Cats meowing and dancing into the night whilst the rest of the world sleeps.

Composer and Pianist: Shirley Ly
Violinist: Anya Birchall
Cellist: Patrick Tapio Johnson

© SHIRLEY LY

Carnival of the Cats | Violin, Piano and Cello Trio

Love transcends time and distance.

Composer: Shirley Ly
Violinist: Anya Birchall
Cellist: Patrick Tapio Johnson

© SHIRLEY LY

Virtually | Violin and Cello Duet

The winds of the East pass through, child memories brew. Memories related to the time my grandfather spent teaching me Chinese poetry, art, and calligraphy.

Composer: Shirley Ly
Violinist: Anya Birchall
Cellist: Patrick Tapio Johnson

© SHIRLEY LY

Easterly Winds | Violin and Cello Duet

Swans gracefully glide across from one side to the other of a lake to find their nests to rest in at midnight. The moon glistens in the distance.

Composer: Shirley Ly
Violinist: Anya Birchall
Cellist: Patrick Tapio Johnson

© SHIRLEY LY

Midnight Swans | Violin and Cello Duet

Springtime blossoms,
Light pink and plum shades,
Delicate and transient,
Their sweet scents pervade.

Composer: Shirley Ly
Violinist: Anya Birchall
Cellist: Patrick Tapio Johnson

© SHIRLEY LY

Blossom | Violin and Cello Duet

Sailing waters,
Endless ocean,
So freeing,
So limitless.

Composer: Shirley Ly
Violinist: Anya Birchall
Cellist: Patrick Tapio Johnson

© SHIRLEY LY

Sailing Waters | Violin and Cello Duet

A whimsical ball awaits...

Composer: Shirley Ly
Violinist: Anya Birchall
Cellist: Patrick Tapio Johnson

© SHIRLEY LY

Whimsical Ball | Violin and Cello Duet

From morning to night, the canals of Amsterdam glisten magically against the backdrop of beautifully uniform, looming, and narrow buildings. The heart dances with inspiration.

Composer and Pianist: Shirley Ly

© SHIRLEY LY

Amsterdam | Solo Piano

The feeling of walking through the beautiful city of Berlin at dawn.

Berlin is one of my favourite cities and carries a lot of emotional weight for me - it never sleeps, it is artsy, alternative and culturally diverse.

Composer and Pianist: Shirley Ly

© SHIRLEY LY

Dawn in Berlin | Solo Piano

A light-hearted waltz inspired by my sweet, mischievous, and playful cats. 

Composer and Pianist: Shirley Ly
Violinist: Matthew Scrivener
Cellist: Patrick Tapio Johnson

© SHIRLEY LY

Waltz Of The Cats | Violin, Cello and Piano Trio

Whilst the sun shines through the windows, the kitties sleep tight.

Cats Lullaby | Violin, Cello and Piano Trio

The feeling of loss and recovery during a relationship breakdown - everything seemed like a sweet dream...

Composer and Pianist: Shirley Ly
Violinist: Anya Birchall

© SHIRLEY LY

Sweet Reverie

Sweet Reverie | Violin and Piano Duet

The feeling of walking through the beautiful city of Berlin at dawn. 

Berlin is one of my favourite cities and carries a lot of emotional weight for me - it never sleeps, it is artsy, alternative and culturally diverse.

Composer and Pianist: Shirley Ly
Violinist: Anya Birchall

© SHIRLEY LY

Impetus

Dawn in Berlin

Dawn in Berlin | Violin and Piano Duet

Swallows swoop in the sunset. We see their strong, deep wingbeats at a distance. A storm amounts. Clouds are thick and swallows lose their senses of direction in the darkening skies. Raindrops batter their wings. 

The clouds disperse and the swallows emerge slowly and cautiously to find their way back to their warm clay nests.

Composer and Pianist: Shirley Ly
Violinist: Anya Birchall

© SHIRLEY LY

Swallows Silhouette

Swallows Silhouette | Violin and Piano Duet

The deep sense of longing for loved ones at home expressed through a letter.

Composer: Shirley Ly
Violinist: Anya Birchall
Cellist: Patrick Tapio Johnson

© SHIRLEY LY

Love Letter - Part 1 | Violin and Cello Duet

Dancing on a starlit road where above, silver and neon stars blink. The air is crisp and the leaves in the distant woods flutter. Wishing twilight lasted forever.

Composer and Pianist: Shirley Ly
Violinist: Anya Birchall
Cellist: Patrick Tapio Johnson

© SHIRLEY LY

Twilight Dance | Violin, Cello and Piano Trio

Melting snow dampens the earth beneath, sunlight becomes clearer and clouds become lighter against the bluing sky. Anticipating renewal and revitalisation of life in all forms.

Composer and Pianist: Shirley Ly
Violinist: Anya Birchall
Cellist: Patrick Tapio Johnson

© SHIRLEY LY

Spring Fantasy | Violin, Cello and Piano Trio

The deep sense of longing for loved ones at home expressed through a letter. Part 2 continued.

Composer: Shirley Ly
Violinist: Minsi Yang Johnson
Cellist: Patrick Tapio Johnson

© SHIRLEY LY

Love Letter - Part 2 | Violin and Cello Duet

'I will try to erase you from my memories
No more tears with your name on, I'll be set free
You can take your selfish, thoughtless ways
Forget these any day 
Your loss hey'

Composer and Pianist: Shirley Ly
Violinist: Minsi Yang Johnson
Cellist: Patrick Tapio Johnson

Erase from Memories | Violin, Cello and Piano Trio

A grey fog casts across London's cityscape - rain pattering and wind hissing. Despite this, we strive as in this city, there is full of opportunity.

Composer and Pianist: Shirley Ly
Violinist: Minsi Yang Johnson
Cellist: Patrick Tapio Johnson

London Strive | Violin, Cello and Piano Trio

Amber oak leaves flutter in the mellow sun. Songbirds call in the distance. Preparation for Winter begins.

Composer and Pianist: Shirley Ly
Violinist: Minsi Yang Johnson
Cellist: Patrick Tapio Johnson

Amber Leaves | Violin, Cello and Piano Trio

Wherever we go, falling leaves always return to their roots - a saying that will always resonate with me. No matter what happens, family will always be there to provide unconditional love.

Composer and Pianist: Shirley Ly
Violinist: Anya Birchall

© SHIRLEY LY

Falling Leaves | Violin and Piano Duet

From morning to night, the canals of Amsterdam glisten magically against the backdrop of beautifully uniform, looming and narrow buildings. The heart dances with inspiration. 

Composer: Shirley Ly
Violinists: Anya Birchall, Tom Leate
Violist: Wei Wei Tan
Cellist: Patrick Tapio Johnson 

© SHIRLEY LY

Amsterdam | String Quartet

Dancing in the powdery snow, white flakes from the dark night gently kiss the skin, the flakes glitter against the stars, swirling and twirling as the feet move across the surface.

Composer: Shirley Ly
Violinists: Anya Birchall
Cellist: Patrick Tapio Johnson

© SHIRLEY LY

Waltz In The Snow | Violin, Cello and Piano Trio

Constantly wandering, never settling, finding self-happiness.

Composer and Pianist: Shirley Ly
Violinist: Anya Birchall
Cellist: Patrick Tapio Johnson

© SHIRLEY LY

Vagabond's Tale | Violin, Cello and Piano Trio

Shirley Ly is a self-taught contemporary classical music composer from Greenwich in London, United Kingdom, with Chinese and Vietnamese heritage. She began composing music when she was 15 and instantly fell in love with it, writing pieces whenever she feels inspired to do so for acoustic instruments. Her music has been played around half a million times across more than 100 countries around the world spanning six continents and is described to be a bridge between classical, romantic, and minimalist music with Eastern and jazz elements. She has performed her music across a variety of venues, including churches in London, and the Palace of Westminster, and will be performing in many more venues going forward.
​
She has produced two albums, Blossom (2021) and Impetus (2018), which feature 21 pieces composed for solo piano, duets, trios, and quartets. The pieces in the albums aim to capture her reflections on life experiences relating to nature (i.e., swallows' journeys to their nests, the seasons), living in London, dance, relationships with family and other loved ones, travel (i.e. to Berlin and Amsterdam), and dreams. Shirley plays the piano in all of her pieces.
   
She is currently working on her third and fourth albums, 9 Pieces About Cats and Paradise, to be released in 2023, where some of the pieces will be orchestral pieces. 9 Pieces About Cats consist of pieces inspired by her five mischievous cats in London. Paradise focuses on the beauty of the ocean and its diverse marine life. Through her experiences of swimming, diving, sailing, and surfing in the ocean, she has developed an intense admiration for the ocean. It is magnificent, refreshing, and incredibly humbling, and she hopes that her music can further emphasise its importance.  

​For Shirley, composing music helps with the discovery of self as it allows reflections to be expressed freely. She considers music to be very powerful as it can be shared, not only in a physical way where people can listen to it but in the sense that it evokes emotions, triggers memories, and makes the mind wander into an abyss of imagination. ​She sincerely hopes that her work shares in this sense with you. 

All works are protected by copyright. Please do not use without permission.

© Shirley Ly

Popular tracks by Shirley Ly | Contemporary Classical Music Composer