Christmas Time is Here

Welcome back to Tea with Liya! This is actually my first post of fall 2021, but it's closer to winter now. Today, I'm playing a song called "Christmas Time is Here," which was composed by the jazz pianist Vince Guaraldi for "A Charlie Brown Christmas." Maybe you've been waiting for Christmas just as much as you've been waiting for a Tea with Liya post. Sometimes, we see the value in waiting when the event we've been hoping for finally arrives. I hope you like listening to it!


Listen to the song here
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Emily

Welcome back to Tea with Liya! Today, I'm playing a jazz standard called "Emily," composed by Johnny Mandel. This song was written for a film in 1964, but in the end it wasn't actually included. It became popular when the pianist Bill Evans recorded it a few years later. I hope you like listening to it!

Listen to the song here
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Prelude and Fugue in C Minor

Welcome back to Tea with Liya! Today, I'm playing a "prelude and fugue" by Johann Sebastian Bach that he wrote in the key of C minor. Even though the piece has two contrasting parts, they are both regarded as the same song. Preludes are usually shorter and serve as an introduction, while fugues have a central melody that is played in different places and times throughout the song. I hope you will enjoy this one!

Listen to the song here
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Suite in D Minor

Welcome back to Tea with Liya! Today, I'm playing a song by George Frideric Handel called the "Suite in D Minor." He actually wrote at least 3 pieces with this name, from what I've looked up, so perhaps we will one day run into a Sonata in A Major predicament. Sometimes, it seems that composers just don't have enough time to think of names for songs - which, in this case, might be an accurate statement. I hope you like listening to it!


Listen to the song here
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Sonnymoon for Two

Welcome back to Tea with Liya! Today, I'm playing a little jazz standard which is called "Sonnymoon for Two." It was composed by the saxophonist Sonny Rollins, who took the opportunity to name this song after himself. Maybe he also wanted to say that it's better to be together than alone. I hope you like listening to it!


Listen to the song here
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Star Eyes

Welcome back to Tea with Liya! Today, I'm playing a jazz standard called "Star Eyes." This song was made for a film that was released in 1943, but it was made popular among musicians when Charlie Parker recorded it several years later. I hope you like listening to it!


Listen to the song here
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Lullaby of Birdland

Welcome back to Tea with Liya! Today, I'm playing a jazz song called "Lullaby of Birdland." This song was composed by George Shearing, who claimed to have written it in 10 minutes. However, he said that his prior experience was a contributor to his ability to write the song. Even though those years of experience weren't directly connected, they still played a part in his composition. I hope you like listening to it!


Listen to the song here
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Joyful, Joyful We Adore Thee

I hope you enjoyed your Easter weekend! Today on Tea with Liya, I'm playing a hymn called "Joyful, Joyful We Adore Thee." The melody to this song was used in Beethoven's Symphony number 9, but lyrics were then added by Henry van Dyke in 1911. He wanted to turn the melody into an expression of the hope he had because of his faith. I hope you like listening to it!

Listen to the song here
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Crazeology

Welcome back to Tea with Liya! Today, I'm playing a jazz song called "Crazeology," which was composed by Benny Harris, but first recorded by Charlie Parker. Maybe there was a crazy idea that inspired this song, but we can't really know that now. I hope you like listening to it!


Listen to the song here
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An improvised Fur Elise

Today, I'm playing a classical song called "Fur Elise," composed by Ludwig van Beethoven. This might even be the first song that you think of when someone mentions classical music. So, I decided to make it a bit different than the official version that's been published, by playing the main theme in different ways. I hope you like listening to it!


Listen to the song here
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Power of the Cross

Welcome back to Tea with Liya! Today, I'm playing a worship song called "Power of the Cross." I remember listening to this song about a year ago... in a church service that was also online. Even though COVID seems to be taking over, this song is a reminder that the power of the cross is greater than anything - even the power of COVID. I hope you like listening to it!


Listen to the song here
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Keep filling your teacup with music!
~Liya

He's a Pirate

Welcome back to Tea with Liya! Today's song is "He's a Pirate," the theme song of the movie "Pirates of the Caribbean." It was composed by Klaus Badelt and Hans Zimmer. The song has now become more popular than the movie itself, much like quotes we might know from books or even a classical song I posted a few weeks ago. I hope you like listening to it!


Listen to the song here
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Chega de Saudade (No More Blues)

Welcome back to Tea with Liya! Today, I'm playing a bossa nova standard called "Chega de Saudade," or "No More Blues." It was composed by the famous musician Antonio Carlos Jobim, with the lyrics by Vinicius de Moraes. Chega de Saudade is often referred to as the first bossa nova song to be recorded. I hope you like listening to it!


Listen to the song here
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Liebestraum #3 (Love Dream)

Welcome back to Tea with Liya! Today, I'm playing a song by Franz Liszt called "Liebestraum," or "Dreams of Love." It's part of a collection of three songs that he wrote, but this one is the most popular. There's a theory that Liszt wrote this song when his fellow composer Frederic Chopin passed away, in memory of him. The poem that this song was based on reminds us to take advantage of every opportunity to show love, before the people we had relationships with are gone, never to be seen again. I hope you like listening to this song!


Listen to the song here
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The Chicken

Welcome back to Tea with Liya! Today, I'm playing what you might call a "modern jazz" tune by Pee Wee Ellis. It's called "The Chicken," and it was written in 2001 - that's 20 years ago now, but it's pretty new compared to the jazz songs that were written in the 1940s. I hope you like listening to it!


Listen to the song here
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Moonlight Sonata

Welcome back to Tea with Liya! Today, I'm playing the famous classical song by Ludwig van Beethoven called "Moonlight Sonata." Unlike some other classical musicians, Beethoven was a composer who lived to see his work become popular. However, he didn't really understand the reason why everyone liked this song. I hope this will be a song that you like, too!


Listen to the song here
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Recordame

Welcome back to Tea with Liya! Today, I'm playing a jazz song called "Recordame." This song, which was inspired by Latin music, was actually written by the saxophonist Joe Henderson when he was only 15. His song title came from the Spanish word "recuerdame," which means "remember me." That got me thinking about how recordings "remember" songs for us. I hope you like listening to it!


Listen to the song here
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Black Orpheus

Welcome back to Tea with Liya! Today, I'm playing a jazz song called "Black Orpheus." This song was actually written for a movie of the same name, which was based on a story from ancient Greece about a character named Orpheus. The origins of stories and songs can go back farther than we think - perhaps as far as the original Orpheus went to rescue Eurydice, the love of his life.

You might think that you know where something came from or why it exists, but you could actually be forgetting about something. An issue is often more complicated than we think it is. Sometimes, we might even be missing information about its origins, and we have to admit that we can't know everything about it instead of making assumptions. I hope you like listening to it!


Listen to the song here
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Keep filling your teacup with music!
~Liya

Battle Hymn of the Republic

Welcome back to Tea with Liya! Today, I'm playing a hymn called "Battle Hymn of the Republic." Even though it was written during the American Civil War, it is still sung by various armies and churches today. It connected the judgment of God to the freedom from slavery which the Union soldiers hoped to achieve. I hope you like listening to it!


Listen to the song here
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Blues at Seven

Welcome back to Tea with Liya! For the first song of 2021, I'm playing a song that I composed called "Blues at Seven." The number could refer to 7:00, but it's also a reference to the rhythmic pattern of the song. Another thing I just noticed is that 21 is a multiple of 7, so this is the right year to post this song, too. I hope you like listening to it!


Listen to the song here
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