet’s Carmen. She was Narrator in Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, and Counsel for Plaintiff in Gilbert & Sullivan’s Trial

by Jury. May was the recipient of Opera Hong Kong scholarship and performed in Carmen, Le Nozze di Figaro, Romeo and Juliet, Aida, Dr Sun Yat Sen and Die Fliegende Hollander in Hong Kong, and Die Zauberflote in Beijing.

May performed as soloist for Die Konzertisten, Learners Chorus, HK Youth Choir, HK Oratorio Society and HKU Law Alumni Choir. In 2012, she held the recital Liebeslied to raise funds for SingFest. She was the recipient of Opera Hong Kong/Hong Kong Jockey Club scholarship (2011-2012).

Jorden Tse started his interest in choral music since he was a primary school student.

He attained his Bachelor, Master and Doctoral degrees from the Chinese University of Hong Kong. Since he joined the CU Chorus in 1998, he has taken the roles of Bass partleader, Assistant Conductor and member of the Executive Committee and Annual Concert Organizing Committee. Tse performed with the chorus in many master pieces, including Handel’s Messiah, Beethoven’s Symphony no. 9, Carl Orff’s Carmina Burana and Mahler’s Symphony no. 8 and no.2.

Tse is currently member of Hong Kong Chamber Choir, and organist of the choir of St. Peter and Paul Church.

CEDRIC CHAN

RICKY TSANG

Cedric joined Zuni in 1998 and participated in various projects’ creation, performance, coordination, include East Wing West Wing series, 1587, A Year of No Significance, Three-letter Opera, Huayen Sutra, Remembrance of Karaoke Past, Railway is Like a Long, Winding Recollection, Gayamyan Sings “Hong Kong Song Book - Little Rascals” Night Club; co-directed Children Anime Musical The Magic Flute, The Magic Flute Playground and Bauhaus Manifesto. Cedric co-found local band Gayamyan in 2000. The band released its debut album in 2002 and participated in several music publications for East Wing West Wing, includes East Wing West Wing Original Soundtrack Collection 2003-2013. Cedric released his solo debut EP Crazy for Tutorials in 2006. He started vocal training with soprano Rosaline Pi in recent years.

Ricky Tsang received scholarships for his study in the Junior Music Programme at The Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts, studying voice with Ms. Rosaline Pi. While studying at The Chinese University of Hong Kong, he resumed his study of the voice with Ms. Chan Siu Kwan, and graduated with a BA in English and another BA in Music in 2004 and 2006 respectively. Ricky has been performing frequently in operas, concerts and recitals, both as a chorus member and a soloist.

He won the first prize of Miss Barbara Fei Vocal Scholarship (Open) at the 57th Hong Kong Schools Music Festival in 2005.

Upon graduation, he began working in various positions at Naxos Records, and has subsequently focused on developing a career in arts administration, having worked in various renowned performing arts organisations. He has also picked up the study of voice again with the tenor Mr. Tse Chi Lin since 2012. He made his operatic début in June 2015, singing the role of Antonio in Le nozze di Figaro.

Creation & Performance TEXT: THERESA LEUNG Theresa is an energy therapist specialising in the assimilated use of energy, yoga and the I Ching (the Book of Changes) for healing and integrating the body and mind. A person of great experience in the culture and media fields, she has served as cultural editor of the Hong Kong Economic Journal and cultural reporter of Hong Kong United Daily. A graduate of the University of Hong Kong, she has a Master of Buddhist Studies and a Bachelor of Arts.

CALLIGRAPHER: TONG YANG-TZE (TAIPEI) Born in Shanghai. BFA, National Taiwan Normal University, Taipei, Taiwan.

MFA, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, USA.

YURI NG Yuri received ballet training in Hong Kong, Canada and England.

He was awarded the Adeline Genée Gold Medal from the Royal Academy of Dancing in 1983 before joining The National Ballet of Canada as a dancer. Since his return to Hong Kong in 1993, Yuri has choreographed for various performing companies include movement design for Zuni Icosahedron’s One Hundred Years of Solitude: 9, Eighteen Springs, East Wing West Wing 4 West Kowloon Side Story; movement design and perform for Hua Yen Sutra, etc. He was Hong Kong Sinfonietta’s Artist Associate from 2011-2013. Yuri received the Artist of the Year Award – Choreographer, from the Hong Kong Artists’ Guild in 1997; and in 1998, he was awarded Prix D’auteur at the sixth Rencontres Choreographiques Internationale de Seine-St- Denis (Bagnolet) with his choreography of Boy Story. His choreography of A Soldier’s Story, in collaboration with Hong Kong Sinfonietta, received the Hong Kong Dance Alliance Dance Award 2008. He received Distinguished Achievement Award in Hong Kong Dance Alliance Dance Awards in 2012. Yuri is currently Co-Artistic Director of Yatpo Singers.

MYLTHIE WONG Graduated from the University of Hong Kong and the Hong Kong Baptist University with Bachelor and Master music degrees majoring in Piano Performance/Pedagogy and Choral Conducting; Mylthie was awarded with Helen-Moore Williams Music Memorial Prize for her academic achievements. She had also studied Piano at the McGill Conservatory of Music at McGill University with Kathleen Tucker and studied Voice locally under the tutelage of Miss Chan Siu Kwan, Miss Jovita Leung and Madame Lola Young. She was also awarded ARCT in Piano Performance, ATCL in Vocal Performance and CT ABRSM in instrumental teaching. She has been a chorus member of Opera Hong Kong Chorus, Opera Society of Hong Kong and Hong Kong Philharmonic Chorus and other vocal ensembles; and performed in concerts and opera productions including Aida, Werther, Poet Li Bai, Manon, La Traviata, Madama Butterfly, La Fille du Regiment, Lucia di Lammermoor, Cavalleria Rusticana & I Pagliacci; and many choral concerts including Mozart Requiem, Verdi Requiem, Rossini Petite Masse Solenelle, Haydn Creation, etc. She has also appeared as soloist in concerts held at Hong Kong Cultural Centre, Hong Kong City Hall and St. John’s Cathedral.

HE YANQI (SHANGHAI) Graduated from the Performing Arts Department of Shanghai Theatre Academy in 2006; and joined Shanghai Dramatic Arts Centre the same year. Stage performances in mainland China include The Crucible, The Lady Of The Camellias, The Red And The Black, Brothers, I Have A Date With Spring, Romeo And Zhu Yingtai, My Own Swordsman, Qian Duoduo Marriage Preparation, The Tempest (cooperated with Meridiano of Denmark), and Zuni Icosahedron’s presentation of The Agent, Remembrance Of Karaoke Past and Eighteen Springs.

FRANKIE HUNG Being a sound enthusiast in his early age, Frankie finished his Advanced Diploma in Sound Design and Music Recording at The Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts in 1993. With extensive experience in music mixing and sound engineering, Frankie works as mixing engineer in pop music production and has mixed over 3000 songs for most singers in Hong Kong. Apart from studio works, Frankie also works as Front of House Engineer for many large scale concerts in Hong Kong and aboard exclusively for many Hong Kong top artists including Eason Chan, HOCC, Mariam Yeung, Leo Ku, Justin Lo,etc. He has collaborated with Zuni Ichosahedron as sound designer and engineer since 1996.

KAO JO-SHAN (TAIPEI) Kao Jo-shan graduated from the School of Theatre Arts in Taipei National University of the Arts. Her performances including Zuni’s Remembrance of Karaoke Past, One Hundred Years of Chinese Architecture, Design of Living (2010) by Edward Lam Dance Theatre.

Frequently participating in Shakespeare’s Wild Sisters Group, 4Chairs Theatre, Tainaner Ensemble.

MAK KWOK-FAI Mak Kwok-fai graduated from The Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts (HKAPA) with a BA (Hons.) in Fine Arts, majoring in Theatre Lighting. He has worked extensively both locally and internationally with many performing groups, taking part in productions in China, Germany, Portugal, Singapore, Taiwan, the U.K. and the U.S.A. He has also designed lighting for various major international events and commercial activities. He joined HKAPA as Lecturer in Lighting in 2000, and has conducted workshops and lectures in Macau, Beijing and Shanghai. In 2007, he graduated from

Queensland University of Technology with a Master’s degree (with merit) in Lighting. His recently collaborations with Zuni Icosahedron included Stage Sisters, Flee by Night and Red Rose White Rose.

DAVID YEUNG Yeung is one of the founding members of Zuni. He has participated in most of Zuni’s theatre works as actor and creative team member, which included 100 Years of Solitude, Vanity Fair. Recent works included East Wing West Wing Series, 1587, A Year of No Significance, HuaYen Sutra, God Came to China, The Magic Flute - a children cartoon music theatre, One Hundred Years of Chinese Architecture, Danny Yung Experimental Theatre series : Tears of Barren Hill, Flee By Night.

DICK WONG A graduate of journalism, Dick Wong defected from publishing industry in the mid 90’s, and fully engaged himself in performing arts as dancer and choreographer. In 2004, he created B.O.B.* commissioned by the Hong Kong Arts Festival, and after its premiere, he developed the piece into two versions, which later on toured nine countries in Europe and Asia, appearing in renowned venues such as Paris’ Centre National de la Danse and London’s Sadler’s Wells Theatre, as well as in major events like Dance in August in Berlin. In 2009, Dick Wong created 1+1 in Tokyo, and the piece was later invited by Kobe International Dance Festival and Cartier Foundation of Paris. In 2010, he was selected as laureate of the International Residence Programme at Recollets, Paris, and as adjudicator for the international biennial competition Danse élargie. In the same year, Dick Wong collaborated with Japanese choreographer Takao Kawaguchi and film director Koichi Imaizumi for the work Tri-K, which toured Tokyo, Kobe, Kanazawa, Hong Kong, Lisbon, Belo Horizonte and Sao Paulo for the following three years. In 2011, commissioned by the In Transit Festival, Dick Wong premiered Be Me in Berlin’s Haus der Kulturen der Welt. His recent works include 0 | 2 (2014) and The World According To Dance (2015).

LUKA WONG Luka joined Zuni in 1996. Since then, he participated in various projects’ performances, include Ge Wei Tong Zhi Wan An, Let’s Dance 97, Romance Of The Rock 97, The Magic Flute, Generation Titanic, 1587, A Year of No Significance (1999), Four Grand Inventions, Chronicles of Women: Illness as Metaphor and A Lover’s Discourse. Luka is currently the PR and Partnership Development Manager of Zuni.

THE BOOK OF CHANGES

HONG KONG, December 11 - 12, 2015

Photographer

Johnny Au A film director specialising in the advertising field and a long-standing Zuni member, Johnny is a graduate of the University of Paris VIII (or University of Vincennes in Saint-Denis).

His film works have been published in Hong Kong, Taiwan and Mainland China.

Book of Changes is a tool in response to “changes”, taking science, mathematics, astrology and philosophy as foundations, to simplify all constantly changing elements in the universe. Through learning Gua (trigram), people could get to forecast certain patterns in the universe for achieving better understanding of the relationship between human being and all other things.

Photography is also a tool in response to “changes”.

As we all realize the constant changes of the universe, capturing fleeting moments is the everlasting desire of human being to freeze the time, to seize and to observe the “changes” that turned photography into a tool of such purpose.

As a tool in response to “changes”, theater stage is not a flat piece of surface but inclusive of time, space, people, light, sound, written text taking place at the same time. What is happening on stage is a continuous process of different natures, instant, non-repeatable and irreproducible that brings forth the possibility of pluralistic perspective and multi-dimensional thinking when making response to the “changes” in theater. What would one possibly experience when interpreting Book of Changes in a theater work? Would it be a better place to experience Book of Changes in theater and discover the relationship between its nature of “changes” and us all?

Be it the changes of our environment, or ourselves Be it the changes of the direction, or the perspective Be it the changes of light and shadow, or the aperture Be it the image of reflection, or reflection of image Be it the mountains surrounding us, or us entering into them Be it people moving in a space, or the movement of the space that makes people in it appeared moving Be it the freezing moment, or our minds fleet

IV

1.What is the I Ching, the Book of Changes?

The I Ching (or Yi Jing) deconstructs the myriad of things in the universe into relationships. These relationships are constantly changing. They include: interpersonal relationships, relationships between human and nature, between individual and institutions, individual and his inner world, and the way we perceive the relationships among things. If our awareness of relationships is inadequate, they will easily be misread. If one is unaware of the changes in a relationship and unable to make adjustments, one will choose the wrong role and head in the wrong direction to meet trouble and failure. The I Ching is a practical guide. It lays out the objective facts as they actually are. It cuts through subjective illusion and gives us correct interpretation of relationships, so that a proper positioning and the right role can be found, and mistakes can be corrected.

The I Ching is able to , forecast to the trend of change in relationships. We can then be prepared to adapt on the basis of informed choices. The I Ching is applicable to personal life, work and the ruling of a country. It covers aspects of politics, economy, military, culture, education, social life, folklore,

nature, humanities, and psychology. It points out the constant way of change.

2. History of Yi (Change) The ancient astronomical mentions in the I Ching date back to more than 7000 years ago. At that time, it is believed, Fu Xi, through astronomical observation and geographical study, he made drawings of eight trigrams (Bagua) to explain the universe. Over 3,000 years ago, King Wen of Zhou, studied the I Ching fervently. He arranged the eight trigrams (Bagua) to create 64 hexagrams, and compiled them into a book called Zhou Yi. Over 2,000 years ago, during Spring and Autumn Period, Confucius delved into Yi-ology (the study of change). He ranked Zhou Yi as the foremost among the Six Classics of China. Confucius further edited Zhou Yi. Annotations were made. The editions handed down from the Xia and Shang dynasties were lost in the Han dynasty.

The Confucian sages continue to re-edit the I Ching. They compiled the annotations of Confucius and his followers into Yi Zhuan (The Commentaries). For over 2,000 years, Yi Zhuan has been indispensable to the interpretation and application of the I Ching.

3. Wisdom of Yi (Change)

The Binary Evolution from the Two Polarities to the Eight Trigrams

In a state of chaos with change and impermanence, the world is almost unintelligible. The wisdom of Yi (Change) initiated a dividing method of dichotomy to classify all things as a basis for understanding the world. The dichotomy classifies all things as either yin and yang, that is strong and weak. Yin and yang; strong and weak, they are simply relationships, not absolutes. When conditions change, the relative positions between yin and yang also change. Strong can become weak; weak can become strong. The I Ching initiated symbols for yin and yang. Yin is represented by a horizontal line broken in the middle - - . Yang is represented by a solid horizontal line —. Equivalent to the modern “0” and “1”. It marks the starting point of the binary system.

When the world is still in a state of chaos without classification, it can be represented by zero (2 to the power of zero), i.e. Wuji, the Boundless, the Infinite, the primordial universe. When things are differentiated into yin and yang (or femininity and masculinity), it can be presented as 2 (two to the power of one), i.e. Taiji (the Supreme Ultimate) or Liangyi (Two Polarities) Two lines of yin or yang when stacked together can be seen as 4 (2 to the power of 2), i.e. Sixiang, the Four Phenomena. That means the myriad of things are classified into 4 types.

In yin there is yang; in yang there is yin.

Everything has both yin and yang aspects.

The stacking of 3 lines of yin or yang creates 8, i.e. 2 to the power of 3. Producing 8 sets of trigrams, i.e. the Eight Trigrams (bagua).

The wisdom of I Ching lies in the bagua (the Eight Trigrams), i.e. the 8-fold classification, under which all constant changes are subsumed. The 8-fold classification extends from geographical positioning and natural phenomena to man’s roles and attitudes. The various bagua are mutually correlating. That means there is only one bagua with multilevel coverage. Yi (Change) is the wisdom to see one thing “as” another thing.

Bagua of these different areas are mutually corresponding. Yet there is no logical explanation of the cause and effect. That is, in fact, only one bagua. But this bagua has infinite and immeasurable levels.

Carl Jung (1875-1961), one of the founding fathers of modern psychology, studied I Ching for years. He called this phenomenon “Synchronicity”, which is “meaningful coincidences” and “Acausal Connecting Principle”. In an unusual instant, nature and mind interact with each other in a meaningful way and merge into one.

The Hexagram Statement: Qian, Yuan Heng Li Zhen

4. The First Hexagram in the I Ching: Qian Bagua, the Eight Trigrams, are all singletrigrams. Each trigram consists of three lines, either yin or yang, and this is also called a 3-line trigram. The intermingling and stacking of the eight single-trigrams creates a maximum of 64 possible pairs of trigrams, i.e. 8x8; or two to the 6th power. A total of 64 paired-trigrams can be laid out, i.e. 64 sets of 6-line gua (hexagram). The 64 hexagrams reflect the law of nature and the philosophy of life, in relation to 64 kinds of affairs, situations, phenomena and specific circumstances. Each hexagram has six lines with explanatory statements, and there is a total of 384 corresponding states. Through these changes, one will understand the way the myriad of things operate and the philosophy of life.

Qian is the first of the 64 hexagrams in the I Ching. Qian symbolises the loftiness of the sky/ Heavens. In Xiang Zhuan (Commentary on the Images): “The Heavens are in motion

ceaselessly; the great ones exert unremitting efforts to improve themselves.” Celestial bodies move incessantly in the Heavens and their motion is firm and robust. The great ones should model themselves on the Heavens by exerting unremitting efforts to improve their virtues and nurture merits with ceaseless determination. Qian is purely yang in its nature with extreme masculinity.

Arrogance, rigidity and aggressiveness are to be best avoided. Seekers given this hexagram are advised to be more prepared for changes and to adopt a flexible attitude and act according to circumstances. The entire hexagram qian takes the Dragons as its imagery. The dragons depicted in the six lines have undergone changes in form at different stages, indicating that the great ones know how to adapt to change in order to seize the right moment to make a difference in life.

Yuan Heng: great prosperity, very smooth.

Yuan: great, extremely.

Li Zhen: advantageous for divination.

Zhen: divination In Wen Yan: Qian (Explanation of the Text): Yuan Heng Li Zhen is explained as virtues of four kinds: Yuan: sustainability of virtue; Heng: convergence of glory; Li: harmony of mutual benefit; Zhen: persistence of action Yuan:

the prettiest; the most perfect; the grandest. Virtues well-established and well-tested over time.

Heng: Rituals of worship and offering, as well as congregation, i.e. convergence of affairs that are worth celebrating.

Li: reconciliation of dissimilar doctrines or principles. Mutual benefit is created for opposing parties after thorough consideration. Harmony is achieved.

Zhen: resoluteness, steadfastness and rectitude. Moral and virtuous pursuits are conducted firmly and persistently.

Yuan Heng Li Zhen: the way great ones carry out their undertakings without compromise by upholding well-established virtues and striving for the interests and happiness of the people.

THE BOOK OF CHANGES

V Explanation of the Lines of Hexagram Qian: First Nine: The dragon lying hid, it is not the time for active doing.

The dragon is lying low in shallow water.

It is advised to wait for the right moment to come. Not a time for aggressive pursuits yet.

Second Nine: The dragon is appearing in the field. It will be advantageous to meet with the great man. The dragon has landed in the fields, indicating the right environment and circumstances. Time to contact the influential ones for proposals.

Third Nine: Active and vigilant all the day, and in the evening still careful and apprehensive; it is dangerous, but there will be no mistake. One works hard on important matters during daytime, and feels restless at night. Dangerous but no fault yet.

Fourth Nine: Jumping into the deep, there will be no mistake. The dragon leaps aggressively into the deep. Still no fault yet.

Fifth Nine: The dragon on the wing in the sky, it will be advantageous to meet with the great man. The dragon is flying in the sky reaching the apex of life. It is advantageous to meet the influential ones and be entrusted with key positions.

Upper Nine: The dragon is exceeding the proper limits. There will be occasion for repentance.

The dragon is flying too high up, knowing only to advance but ignorant of the time to retreat. Too late to restore as going too far is as bad as not going far enough.

According to the I Ching, being in a proper space and position at proper timing is of great importance. By comparison, time is given more weight than space.

Throughout the entire I Ching, “Time” is mentioned in almost every hexagram.

In Yi Zhuan (The Commentaries): Everything takes place with the conditions of the time. Based on the understanding of things, one behaves appropriately at the appropriate time.

That is to be realistic and practical, having the subjective and the objective coordinated with each other. Doing the right thing at the right time will easily lead to success. Even in the best position with outstanding intelligence, if one does things at the wrong time, one will end in failure with more efforts spent than returns.

The Use of Nine and its line explanation are unique to hexagram Qian.

Use of Nine: If the dragons lost their leaders, there would be good fortune.

When tough measures no longer bring change to the current situation, people will give up fighting and refuse to stand up. Then comes a reverse in direction leading to a state of absolute passivity.

The group of dragons has no leader now, and the situation, instead, has reached a turning point. Things have gone too far, and a point of no return and irreparability has been reached. Things will go to one extreme and then turn hard in the opposite direction. This corresponds to the dialectical principle of the I Ching.

Any phenomenon in nature and human society, when its development reaches one extreme, it will reverse and head towards the other extreme.

main source of thoughts for nurturing harmonious culture and keeping up with the times. The concept that “Everything takes place with the conditions of the time” forms the basis of Traditional Chinese Medicine. The waxing and waning of the body meridians are based on the principle of the growth and decline of yin and yang, corresponding to the diurnal rhythm within a day’s 12 two-hour periods. This is the Zi Wu Liu Zhu (or the Midnight-Noon EbbFlow theory), the world’s first biological clock theory. Not until the 1970s did the West start to study the human biological clock seriously.

The I Ching has been one of the most influential Chinese books in East Asian history. The famous Meiji Restoration enabled Japan to modernise. The derivation

HONG KONG, December 11 - 12, 2015 of “Meiji” is also from the I Ching. During the Meiji era, the study of the I Ching prospered as never before in the whole of Japan. Korea has been deeply influenced by the I Ching culture since ancient times.

In 1883, the Taegukgi (or Tai Chi flag) became the national flag of South Korea.

It symbolizes the harmonious state of yinyang, heaven-earth, sun-moon. The I Ching not only affects the Chinese culture, but also affects the entire culture of the East.

In the 16th century, the I Ching was brought to the West. Its binary system prompted the invention of calculus, eventually bringing forth the development of computer science, followed by the invention of computer products.

The entire world experienced big changes as a result. Gottfried Leibniz, the great

The Gan-Zhi Sexagenary Cycle

Use of Nine

German mathematician who invented the laws of heavens and earth, and sees calculus, said: “Fuxi held the key to written one’s insignificance, thus feeling respectful characters, mathematics and science.” He and fearful. It brings fear to the reckless; even forecast that man could transcend empowers the feeble to become brave. It words and express thoughts directly lets the foolish take heed and abstain from through mathematical principles and recklessness; it brings the crooked back to symbols. He admitted personally that he was honesty and integrity. I only focus on the strongly influenced by the I Ching. This laws and virtues behind the divination, aroused great interest from scientists of and the understanding of the way between various fields to study the I Ching. The heavens and Man. With this, I guide two Chinese-American physicists Franklin myself in conducting my own thinking and Yang and Tsung-dao Lee, inspired by the behaviour along the way. principle of the growth and decline of yin Confucius returned to the basics of and yang in the I Ching, proposed the Parity the way of self-cultivation and conduct Violation principle and won the Nobel Prize in society. A wise person knows how in Physics in 1957. The hidden codes in to keep purity of heart. By upholding human DNA profile are also manifested well-established virtues, striving for the in digitalised mode. They begin with two interests and happiness of the people, simple elements of 1 and 0. Their continuous selflessly contributing one’s own strength. criss-crossing creates 64 groups of genetic This is the realm of Yuan Heng Li Zhen. codes. The bnary system is of the highest scientific value. In the 19th century, the German philosopher G.F.W. Hegel founded the dialectical logic of thesis-antithesissynthesis. The entire history of the world and the spiritual realm are seen as a process. They are in constant motion, change, EXQUISITE EXQUISITE development and transformation. At the same CHRISTMAS GIFTS CHRISTMAS GIFTS time, internal contradictions become sources of BUY NOW & Diamond self-movement and development. This view Sutra Card POST EARLY! BUY NOW & Diam coincides with the growth and decline of Sutra POST EARLY! yin-yang, and the principle of antithetical yet unified opposites in the I Ching. Hegel’s philosophy was revolutionary to the world of EXQUISITE CHRISTMAS GIFTS ideological trends at the time. In particular, Karl Max was prompted to formulateBUY NOW & Heaven Knows Card Diamond Sutra Card POST EARLY! dialectical materialism.

Zedong’s MakeMao your selections from Dream Bubble Shadow Illusion theory on contradiction wasE+E derived from Programme Booklet and Original Zuni Publications Heaven KnowsSoundtrack Card dialectical materialism.

Make your selections from Dream Bubble Shadow Illusi Dao, the Way, refers to the general Programme Booklet and Origina Zuni E+E direction, the macro and fundamental viewsPublications Heaven Knows Card on things. Shu, the Art or the Method, refers to the strategy, the the specific Maketactics, your selections from Dream Bubble Shadow Illusion Programme Booklet and Original Soundtrack Zuni E+E Publications means taken to achieve the goals.

The Way is the principle, and it is unshakable. The Method is flexible. Without undermining the principle, the Method is adjustable according to changing circumstances. The I Ching is also a technical manual providing methods of handling relationships in various aspects: EXQUISITE leadership, planning, forecasting, decision making, CHRISTMAS GIFTS organisation, balance, communication, reformation, control and so on. However, if done devoid of the BUY NOW & Way, the Method will likely become a weapon that POST EARLY! promotes power struggles for selfish goals whilst causing harm to others. What is Yi Dao, the Way of Change?

Confucius, the first one in history to venerate the I Ching highly, explained: Most people sought divination from the Zhou Yi (I Heaven Knows C Ching) for personal interests. This is not the real way of change (Yi Dao). The real Make your selections from Dream Bub way of change is through the study of the Programme Zuni E+E Publications Zhou Yi (I Ching), one comes to discover

The Chinese Concept of Time

Application of Yi-ology The yin-yang philosophy of Yi-ology has permeated into the lives of Chinese people and cast its influence for thousands of years.

Yi-ology has wide areas of application: medicine, science and technology, culture, politics, economy, military, education, social life, folklore, natural science, humanities, psychology, and so on.

The spirit of hexagram Qian, encapsulates the Chinese philosophy of life to exert oneself and make progress in the face of adversity and constantly strive to become better. With the ideal of “Unity of mankind and the Heavens”, the polarities of nature overpowering human and vice versa can be avoided.

The I Ching emphasized the principle of change that “Everything takes place with the conditions of the time”. It is the

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Everything in the world has its opposite and contradictory aspect. Yin and Yang are mutually transforming, and cycles of life continue endlessly. When yang reaches its climax, yin is already quietly emerging.

When yin reaches its climax, yang is already quietly appearing. Everything declines after reaching its zenith. The extreme of adversity is the beginning of prosperity. Such processes go round and round, again and again.

The concept of time in the I Ching constitutes the Chinese concept of time.

The ganzhi (stem-branch) chronology has been the Chinese calendrical system since ancient times. Ten Heavenly Stems (Jia, Yi, Bing, Ding, Wu, Ji, Geng, Xin, Ren, Gui) and Twelve Earthly Branches (Zi, Chou, Yin, Mao, Chen, Si, Wu, Wei, Shen, You, Xu, Hai). Matching them separately generates a total of 60 different sets, indicating the order of years, months, days and hours. Every 60 years, 60 months, 60 days and 60 double-hour periods, the year, month, day and hour complete their cycles respectively. The cycles keep going round and beginning again. The time, space and historical concepts developed from the I Ching have had a tremendous impact on traditional Chinese thinking, a stark contrast to the West.

The Western mind has been deeply influenced by Christian eschatological

thought. It is certain that a day will come when history reaches its end. Karl Marx was an atheist, but he still believed that history has a certain trend of development, the development towards a classless utopian society.

In contrast, the I Ching has absolutely no historical determinism of this kind. With wisdom, man can rise in good times or in adversity. Without wisdom, one can also fall prey to misery. The I Ching stresses the embodiment of wisdom and resolution in taking action.

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