profile

Vienna Teng

what's going on in Philly?

Published about 1 month ago • 3 min read

Hi Reader,

I have an exciting update coming in a few weeks (teaser: I'll be a speaker in an awards event at Climate Week NYC!), but I want to share some more immediate news.

My November 21 show at World Cafe Live in Philadephia is canceled - BUT we’ve moved it just a bit down Interstate 95 to The Queen in Wilmington, Delaware, a beautiful venue I’ve been wanting to play for a while. Tickets are on sale as of today!

Also, in a mere two days - Saturday Aug 30 - I'll be playing an outdoor show just outside Philly, singing to you from a gazebo as part of the excellent Bryn Mawr Twilight Concerts series. The witty & wise Brittany Ann Tranbaugh will open the show. Come hang out with us! I guarantee the mosquitoes will come for me, not you. Plus kids 12 & under don't need a ticket.

If you'd already purchased tickets to the World Cafe Live show, thank you so much, and I'm so sorry for throwing a wrench in your concertgoing plans. I sincerely hope you'll join us in Bryn Mawr or Wilmington instead - and if you show your WCL ticket receipt, I'll give you a merch item of your choice as thanks making the trip!

Graphic promoting an upcoming show. Text reads: "Rising Sun Presents Bryn Mawr Twilight Concerts, August 30, Vienna Teng with Brittany Ann Tranbaugh, Outdoors in Bryn Mawr, PA.” Drawings of flowers adorn the edges of a promo photo of Vienna, and the text matches the mint green, pale orange and dark pink flowers, all against a pale yellow background. Screenshot of an upcoming show listing. Text reads: "The Queen Wilmington, Vienna Teng, Friday, November 21, 8:00pm, Rock, Read More."

​
More about the situation:

World Cafe Live is home to many fond memories, including when we recorded my first & only live DVD (remember those?) with a full band, and folks flew in from all over to be part of the audience. The WCL team handled the whole weekend with aplomb, looking out for guests and performers alike. It’s a special place.
​
And it's going through some tough times right now. I’m glad two new unions have been recognized, and I hope it’s the start of a healthier relationship between new management and staff who raised urgent concerns about timely pay, communication and dignity. To quote fellow musicians in the band Adventure Lost: "The last thing we want is for WCL to fail or disappear from our community - and we understand that change is inevitable with new leadership & hard financial realities - but we advocate that new management do a better job of working with, rather than against, the staff that built WCL’s reputation.”
​
Here’s to great music venues - and the people who make them so. 💜

Love,
VT

All my upcoming shows

  • Sat 30 Aug @ 19:00 EDT - Bryn Mawr PA - Bryn Mawr Twilight Concerts - with Brittany Ann Tranbaugh **free merch item for WCL ticket holders**
  • Fri 12 Sep @ 20:00 CDT - Dallas TX - Sons of Hermann Hall
  • Sat 13 Sep @ 20:00 CDT - Austin TX - The 04 Center
  • Sun 14 Sep @ 19:30 CDT - The Woodlands TX - Dosey Doe
  • [Patreon] Sat 20 Sep @ 21:00 EDT - Live@Home #37 livestream + climate action hangout
  • [Patreon] Sat 4 Oct @ 14:00 EDT - Live@Home #38 livestream + climate action hangout
  • Thu 9 Oct @ 19:30 EDT - Springfield OH - Clark State Performing Arts Center - with Alex Wong​
  • Fri 10 Oct @ 19:30 EDT - Kent OH - The Kent Stage - with Alex Wong​
  • Sat 11 Oct @ 20:00 EDT - Ann Arbor MI - The Ark - with Alex Wong​
  • Sun 12 Oct @ 19:00 CDT - Evanston IL - SPACE - with Alex Wong​
  • Sun 19 Oct @ 14:30 PDT - Stanford CA - Bing Concert Hall - collaborative concert with Viano Quartet​
  • Thu 23 Oct @ 20:00 EDT - Natick MA - The Center for Arts in Natick (TCAN)
  • Fri 24 Oct @ 20:00 EDT - Fall River MA - The Narrows Center for the Arts
  • Sat 25 Oct @ 20:00 EDT - Portland ME - One Longfellow Square
  • Sun 26 Oct @ 17:00 EDT - Cambridge MA - Club Passim (early show) **sold out**
  • Sun 26 Oct @ 20:00 EDT - Cambridge MA - Club Passim (late show) **low ticket warning**
  • Thu-Mon 6-10 Nov - Sevierville TN - Multitudes II: A Gathering For Multifaceted People with Alex Wong!
  • [Patreon] Sat 15 Nov @ 21:00 EST - Live@Home #39 livestream + climate action hangout
  • Thu 20 Nov @ 20:00 EST - Annapolis MD - Rams Head On Stage
  • Fri 21 Nov @ 20:00 EST - Wilmington DE - The Queen **free merch item for WCL ticket holders**
    **CANCELED** Fri 21 Nov @ 20:00 EST - Philadelphia PA - World Cafe Live
  • Sat 22 Nov @ 17:00 EST - New York NY - The Loft at City Winery NYC (early show)
  • Sat 22 Nov @ 20:00 EST - New York NY - The Loft at City Winery NYC (late show)
  • Sun 23 Nov @ 19:30 EST - Alexandria VA - The Birchmere
  • Thu 4 Dec @ 20:00 PST - Mill Valley CA - Sweetwater Music Hall
  • Fri 5 Dec @ 20:00 PST - Santa Monica CA - McCabe's Guitar Shop
  • Sat 6 Dec @ 20:00 PST - Santa Monica CA - McCabe's Guitar Shop
  • Sun 7 Dec @ 20:00 PST - San Diego CA - Lou Lou's - 21+
  • [Patreon] Sat 13 Dec @ 14:00 EST - Live@Home #40 livestream + climate action hangout

Vienna Teng

Thanks for visiting! Browse past newsletters and subscribe here.

Read more from Vienna Teng
An illustrated graphic of a sun with "Grist 50 2025" at the center, and rays radiating outward into images of various climate solutions: a chef cooking, a family on bicycles, a scientist monitoring a satellite, a scientist studying fish, workers installin

Hi Reader... Well, what a sweet way to land back home from tour. Thanks to all of YOU who've joined a climate action workshop on tour, signed up for office hours, browsed the starter list of useful actions, joined the monthly Patreon hangouts, or worked with me one-on-one to figure out what you can do...I'm on this year's Grist 50 list of "climate leaders you should know"! From Grist's lovely writeup: While musicians have a rich history of raising awareness for social causes, Teng takes it a...

23 days ago • 4 min read
Vienna stands with hands outstretched in the middle of a circle of people listening (half the circle is shown), singing. She wears a black sleeveless jumpsuit and sandals. On a wall behind her, the words "Unterfahrt Jazz Club" are visible.

Hi Reader... I write to you from a very messy living room, where I've been tinkering with gear and instruments outside my comfort zone. I'm working on three projects at once: recording an EP of beloved rarities like "Pencil Sketch"; an event concept blending new songs with a climate solutions "tasting party" (yes, I'm directly riffing off Alex Wong's amazing Permission Parties); and the first lurching, grasping sonic experiments for a new full-length album. Oh, plus tomorrow's Patreon...

5 months ago • 4 min read
Around a dozen people sit at large wooden dining tables, writing on colored pieces of paper. Large windows look out onto a balcony and a green forest canopy beyond. A caption runs across the bottom, indicating that this is a still from a video, and reads

Hi Reader, I know it's only been a few weeks since my last send, but some seasons the news comes quickly... Announcing Multitudes II: A Gathering For Multi-Faceted People, November 6-10, 2025! Alex Wong and I had a truly amazing time at the first-ever Multitudes last September. As we kept saying afterwards, "wow, everyone really understood the assignment." A power outage the first night just meant we kicked things off sitting in a circle on the living room floor, passing a giant stuffed...

7 months ago • 7 min read