Vienna Teng
Encyclopedia
Cynthia Yih Shih better known by her stage name
Vienna Teng, is a Taiwanese American pianist
and singer-songwriter
based in Ann Arbor, Michigan
. Teng has released four studio album
s: Waking Hour (2002), Warm Strangers
(2004), Dreaming Through the Noise
(2006), and Inland Territory
(2009). She has also released one live album, The Moment Always Vanishing (2009), on which she is double-billed with her percussionist, Alex Wong.
Teng's musical style incorporates folk
, pop
, classical piano, and a cappella
. She uses piano as her primary instrument and writes lyrics with emotion, narrative, and personal history.
Teng took her stage name "Vienna" from the capital city of Austria
. A native of Saratoga, California
, she began playing classical piano at age 5. While pursuing a degree in computer science
at Stanford University
, Teng joined the Stanford Harmonics
, a student-run a cappella group. She began recording her compositions at the studios in Stanford's Center for Computer Research in Music and Acoustics (CCRMA), intending to distribute her music on campus. Many of these recordings were eventually released in her debut album Waking Hour. After graduating in 2000, Teng worked as a software engineer
for Cisco Systems
in San Jose, but she continued to write music and perform in her free time. In 2002, Teng signed with Virt Records
and quit Cisco Systems to focus on her musical career.
Teng's first major national exposure was on CBS
's Late Show with David Letterman
in January 2003. She has since made appearances on the CBS
Saturday Early Show, National Public Radio's Weekend Edition
, CNN
's NewsNight with Aaron Brown
and The Wayne Brady Show
, and opened concerts for Joan Baez
, Shawn Colvin
, Joan Osborne
, Sarah Harmer
and Marc Cohn
. Her first album, Waking Hour, peaked at #5 on the Amazon.com
bestseller list; her second album, Warm Strangers, reached as high as #2. In 2006, Teng signed with Zoë/Rounder
.
From December 2006 to early 2007, she toured extensively in the United States to promote the release of her third album, Dreaming Through the Noise. Teng co-headlined with Duncan Sheik
and opened for Madeleine Peyroux
. She began the Green Caravan Tour in April 2007, accompanied by cellist Marika Hughes, violinist Dina Maccabee, and percussionist Alex Wong, along with opening acts such as David Berkeley
and Jenny Owen Youngs
. In 2008, she relocated from California to New York City
, and performed in Central Park
on Earth Day
at the Green Apple Festival.
Inland Territory won the ninth annual Independent Music Awards
Vox Pop vote for best Folk/Singer-Songwriter Album.
In March 2010, Teng announced to her fans that she had been accepted into the Ross School of Business
at the University of Michigan
to study sustainable enterprise. Teng continues to compose music and tour, although she does not tour as frequently as she had before enrolling.
cover of "Green Island Serenade
," a 1950's Taiwanese classic by Teresa Teng
performed in Mandarin Chinese
. Teng has also stated live that the lyrics to "Grandmother Song" from Inland Territory are nearly a verbatim translation of a lecture Teng received from her Mandarin-speaking grandmother, voicing her disapproval of Teng's career choice.
Stage name
A stage name, also called a showbiz name or screen name, is a pseudonym used by performers and entertainers such as actors, wrestlers, comedians, and musicians.-Motivation to use a stage name:...
Vienna Teng, is a Taiwanese American pianist
Pianist
A pianist is a musician who plays the piano. A professional pianist can perform solo pieces, play with an ensemble or orchestra, or accompany one or more singers, solo instrumentalists, or other performers.-Choice of genres:...
and singer-songwriter
Singer-songwriter
Singer-songwriters are musicians who write, compose and sing their own musical material including lyrics and melodies. As opposed to contemporary popular music singers who write their own songs, the term singer-songwriter describes a distinct form of artistry, closely associated with the...
based in Ann Arbor, Michigan
Ann Arbor, Michigan
Ann Arbor is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan and the county seat of Washtenaw County. The 2010 census places the population at 113,934, making it the sixth largest city in Michigan. The Ann Arbor Metropolitan Statistical Area had a population of 344,791 as of 2010...
. Teng has released four studio album
Studio album
A studio album is an album made up of tracks recorded in the controlled environment of a recording studio. A studio album contains newly written and recorded or previously unreleased or remixed material, distinguishing itself from a compilation or reissue album of previously recorded material, or...
s: Waking Hour (2002), Warm Strangers
Warm Strangers
Warm Strangers is singer-songwriter Vienna Teng's second album.-Track listing:#Feather Moon - 4:06#Harbor - 4:24#Hope on Fire - 4:26#Shine - 2:39#Mission Street - 4:32#My Medea - 4:09#Shasta - 3:29...
(2004), Dreaming Through the Noise
Dreaming Through the Noise
-Track listing:All songs written by Vienna Teng.#"Blue Caravan" - 3:56#"Whatever You Want" - 4:00#"Love Turns 40" - 5:12#"I Don't Feel So Well" - 4:16#"City Hall" - 4:48#"Nothing Without You" - 3:39#"Transcontinental, 1:30 A.M." - 3:46#"1BR/1BA" - 4:02...
(2006), and Inland Territory
Inland Territory
Inland Territory is the fourth studio album by singer-songwriter Vienna Teng. It was released in Germany on February 6, 2009 and in the U.S. on April 7, 2009...
(2009). She has also released one live album, The Moment Always Vanishing (2009), on which she is double-billed with her percussionist, Alex Wong.
Teng's musical style incorporates folk
Folk music
Folk music is an English term encompassing both traditional folk music and contemporary folk music. The term originated in the 19th century. Traditional folk music has been defined in several ways: as music transmitted by mouth, as music of the lower classes, and as music with unknown composers....
, pop
Pop music
Pop music is usually understood to be commercially recorded music, often oriented toward a youth market, usually consisting of relatively short, simple songs utilizing technological innovations to produce new variations on existing themes.- Definitions :David Hatch and Stephen Millward define pop...
, classical piano, and a cappella
A cappella
A cappella music is specifically solo or group singing without instrumental sound, or a piece intended to be performed in this way. It is the opposite of cantata, which is accompanied singing. A cappella was originally intended to differentiate between Renaissance polyphony and Baroque concertato...
. She uses piano as her primary instrument and writes lyrics with emotion, narrative, and personal history.
Career
Vienna
Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...
. A native of Saratoga, California
Saratoga, California
Saratoga is a city in Santa Clara County, California, USA. It is located on the west side of the Santa Clara Valley, directly west of San Jose, in the San Francisco Bay area. The population was 29,926 at the 2010 census....
, she began playing classical piano at age 5. While pursuing a degree in computer science
Computer science
Computer science or computing science is the study of the theoretical foundations of information and computation and of practical techniques for their implementation and application in computer systems...
at Stanford University
Stanford University
The Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University or Stanford, is a private research university on an campus located near Palo Alto, California. It is situated in the northwestern Santa Clara Valley on the San Francisco Peninsula, approximately northwest of San...
, Teng joined the Stanford Harmonics
Stanford Harmonics
The Stanford Harmonics are a coeducational a cappella group from Stanford University in the United States, known for their rock repertoire and award-winning recordings. They have garnered international recognition for their performances, and have been featured on BOCA, Sing, and Voices Only a...
, a student-run a cappella group. She began recording her compositions at the studios in Stanford's Center for Computer Research in Music and Acoustics (CCRMA), intending to distribute her music on campus. Many of these recordings were eventually released in her debut album Waking Hour. After graduating in 2000, Teng worked as a software engineer
Software engineering
Software Engineering is the application of a systematic, disciplined, quantifiable approach to the development, operation, and maintenance of software, and the study of these approaches; that is, the application of engineering to software...
for Cisco Systems
Cisco Systems
Cisco Systems, Inc. is an American multinational corporation headquartered in San Jose, California, United States, that designs and sells consumer electronics, networking, voice, and communications technology and services. Cisco has more than 70,000 employees and annual revenue of US$...
in San Jose, but she continued to write music and perform in her free time. In 2002, Teng signed with Virt Records
Virt Records
Virt Records is an independent record label based in Seattle, USA.Virt artists are primarily singer/songwriters.-Artists signed to Virt Records:Current*Ellery*The Bittersweets*Shane Nicholson*Brenda Weiler*Beth Boucher*Rachel GaudryFormer...
and quit Cisco Systems to focus on her musical career.
Teng's first major national exposure was on CBS
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
's Late Show with David Letterman
Late Show with David Letterman
Late Show with David Letterman is a U.S. late-night talk show hosted by David Letterman on CBS. The show debuted on August 30, 1993, and is produced by Letterman's production company, Worldwide Pants Incorporated. The show's music director and band-leader of the house band, the CBS Orchestra, is...
in January 2003. She has since made appearances on the CBS
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
Saturday Early Show, National Public Radio's Weekend Edition
Weekend Edition
Weekend Edition is the name given to a set of American radio news magazines produced and distributed by National Public Radio . It is the weekend counterpart to Morning Edition. It consists of Weekend Edition Saturday and Weekend Edition Sunday , each of which airs for two hours, from 8 a.m. to 10...
, CNN
CNN
Cable News Network is a U.S. cable news channel founded in 1980 by Ted Turner. Upon its launch, CNN was the first channel to provide 24-hour television news coverage, and the first all-news television channel in the United States...
's NewsNight with Aaron Brown
NewsNight with Aaron Brown
NewsNight with Aaron Brown was a live international news broadcast, which appeared on the CNN network from 2001 to 2005. It aired at 10 p.m. ET on weeknights, hosted by Aaron Brown. In its final year, it was co-hosted by Anderson Cooper....
and The Wayne Brady Show
The Wayne Brady Show
The Wayne Brady Show was a variety show hosted by Wayne Brady that originally ran from August 8, 2001 to March 11, 2002 on ABC. Due to low ratings, the show was cancelled by ABC and reformatted into a daytime variety talk show for syndication...
, and opened concerts for Joan Baez
Joan Baez
Joan Chandos Baez is an American folk singer, songwriter, musician and a prominent activist in the fields of human rights, peace and environmental justice....
, Shawn Colvin
Shawn Colvin
Shawn Colvin is an American singer-songwriter and musician.-Childhood and early career:Colvin was born in Vermillion, South Dakota. Her formative years were spent in the town of Carbondale, Illinois, where she attended Southern Illinois University Carbondale. She learned to play guitar at the age...
, Joan Osborne
Joan Osborne
Joan Elizabeth Osborne is an American singer-songwriter. She is best known for her song "One of Us". She has toured with Motown sidemen the Funk Brothers and was featured in the documentary film about them, Standing in the Shadows of Motown.-Biography:Originally from Anchorage, Kentucky, a suburb...
, Sarah Harmer
Sarah Harmer
Sarah Harmer is a Canadian singer-songwriter and activist.-Biography:Born and raised in Burlington, Ontario, Harmer gained her first exposure to the musician's lifestyle as a teenager, when her older sister Mary started taking her to concerts by the well-known Tragically Hip. At the age of 17, she...
and Marc Cohn
Marc Cohn
Marc Craig Cohn is an American folk rock singer-songwriter and musician.- Personal life :Cohn was born in Cleveland, Ohio. He graduated from Beachwood High School in Beachwood, a Cleveland suburb. He then attended Oberlin College....
. Her first album, Waking Hour, peaked at #5 on the Amazon.com
Amazon.com
Amazon.com, Inc. is a multinational electronic commerce company headquartered in Seattle, Washington, United States. It is the world's largest online retailer. Amazon has separate websites for the following countries: United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Germany, France, Italy, Spain, Japan, and...
bestseller list; her second album, Warm Strangers, reached as high as #2. In 2006, Teng signed with Zoë/Rounder
Rounder Records
Rounder Records, originally of Cambridge, Massachusetts, but now based in Burlington, Massachusetts, is a record label founded in 1970 by Ken Irwin, Bill Nowlin and Marian Leighton-Levy, while all three were still university students...
.
Duncan Sheik
Duncan Scott Sheik is an American singer-songwriter and composer. Sheik initially found success as a singer, most notably for his 1996 debut single "Barely Breathing". He later expanded his work to include compositions for motion pictures and the Broadway stage, leading him to involvement in the...
and opened for Madeleine Peyroux
Madeleine Peyroux
Madeleine Peyroux is an American jazz singer, songwriter, and guitarist. Peyroux is noted for her vocal style, which has been compared to that of Billie Holiday....
. She began the Green Caravan Tour in April 2007, accompanied by cellist Marika Hughes, violinist Dina Maccabee, and percussionist Alex Wong, along with opening acts such as David Berkeley
David Berkeley
David Berkeley, born David Berkeley Friedland on 22 September 1976 in New Jersey, is an American singer and songwriter.He has released four studio albums, one live album and has published a book, all of them self-produced under the Straw Man label, in a recording career that begun in 2002.Berkeley...
and Jenny Owen Youngs
Jenny Owen Youngs
Jenny Owen Youngs is an American singer-songwriter from Montclair, New Jersey.-Music career:Youngs played the flute in elementary school and the tuba in junior high school. At 14, she began to play the guitar...
. In 2008, she relocated from California to New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, and performed in Central Park
Central Park
Central Park is a public park in the center of Manhattan in New York City, United States. The park initially opened in 1857, on of city-owned land. In 1858, Frederick Law Olmsted and Calvert Vaux won a design competition to improve and expand the park with a plan they entitled the Greensward Plan...
on Earth Day
Earth Day
Earth Day is a day that is intended to inspire awareness and appreciation for the Earth's natural environment. The name and concept of Earth Day was allegedly pioneered by John McConnell in 1969 at a UNESCO Conference in San Francisco. The first Proclamation of Earth Day was by San Francisco, the...
at the Green Apple Festival.
Inland Territory won the ninth annual Independent Music Awards
The Independent Music Awards
The Independent Music Awards is an international program that honors top-ranked independent artists and releases in more than 50 Album, Song, Music Video and Design categories....
Vox Pop vote for best Folk/Singer-Songwriter Album.
In March 2010, Teng announced to her fans that she had been accepted into the Ross School of Business
Ross School of Business
The Stephen M. Ross School of Business is the business school of the University of Michigan. Numerous publications have ranked the Ross School of Business' Bachelor of Business Administration , Master of Business Administration and Executive Education programs among the top in the country and the...
at the University of Michigan
University of Michigan
The University of Michigan is a public research university located in Ann Arbor, Michigan in the United States. It is the state's oldest university and the flagship campus of the University of Michigan...
to study sustainable enterprise. Teng continues to compose music and tour, although she does not tour as frequently as she had before enrolling.
Cultural influence on music
Although nearly all of Teng's recordings are in English, Warm Strangers features a hiddenHidden track
In the field of recorded music, a hidden track is a piece of music that has been placed on a CD, audio cassette, vinyl record or other recorded medium in such a way as to avoid detection by the casual listener...
cover of "Green Island Serenade
Green Island Serenade
"Green Island Serenade" is a Mandarin Chinese classic song composed in 1954 by Zhou Lanping, first performed by Zi Wei. Although many people believed that Teresa Teng had made this song famous, there is no evidence that Teresa Teng had sung this song...
," a 1950's Taiwanese classic by Teresa Teng
Teresa Teng
Teresa Teng , was an immensely popular and influential Chinese pop singer from Taiwan. Teresa Teng's voice and songs are instantly recognized throughout East Asia and in areas with large Asian populations...
performed in Mandarin Chinese
Standard Mandarin
Standard Chinese or Modern Standard Chinese, also known as Mandarin or Putonghua, is the official language of the People's Republic of China and Republic of China , and is one of the four official languages of Singapore....
. Teng has also stated live that the lyrics to "Grandmother Song" from Inland Territory are nearly a verbatim translation of a lecture Teng received from her Mandarin-speaking grandmother, voicing her disapproval of Teng's career choice.
Discography
- 20012001 in musicSee also:* 2001 in music Record labels established in 2001-Events:*January 1**Comeback of Guns N' Roses in House of Blues**Hum disbands.*January 17 – Bass player Jason Newsted leaves Metallica after 14 years with the band....
: Waking Hour - self-produced - 20022002 in musicThis is a list of notable events in music that took place in the year 2002.-Events:*February 3 – U2 perform during the halftime show for Super Bowl XXXVI...
: Waking Hour - Virt RecordsVirt RecordsVirt Records is an independent record label based in Seattle, USA.Virt artists are primarily singer/songwriters.-Artists signed to Virt Records:Current*Ellery*The Bittersweets*Shane Nicholson*Brenda Weiler*Beth Boucher*Rachel GaudryFormer... - 20042004 in musicSee also:* 2004 in music Record labels established in 2004-January:*January 1**The Vienna New Year's Concert is conducted by Riccardo Muti.**Kurt Nilsen wins World Idol....
: Warm StrangersWarm StrangersWarm Strangers is singer-songwriter Vienna Teng's second album.-Track listing:#Feather Moon - 4:06#Harbor - 4:24#Hope on Fire - 4:26#Shine - 2:39#Mission Street - 4:32#My Medea - 4:09#Shasta - 3:29...
- Virt RecordsVirt RecordsVirt Records is an independent record label based in Seattle, USA.Virt artists are primarily singer/songwriters.-Artists signed to Virt Records:Current*Ellery*The Bittersweets*Shane Nicholson*Brenda Weiler*Beth Boucher*Rachel GaudryFormer... - 20062006 in musicThis is a list of notable events in music that took place in the year 2006.-January:*January 10 – Eric Burdon releases his album Soul of a Man and begins touring with a new band....
: Dreaming Through the NoiseDreaming Through the Noise-Track listing:All songs written by Vienna Teng.#"Blue Caravan" - 3:56#"Whatever You Want" - 4:00#"Love Turns 40" - 5:12#"I Don't Feel So Well" - 4:16#"City Hall" - 4:48#"Nothing Without You" - 3:39#"Transcontinental, 1:30 A.M." - 3:46#"1BR/1BA" - 4:02...
- Zoë/RounderRounder RecordsRounder Records, originally of Cambridge, Massachusetts, but now based in Burlington, Massachusetts, is a record label founded in 1970 by Ken Irwin, Bill Nowlin and Marian Leighton-Levy, while all three were still university students... - 20092009 in musicThe following is a list of notable events and releases in 2009 in music. Susan Boyle's album I Dreamed a Dream became the biggest selling album in the world for 2009, selling 8.3 million copies in five weeks; more than any other artist's in the whole year...
: Inland TerritoryInland TerritoryInland Territory is the fourth studio album by singer-songwriter Vienna Teng. It was released in Germany on February 6, 2009 and in the U.S. on April 7, 2009...
- Zoë/RounderRounder RecordsRounder Records, originally of Cambridge, Massachusetts, but now based in Burlington, Massachusetts, is a record label founded in 1970 by Ken Irwin, Bill Nowlin and Marian Leighton-Levy, while all three were still university students... - 2009: The Moment Always Vanishing - self-produced live album; recorded at Joe's PubJoe's PubJoe's Pub at Public Theater is a nightclub that hosts live performances regularly. The venue, which is a non-profit operation, is located at 425 Lafayette Street near Astor Place in Manhattan, New York City...
in New York CityNew York CityNew York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
on December 20, 2009
External links
- Biography at official website
- Vienna Teng's official YouTube channel
- Vienna Teng's Twitter page
- v1.ViennaTeng.com - Vienna Teng's first website (2000–2004)
- WarmStrangers.com-Unofficial fansite with song anecdotes, a list of unreleased tracks, and a database of live performances.
- Vienna Teng collection at the Internet ArchiveInternet ArchiveThe Internet Archive is a non-profit digital library with the stated mission of "universal access to all knowledge". It offers permanent storage and access to collections of digitized materials, including websites, music, moving images, and nearly 3 million public domain books. The Internet Archive...
's live music archive - Paradigm interview - August 2007 interview with Vienna Teng. Located under "Music."
- Collectedsounds.com - Interview in which Vienna Teng discusses her musical history and influences.
- Vienna Teng interview (September 2007) with asiaXpress.com