Ten minute tea with Afternoon Tea. Spend ten minutes with Afternoon Tea. In the time it takes to boil one kettle, and let one cup of tea steep, we will have your daily art + music fix covered. Take your afternoon break with our Afternoon Tea curators. Need an extra lump of sugar? One more sip? If you have five minutes more (or ten), we have one more hit.
Today’s tea + soundtrack + visuals curated by Tennyson King.
Toronto-based, Hong Kong-born songwriter Tennyson King shares “Big Mountain High (大山高),” a powerful and emotionally resonant new single that marks a defining moment in his artistic evolution. Blending traditional Chinese instrumentation with modern indie folk and singer-songwriter sensibilities, the track stands as a bold expression of identity, heritage, and creative confidence. It is the first single released from his forthcoming album 100 Cities.
“This was the first song I wrote with the intention of fusing traditional Chinese instruments with western folk music,” Tennyson explains. Inspired by the ancient guqin composition “High Mountains and Flowing Water,” he was struck by its emotional depth. “It made me feel sadness and a sense of power at the same time,” he says. “I knew I wanted to write something inspired by it.”
Stream + share “Big Mountain High (大山高)” now:
Drawing from the original story tied to the composition, Tennyson expands on a tale of deep human connection between a musician and a woodcutter whose bond transcends class and circumstance. When the woodcutter dies, the musician never plays again. For Tennyson, the story took on a more personal meaning. “It made me feel like I was finding my voice through my ancestors,” he shares. “The death of the woodcutter in this story reminded me of my father who passed and whom I never got to share any of my music with.”
That emotional core is matched by the song’s ambitious sonic palette. Featuring contributions from Toronto-based traditional Chinese musicians Lina Cao (Guzheng), Amely Zhou (Erhu), and Lipeng Wu (Dizi), alongside a striking Peking Opera performance from Taiwanese singer I-Shuo Lin, “Big Mountain High (大山高)” moves fluidly between cultures and eras. Produced by Dan Hosh, the track balances organic, expressive performances with a modern, expansive folk-pop sound.
“We wanted to take the traditional Chinese elements but keep a modern western folk pop style of production,” Tennyson explains. “Traditional Chinese music isn’t usually played to a metronome. The timing is more free because it’s about expression. We wanted to try and keep some of those elements and let the musicians play.”
“‘Big Mountain High (大山高)’ is a symbol of strength, confidence, and taking up space,” Tennyson says. “For the first time, I feel confident in who I am as a whole being with my culture and traditions, and am unafraid to take up space with my art.”
– Listening to – Nanwang Sisters (南王姐妹花)
– I met the Nanwang Sisters just last week performing at the same music festival in Taipei, Taiwan. They have such beautiful harmonies and sing songs in their indigenous language of Puyuma. Just such soothing music that I feel is like welcoming me to the land. Even though I don’t understand everything they are saying, the vocal melodies and sounds just speak to me, and give me a sense of power and emergence through struggle. Indigenous group singing and harmonies give me such a strong sense of community. Listen to this song and you’ll know what I mean.
– I’ve been watching a bit of the OA. A show about near death experiences, having a different version of you exist in multiple dimensions and realities. This sort of thing fascinates me. In the show, the main character travels through different dimensions and meets the same people but are different and unaware of each other in these realities. I think it’s done so well, the acting and story is so good.
– I am in Taiwan as I write this so I feel like it is appropriate to be drinking a honey roasted oolong iced bubble tea. Refreshing, with fresh milk, I only ask for 10% sweetness because I am not a huge sweets person. Of course the tapioca’s are delicious and this drink can sometimes be a meal itself, they are so good in Taiwan. Definitely my go to while I am here on tour, on a hot sunny day in the city of Taipei.
Tea + Me 