Yo-Yo Ma shares about impact of music during socially distant times
August 14, 2020 | Washington Post
Yo-Yo Ma gives back to Chicago through music and culture
February 19, 2020 | Chicago Tribune
Yo-Yo Ma surprises ten-year old fan with a personal gift
July 24, 2019 | Chicago Tribune
Yo-Yo Ma speaks on the impact of cultural exchange
August 21, 2019 | Korea Times
Yo-Yo Ma led master class at University of Santa Barbara
May 01, 2019 | The Bottom Line
Yo-Yo Ma brings Bach to Mexico
March 25, 2019 | El Universal
Yo-Yo Ma pairs music and social justice in Harvard Business School Panel
March 14, 2019 | The Harvard Crimson
Yo-Yo Ma featured in Chicago Peace Concert
June 10, 2018 | CBS Chicago
Yo-Yo Ma inducted into Lincoln Center’s Performing Arts Hall of Fame
June 08, 2017 | Huffington Post
Yo-Yo Ma ’s Silk Road Ensemble highlighted for musical diplomacy
June 08, 2017 | The New York Times
Yo-Yo Ma praised for inspiring “Concert for Peace” at St. Sabina Church
June 11, 2017 | Chicago Sun Times
Yo-Yo Ma praised for ‘superstar’ performance with Minnesota Orchestra
June 14, 2017 | StarTribune
Yo-Yo Ma praised for his efforts to revitalize the city of Chicago
June 23, 2017 | Crain's Chicago Business
Yo-Yo Ma to perform at world premier music festival in August
May 02, 2017 | Dartmouth News
Yo-Yo Ma performs at Greek Theater in Berkeley with “Bach Trio”
May 02, 2017 | San Francisco Classical Voice
Yo-Yo Ma s Silk Road music celebrates the Silk Road
May 03, 2017 | Cankaoxiaoxi
Yo-Yo Ma featured in Scottsdale Center for the Performing Arts 2017-18 classical season
May 05, 2017 | Scottsdale Independent
Yo-Yo Ma reunites with Condoleezza Rice for performance at Kennedy Center
May 07, 2017 | Washington Post
Yo-Yo Ma headlines Moss Art Center’s 2017-18 performance season
May 08, 2017 | Virginia Tech News
Yo-Yo Ma speaks at MIT’s Solve global challenges initiative
May 08, 2017 | PR Newswire
Yo-Yo Ma leads “Concert for Peace” in Chicago
May 11, 2017 | NBC Chicago
Yo-Yo Ma and National Symphony Orchestra perform for John F. Kennedy’s centenary
May 25, 2017 | Washington Classical Review
Yo-Yo Ma is one of Colorado Symphony’s 2017/18 season highlights
March 01, 2017 | The Denver Post
Yo-Yo Ma Silk Road Ensemble “builds bridges between cultures one note at a time”
March 02, 2017 | The Japan Times
Yo-Yo Ma to perform at University of Iowa
March 03, 2017 | The Daily Iowan
Yo-Yo Ma “The Music of Strangers: Yo-Yo Ma and the Silk Road Ensemble” documentary now available on HBO
March 03, 2017 | The New York Times
Yo-Yo Ma ’s “Music of Strangers” documentary praised as ‘extraordinary’ and ‘rewarding’
March 10, 2017 | National Business Review
Yo-Yo Ma performs the European première of Esa-Pekka Salonen’s challenging new Cello concerto
April 03, 2017 | Evening Standard
Yo-Yo Ma set to co-lead 2017 Kennedy Center Arts Summit
April 11, 2017 | Broadway World
Yo-Yo Ma will perform with Minnesota Orchestra in June
February 03, 2017 | Star Tribune
Yo-Yo Ma Houston audience erupts in applause for
February 06, 2017 | Houstonia Magazine
Yo-Yo Ma and violinist Joshua Bell perform with D.C. elementary school students
February 08, 2017 | The Washington Post
Yo-Yo Ma and Silk Road Ensemble win Best World Music Album at Grammys for ‘Sing Me Home’
February 12, 2017 | The Grammys
Yo-Yo Ma ’s “The Music of Strangers” documentary to premiere on HBO in March
February 13, 2017 | Broadway World
Yo-Yo Ma ’s musical performances “form a part of his soul”
February 24, 2017 | Daily Camera
Yo-Yo Ma performs with Colorado Springs Philharmonic to celebrate its 90th anniversary
February 26, 2017 | The Gazette
Yo-Yo Ma is one of Chicago Symphony Orchestra’s 2017/18 season highlights
January 31, 2017 | Chicago Classical Review
Yo-Yo Ma is soloist for Dallas Symphony Orchestra’s 2017-18 season-opening gala in September
February 01, 2017 | Dallas News
Yo-Yo Ma and Houston Symphony perform one-night-only sold-out concert
January 24, 2017 | Broadway World
Yo-Yo Ma to perform at Symphony Hall in Boston
January 26, 2017 | The Boston Globe
Yo-Yo Ma is one of Kansas City Symphony’s 17/18 Season highlights
January 30, 2017 | The Kansas City Star
Yo-Yo Ma receives Grammy Award nomination for “Sing Me Home” album
January 15, 2017 | Columbia Daily Tribune
Yo-Yo Ma to perform at Missouri University of Science and Technology
January 18, 2017 | Missouri S&T
Yo-Yo Ma ’s “goal of music as a means of communication”
December 29, 2016 | World Music Central
Yo-Yo Ma featured on “the story of the Cello”
January 06, 2017 | The Guardian
Yo-Yo Ma and “the beauty of music in a violent world”
January 06, 2017 | BrisbaneTimes
Yo-Yo Ma hailed “a legend” as “the most famous musician that China has bestowed upon the classical community”
January 07, 2017 | Classic FM
Yo-Yo Ma Interview on inspiration for Silk Road Ensemble album, Sing Me Home
December 16, 2016 | Classical MPR
Yo-Yo Ma joins Houston Symphony Orchestra February 2017
December 19, 2016 | Broadway World
Yo-Yo Ma named top ten performance in Chicago for 2016
December 23, 2016 | Chicago Classical Review
Yo-Yo Ma and “The Music of Strangers” documentary is praised for its inspiration
December 01, 2016 | The Arts Desk
Yo-Yo Ma performs at 10th Anniversary Gala concert of Montreal Bach Festiva
December 02, 2016 | Montreal Gazette
Yo-Yo Ma receives Grammy Award nomination for “Sing Me Home”
December 06, 2016 | Daily Mail
Yo-Yo Ma to promote artistic development at Youth Music Culture Guangdong in January 2017
December 08, 2016 | Broadway World
Yo-Yo Ma demonstrates the synergy of science and music
December 08, 2016 | National Institutes of Health
Yo-Yo Ma performs with Albany Symphony Orchestra
December 09, 2016 | The Daily Gazette
Yo-Yo Ma and “The Music of Strangers” documentary “works to unite both audiences and performers in a conversation about art”
November 14, 2016 | St. Catherines Standard
Yo-Yo Ma in interview “Facing the Music”
November 07, 2016 | The Guardian
Yo-Yo Ma on the healing power of music, especially in times of “increasing change and rising xenophobia”
November 08, 2016 | Straits Times
Yo-Yo Ma documentary “The Music of Strangers: The Silk Road Ensemble” featured at Fresno Film Festival in California
November 08, 2016 | Valley Public Radio
Yo-Yo Ma praised for performance of “musical riches”
November 14, 2016 | Straits Times
Yo-Yo Ma will perform at the Abu Dhabi Festival 2017
November 03, 2016 | The National
Yo-Yo Ma is awarded 2016 J. Paul Getty Medal for extraordinary contributions to further the understanding of world’s diverse cultures
October 19, 2016 | Haute Living
Yo-Yo Ma praised for magnificent performance with the Boston Symphony Orchestra
October 22, 2016 | Boston Globe
Yo-Yo Ma comments on the joys of opening the Hong Kong Philharmonic’s new season
August 30, 2016 | South China Morning Post
Yo-Yo Ma joins Board of Trustees of World Economic Forum
August 25, 2016 | Mondo Visione
Yo-Yo Ma considered a cultural unifier alongside Pope Francis
June 24, 2016 | Huffington Post
Yo-Yo Ma : New documentary on Silk Road Ensemble illustrates power of music
June 23, 2016 | Chicago Tribune
Yo-Yo Ma inducted into the Lincoln Center Performing Arts Hall of Fame.
February 12, 2016 | New York Times
Yo-Yo Ma will serve as artistic advisers to the Kennedy Center’s celebration of the 100th Anniversary of the birth of President John F. Kennedy.
March 08, 2016 | Washington Business Journal
Yo-Yo Ma ’s film The Music of Strangers on his work with the Silk Road ensemble is up in theatres nationwide
June 10, 2016 | New York Times
Yo-Yo Ma discusses his 60th birthday, an exciting upcoming performance, as well as his personal journey in an interview with The Guardian.
July 30, 2015 | The Guardian
Yo-Yo Ma performs in New York Philharmonic Lunar New Year concert.
February 27, 2015 | Yahoo News
Yo-Yo Ma is interviewed by Boston Magazine and discusses the role of humor in his work and personal life.
March 05, 2015 | Boston Magazine
Yo-Yo Ma’s multi-faceted career is testament to his continual search for new ways to communicate with audiences, and to his personal desire for artistic growth and renewal. Whether performing new or familiar works from the cello repertoire, coming together with colleagues for chamber music or exploring cultures and musical forms outside the Western classical tradition, Mr. Ma strives to find connections that stimulate the imagination.
Yo-Yo Ma maintains a balance between his engagements as soloist with orchestras throughout the world and his recital and chamber music activities. He draws inspiration from a wide circle of collaborators, creating programs with such artists as Emanuel Ax, Daniel Barenboim, Kayhan Kalhor, Ton Koopman, Yu Long, Edgar Meyer, Mark Morris, Cristina Pato, Kathryn Stott, Chris Thile, Michael Tilson Thomas, Wu Man, Wu Tong, and Damian Woetzel. Each of these collaborations is fueled by the artists’ interactions, often extending the boundaries of a particular genre. One of Mr. Ma’s goals is the exploration of music as a means of communication and as a vehicle for the migration of ideas across a range of cultures throughout the world. To that end, he has taken time to immerse himself in subjects as diverse as native Chinese music with its distinctive instruments and the music of the Kalahari bush people in Africa.
Expanding upon this interest, in 1998, Mr. Ma established Silkroad, a nonprofit organization that seeks to create meaningful change at the intersections of the arts, education and business. Under his artistic direction, Silkroad presents performances by the acclaimed Silk Road Ensemble and develops new music, cultural partnerships, education programs, and cross-disciplinary collaborations. Silkroad’s ongoing affiliation with Harvard University has made it possible to develop programs such as the Arts and Passion-Driven Learning Institute for educators and teaching artists, held in collaboration with the Harvard Graduate School of Education, and a new Cultural Entrepreneurship initiative in partnership with Harvard Business School. More than 80 new musical and multimedia works have been commissioned for the Silk Road Ensemble from composers and arrangers around the world.
Through his work with Silkroad, as throughout his career, Yo-Yo Ma seeks to expand the cello repertoire, frequently performing lesser known music of the 20th century and commissions of new concertos and recital pieces. He has premiered works by a diverse group of composers, among them Elliott Carter, Richard Danielpour, Osvaldo Golijov, Leon Kirchner, Zhao Lin, Christopher Rouse, Giovanni Sollima, Bright Sheng, Tan Dun, John Williams and Dmitri Yanov-Yanovsky. In February of 2017 he will premiere a new concerto by Esa-Pekka Salonen.
As the Chicago Symphony Orchestra’s Judson and Joyce Green Creative Consultant, Mr. Ma is partnering with Maestro Riccardo Muti to provide collaborative musical leadership and guidance on innovative program development for The Negaunee Music Institute of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, and for Chicago Symphony artistic initiatives. Ma’s work focuses on the transformative power music can have in individuals’ lives, and on increasing the number and variety of opportunities audiences have to experience music in their communities. In March 2016, he was appointed Artistic Advisor at Large to the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts as part of their expansive initiatives honoring the centenary of JFK’s birth and to encourage the idea of creative citizenship.
Yo-Yo Ma is strongly committed to educational programs that not only bring young audiences into contact with music but also allow them to participate in its creation. While touring, he takes time whenever possible to conduct master classes as well as more informal programs for students-musicians and non-musicians alike. At the same time, he continues to develop new concert programs for family audiences, for instance helping to inaugurate the family series at Carnegie Hall. In each of these undertakings, he works to connect music to students’ daily surroundings and activities with the goal of making music and creativity a vital part of children’s lives from an early age. He has also reached young audiences through appearances on “Arthur”, “Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood” and “Sesame Street”.
Mr. Ma’s discography of over 100 albums (including 18 Grammy Award winners) reflects his wide-ranging interests. He has made several successful recordings that defy categorization, among them “Appalachia Waltz” and “Appalachian Journey” with Mark O’Connor and Edgar Meyer, and two Grammy-winning tributes to the music of Brazil, “Obrigado Brazil” and “Obrigado Brazil-Live in Concert” Mr. Ma’s recent recordings include: “The Goat Rodeo Sessions”, with Edgar Meyer, Chris Thile and Stuart Duncan, which received the 2013 Grammy for Best Folk Album, and “Songs from the Arc of Life” with pianist Kathryn Stott. His most recent release, “Sing Me Home” recorded with the Silk Road Ensemble, was released in April 2016 as the companion album to documentary film The Music of Strangers. Created by Oscar-winning producer Morgan Neville, the film follows the Ensemble’s more than 50 musicians, composers, visual artists and storytellers as they explore the ways art can both preserve traditions and shape cultural evolution. Next spring Mr. Ma looks forward to touring the upcoming Bach Trios project with Edgar Meyer and Chris Thile. Mr. Ma remains one of the best-selling recording artists in the classical field. All of his recent albums have quickly entered the Billboard chart of classical best sellers, remaining in the Top 15 for extended periods, often with as many as four titles simultaneously on the list.
Yo-Yo Ma was born in 1955 to Chinese parents living in Paris. He began to study the cello with his father at age four and soon came with his family to New York, where he spent most of his formative years. Later, his principal teacher was Leonard Rose at the Juilliard School. He sought out a traditional liberal arts education to expand upon his conservatory training, graduating from Harvard University in 1976. He has received numerous awards, including the Avery Fisher Prize (1978), the Glenn Gould Prize (1999), the National Medal of the Arts (2001), the Dan David Prize (2006), the Leonie Sonning Music Prize (2006), the World Economic Forum’s Crystal Award (2008), the Presidential Medal of Freedom (2010), the Polar Music Prize (2012) and the Vilcek Prize in Contemporary Music (2013). In 2011, Mr. Ma was recognized as a Kennedy Center Honoree. Appointed a CultureConnect Ambassador by the United States Department of State in 2002, Mr. Ma has met with, trained and mentored thousands of students worldwide in countries including Lithuania, Korea, Lebanon, Azerbaijan and China. Mr. Ma serves as a UN Messenger of Peace and as a member of the President’s Committee on the Arts & the Humanities. He has performed for eight American presidents, most recently at the invitation of President Obama on the occasion of the 56th Inaugural Ceremony.
Mr. Ma and his wife have two children. He plays two instruments, a 1733 Montagnana cello from Venice and the 1712 Davidoff Stradivarius.
Committee of 100
Extraordinary Chinese Americans
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