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Yo-Yo Ma (''
Chinese Chinese can refer to: * Something related to China * Chinese people, people of Chinese nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity **''Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic concept of the Chinese nation ** List of ethnic groups in China, people of va ...
'': 馬友友 ''Ma Yo Yo''; born October 7, 1955) is an American cellist. Born in Paris to Chinese parents and educated in New York City, he was a
child prodigy A child prodigy is defined in psychology research literature as a person under the age of ten who produces meaningful output in some domain at the level of an adult expert. The term is also applied more broadly to young people who are extraor ...
, performing from the age of four and a half. He graduated from the Juilliard School and Harvard University and attended Columbia University and has performed as a soloist with orchestras around the world. He has recorded more than 90 albums and received 19
Grammy Awards The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pres ...
. In addition to recordings of the standard classical repertoire, Ma has recorded a wide variety of folk music, such as American
bluegrass music Bluegrass music is a genre of American roots music The term American folk music encompasses numerous music genres, variously known as ''traditional music'', ''traditional folk music'', ''contemporary folk music'', ''vernacular music,'' or ...
, traditional Chinese melodies, the tangos of Argentine composer Astor Piazzolla, and Brazilian music. He has collaborated with artists in diverse genres, including the singer Bobby McFerrin, the guitarist
Carlos Santana Carlos Humberto Santana Barragán (; born July 20, 1947) is an American guitarist who rose to fame in the late 1960s and early 1970s with his band Santana, which pioneered a fusion of Rock and roll and Latin American jazz. Its sound featured ...
,
Sérgio Assad Sérgio Assad (born 26 December 1952) is a Brazilian guitarist, composer, and arranger who often performs with his brother, Odair in the guitar duo ''Sérgio and Odair Assad'', commonly referred to as the ''Assad Brothers'' or ''Duo Assad''. T ...
and his brother, Odair, and the singer-songwriter-guitarist James Taylor. Ma's primary performance instrument is a 1733
Montagnana Montagnana is a town and ''comune'' in the province of Padova, in Veneto (northern Italy). Neighbouring communes are Borgo Veneto, Casale di Scodosia, Urbana, Bevilacqua, Pojana Maggiore, Pressana, Minerbe and Roveredo di Guà. , the popula ...
cello valued at US$2.5 million. Ma has been a
United Nations Messenger of Peace United Nations Messenger of Peace is a special post-nominal honorific title of authority bestowed by the United Nations to "distinguished individuals, carefully selected from the fields of art, music, literature and sports, who have agreed to help f ...
since 2006. He was awarded The Glenn Gould Prize in 1999, the
National Medal of Arts The National Medal of Arts is an award and title created by the United States Congress in 1984, for the purpose of honoring artists and Patronage, patrons of the arts. A prestigious American honor, it is the highest honor given to artists and ar ...
in 2001,National Medal of Arts
, National Endowment for the Arts.
the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2011, and the Polar Music Prize in 2012. Ma was named one of ''Time''s 100 Most Influential People of 2020.


Early life and education

Ma's mother, Marina Lu, was a singer, and his father, Hiao-Tsiun Ma, was a violinist, composer and professor of music at Nanjing National Central University (now relocated in Taoyuan, Taiwan; predecessor of the present-day Nanjing University and Southeast University). They both migrated from the
Republic of China Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the northeast ...
to France during the Chinese Civil War. Ma's sister, Yeou-Cheng Ma, played the violin and piano before obtaining a medical degree and becoming a pediatrician. The family moved to New York City when Ma was seven. From the age of three, Ma played the violin, piano, and later viola, but settled on cello in 1960 at age four. When three-year-old Yo-Yo said he wanted a big instrument, his father went to see Etienne Vatelot, a foremost violin maker in Paris who, after a chat, lent him a 1/16th cello. He jokes that his first choice was the double bass due to its large size, but he compromised and took up cello instead. When Dr Ma realised that Yo-Yo was ready for a better teacher, a well-known cello instructor, Mme Michelle Lepinte, was selected. He began performing before audiences at age five and played for presidents Dwight D. Eisenhower and John F. Kennedy when he was seven. At age eight, he appeared on American television with his sister in an event introduced by
Leonard Bernstein Leonard Bernstein ( ; August 25, 1918 – October 14, 1990) was an American conductor, composer, pianist, music educator, author, and humanitarian. Considered to be one of the most important conductors of his time, he was the first America ...
. In 1964, Isaac Stern introduced them on '' The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson'', and they performed the Sonata of Sammartini. He attended Trinity School in New York but transferred to the
Professional Children's School Professional Children's School (PCS) is a not-for-profit, college preparatory school geared toward working and aspiring child actors and dancers in grades six through twelve. The school was founded in New York City in 1914 to provide an academic ed ...
, where he graduated at age 15. He appeared as a soloist with the
Harvard Radcliffe Orchestra The Harvard-Radcliffe Orchestra (HRO) is a collegiate symphony orchestra comprising Harvard students and based in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in March 1808 as the Pierian Sodality, the orchestra is considered by some the oldest symphony o ...
in a performance of Tchaikovsky's '' Rococo Variations''. Ma studied at The Juilliard School at age 19 with
Leonard Rose Leonard Joseph Rose (July 27, 1918 – November 16, 1984) was an American cellist and pedagogue. Biography Rose was born in Washington, D.C.; his parents were Jewish immigrants, his father from Bragin, Belarus, and his mother from Kyiv, ...
and attended Columbia University, but dropped out. He later enrolled at Harvard College. Prior to entering Harvard, Ma played in the Marlboro Festival Orchestra under the direction of cellist and conductor
Pablo Casals Pau Casals i Defilló (Catalan: ; 29 December 187622 October 1973), usually known in English by his Castilian Spanish name Pablo Casals,
. He spent four summers at the Marlboro Music Festival after meeting and falling in love with
Mount Holyoke College Mount Holyoke College is a private liberal arts women's college in South Hadley, Massachusetts. It is the oldest member of the historic Seven Sisters colleges, a group of elite historically women's colleges in the Northeastern United States. ...
sophomore and festival administrator Jill Hornor during his first summer there in 1972. Even before that time, Ma gained fame and performed with many of the world's major orchestras. He has also played
chamber music Chamber music is a form of classical music that is composed for a small group of instruments—traditionally a group that could fit in a palace chamber or a large room. Most broadly, it includes any art music that is performed by a small numb ...
, often with pianist Emanuel Ax, with whom he has a close friendship from their days at Juilliard. Ma received his bachelor's degree from Harvard in 1976, and in 1991 received an honorary doctorate from Harvard.


Career

In 1997, Ma was featured on
John Williams John Towner Williams (born February 8, 1932)Nylund, Rob (15 November 2022)Classic Connection review ''WBOI'' ("For the second time this year, the Fort Wayne Philharmonic honored American composer, conductor, and arranger John Williams, who wa ...
' soundtrack to the Hollywood film ''
Seven Years in Tibet ''Seven Years in Tibet: My Life Before, During and After'' (1952; german: Sieben Jahre in Tibet. Mein Leben am Hofe des Dalai Lama; 1954 in English) is an autobiographical travel book written by Austrian mountaineer and Nazi SS sergeant Heinrich ...
''. In 2000, he was heard on the soundtrack of ''
Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon ''Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon'' is a 2000 wuxia film directed by Ang Lee and written for the screen by Wang Hui-ling, James Schamus, and Tsai Kuo-jung . The film features a cast of actors of Chinese people, Chinese ethnicity, including Ch ...
'', and of '' Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World'' in 2003. He collaborated with Williams again on the score for the 2005 film ''
Memoirs of a Geisha ''Memoirs of a Geisha'' is a historical fiction novel by American author Arthur Golden, published in 1997. The novel, told in first person perspective, tells the story of Nitta Sayuri and the many trials she faces on the path to becoming and wo ...
''. He has also worked with Italian composer
Ennio Morricone Ennio Morricone (; 10 November 19286 July 2020) was an Italian composer, orchestrator, conductor, and trumpeter who wrote music in a wide range of styles. With more than 400 scores for cinema and television, as well as more than 100 classica ...
and has recorded Morricone's compositions of the Dollars Trilogy, including '' The Good, the Bad and the Ugly'', as well as '' Once Upon a Time in America'', '' The Mission'', and ''The Untouchables''. He has recorded over 90 albums, 19 of which are Grammy Award winners. He received the Award of Excellence from New York's International Center. In addition to his prolific musical career, Ma collaborated in 1999 with landscape architects to design a Bach-inspired garden. Known as the Music Garden, it interprets Bach's Suite No. 1 in G Major for unaccompanied cello (
BWV 1007 The six Cello Suites, BWV 1007–1012, are suites for unaccompanied cello by Johann Sebastian Bach (1685–1750). They are some of the most frequently performed solo compositions ever written for cello. Bach most likely composed them during the p ...
), where the garden's sections were designed to correspond with the suite's dance movements. Toronto enthusiastically embraced the design, originally planned for Boston, and it was subsequently built in the Harbourfront (Toronto) neighborhood. Ma was named Peace Ambassador by then-UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan in January 2006. He is a founding member of the influential Chinese-American Committee of 100, which addresses the concerns of Americans of Chinese heritage. On November 3, 2009, President Barack Obama appointed Ma to serve on the President's Committee on the Arts and Humanities. His music was featured in the 2010 documentary '' Jews and Baseball: An American Love Story'', narrated by Academy Award winner Dustin Hoffman. In 2010, President Obama announced that he would recognize Ma with the Presidential Medal of Freedom, which Ma received in February 2011. In 2010, Ma was named Judson and Joyce Green Creative Consultant of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. He launched the Citizen Musician initiative partnership in partnership with the orchestra's music director, Riccardo Muti. Also in 2010, he appeared on a solo album by guitarist
Carlos Santana Carlos Humberto Santana Barragán (; born July 20, 1947) is an American guitarist who rose to fame in the late 1960s and early 1970s with his band Santana, which pioneered a fusion of Rock and roll and Latin American jazz. Its sound featured ...
, ''Guitar Heaven: The Greatest Guitar Classics of All Time'', playing alongside Santana and singer India Arie on a
Beatles The Beatles were an English rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the most influential band of all time and were integral to the developme ...
classic, '' While My Guitar Gently Weeps''. In 2015, Ma performed with singer-songwriter and guitarist James Taylor on three tracks of Taylor's chart-topping album
Before This World ''Before This World'' is the nineteenth studio album by American singer-songwriter James Taylor. Released on June 15, 2015, it was Taylor's first new studio album of original material since '' October Road'' (2002) and first studio album of any ...
: ''You And I Again''. In 2019, Ma directed the orchestra at the annual Youth Music Culture Guangdong. Ma is represented by the independent artist management firm
Opus 3 Artists Opus 3 Artists is an independent artists management firm with offices in New York City, Los Angeles and Berlin and represents several classical artists, as well as artists in the non-classical genres, such as jazz, world music, theater, dance, and ...
. Ma contributed to the charity tribute album '' The Metallica Blacklist'', released in September 2021, by backing Miley Cyrus on a cover of the Metallica song " Nothing Else Matters".


Silk Road Ensemble

Ma formed his own collective, the Silk Road Ensemble, named after the route across Asia which for more than 2,000 years was used for trade between Europe and China. His goal was to bring together musicians from diverse countries that were historically linked via the
Silk Road The Silk Road () was a network of Eurasian trade routes active from the second century BCE until the mid-15th century. Spanning over 6,400 kilometers (4,000 miles), it played a central role in facilitating economic, cultural, political, and reli ...
. The ensemble's recordings are issued on the Sony Classical label. He also founded the Silk Road Connect, an educational pilot program for children from middle schools in the United States, including New York City.


Playing style

Ma has been referred to by critics as "omnivorous" and possesses an eclectic repertoire. In addition to numerous recordings of the standard classical repertoire, he has recorded
Baroque The Baroque (, ; ) is a style of architecture, music, dance, painting, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished in Europe from the early 17th century until the 1750s. In the territories of the Spanish and Portuguese empires including t ...
pieces using period instruments; American
bluegrass music Bluegrass music is a genre of American roots music The term American folk music encompasses numerous music genres, variously known as ''traditional music'', ''traditional folk music'', ''contemporary folk music'', ''vernacular music,'' or ...
; traditional Chinese melodies, including the soundtrack to the film ''Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon''; the
tangos Tangos may refer to: * "Tangos" (song), a song popularized in Spain * Tangos (district), a district or barangay in Navotas, Philippines * ''Tangos'' (album), a 1973 album by Buenos Aires 8 * ''Tangos'' (Rubén Blades album), a 2014 album by Ru ...
of Argentinian composer Astor Piazzolla; Brazilian music, recording traditional and contemporary songs composed by Antônio Carlos Jobim and Pixinguinha; a collaboration with Bobby McFerrin (where Ma admitted to being terrified by McFerrin's improvisation); and the music of modern minimalist
Philip Glass Philip Glass (born January 31, 1937) is an American composer and pianist. He is widely regarded as one of the most influential composers of the late 20th century. Glass's work has been associated with minimal music, minimalism, being built up fr ...
, in such works as the 2002 ''
Naqoyqatsi ''Naqoyqatsi'', also known as ''Naqoyqatsi: Life as War'', is a 2002 American non-narrative film directed by Godfrey Reggio and edited by Jon Kane, with music composed by Philip Glass. It is the third and final installment in the Qatsi trilogy. ...
''. Ma is known for his smooth, rich tone, soulful lyricism and virtuosity. He released a cello recording of Niccolò Paganini's Caprice No. 24 for solo violin and Zoltán Kodály's Solo Sonata.


Instruments

Ma's primary performance instrument is "Petunia", a 1733 Domenico Montagnana cello valued at US$2.5 million. A student approached Ma after one of his classes in Salt Lake City and asked if the cello had a nickname. Ma replied, "No, but if I play for you, will you name it?" The student chose Petunia, and it stuck. In 1999, Ma inadvertently left the cello in a taxicab in New York City, but it was quickly returned undamaged. That year, when its neck was damaged during X-ray baggage inspection, he borrowed the '' Pawle Stradivarius'' cello from the Chimei Museum for a concert in Taiwan. The damage was repaired in time, but Ma played both ''Petunia'' and ''Pawle'' in the concert nonetheless. Another of Ma's cellos, the '' Davidov Stradivarius'', was previously owned by Jacqueline du Pré, who bequeathed it to him. Du Pré voiced her frustration with the cello's "unpredictability", but Ma attributed du Pré's sentiment to her impassioned style of playing, adding that the Stradivarius cello must be "coaxed" by the player. It was until recently set up in a Baroque manner, since Ma exclusively played
Baroque music Baroque music ( or ) refers to the period or dominant style of Western classical music composed from about 1600 to 1750. The Baroque style followed the Renaissance period, and was followed in turn by the Classical period after a short transiti ...
on it. Ma also owns a modern cello made by Peter and Wendela Moes of Peißenberg, Germany, and one of carbon fiber by the
Luis and Clark Luis and Clark, or L&C, is a small, family-run company that sells carbon fiber stringed instruments invented and designed by cellist Luis Leguía (Louie) of the Boston Symphony Orchestra. Their line consists of a violin, viola, cello and double b ...
company of Boston. Ma also plays on a Zygmuntowicz cello, which he takes on long tours and uses in major concert venues. According to Zygmuntowicz, he "wants to give aa reason to leave his Montagnana at home."


Live performances

On July 5, 1986, Ma performed in the New York Philharmonic's tribute to the 100th anniversary of the
Statue of Liberty The Statue of Liberty (''Liberty Enlightening the World''; French: ''La Liberté éclairant le monde'') is a List of colossal sculpture in situ, colossal neoclassical sculpture on Liberty Island in New York Harbor in New York City, in the U ...
, which was televised live on
ABC Television ABC Television most commonly refers to: *ABC Television Network of the American Broadcasting Company, United States, or *ABC Television (Australian TV network), a division of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation, Australia ABC Television or ABC ...
. The orchestra, with conductor Zubin Mehta, performed in Central Park. Ma performed a duet with
Condoleezza Rice Condoleezza Rice ( ; born November 14, 1954) is an American diplomat and political scientist who is the current director of the Hoover Institution at Stanford University. A member of the Republican Party, she previously served as the 66th Uni ...
at the presentation of the 2001 National Medal of Arts and National Humanities Medal Awards. He was the first performer on September 11, 2002 at the site of the World Trade Center, while the first of the names of the dead were read on the first anniversary of the attack on the WTC; he played the
Sarabande The sarabande (from es, zarabanda) is a dance in triple metre, or the music written for such a dance. History The Sarabande evolved from a Spanish dance with Arab influences, danced by a lively double line of couples with castanets. A dance cal ...
from Bach's '' Cello Suite #5 in C Minor''. He performed a special arrangement of
Sting Sting may refer to: * Stinger or sting, a structure of an animal to inject venom, or the injury produced by a stinger * Irritating hairs or prickles of a stinging plant, or the plant itself Fictional characters and entities * Sting (Middle-eart ...
's " Fragile" with Sting and the Mormon Tabernacle Choir in the opening ceremonies of the
2002 Winter Olympics The 2002 Winter Olympics, officially the XIX Olympic Winter Games and commonly known as Salt Lake 2002 ( arp, Niico'ooowu' 2002; Gosiute Shoshoni: ''Tit'-so-pi 2002''; nv, Sooléí 2002; Shoshoni: ''Soónkahni 2002''), was an internation ...
in Salt Lake City, Utah. He also appeared as a ''Pennington Great Performers'' series artist with the Baton Rouge Symphony Orchestra in 2005. He performed
John Williams John Towner Williams (born February 8, 1932)Nylund, Rob (15 November 2022)Classic Connection review ''WBOI'' ("For the second time this year, the Fort Wayne Philharmonic honored American composer, conductor, and arranger John Williams, who wa ...
' " Air and Simple Gifts" at the inauguration ceremony for Barack Obama on January 20, 2009, along with
Itzhak Perlman Itzhak Perlman ( he, יצחק פרלמן; born August 31, 1945) is an Israeli-American violinist widely considered one of the greatest violinists in the world. Perlman has performed worldwide and throughout the United States, in venues that hav ...
(violin), Gabriela Montero (piano), and Anthony McGill (clarinet). While the quartet played live, the music, played simultaneously over speakers and on television, was a recording made two days prior due to concerns over the cold weather damaging the instruments. Ma said, "A broken string was not an option. It was wicked cold." On May 3, 2009, Ma performed the world premiere of
Bruce Adolphe Bruce Adolphe (born May 31, 1955) is a composer, music scholar, the author of several books on music, and pianist. He is currently Resident Lecturer and Director of Family Concerts of the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center and founder and crea ...
's "Self Comes to Mind" for solo cello and two percussionists with John Ferrari and Ayano Kataoka at the
American Museum of Natural History The American Museum of Natural History (abbreviated as AMNH) is a natural history museum on the Upper West Side of Manhattan in New York City. In Theodore Roosevelt Park, across the street from Central Park, the museum complex comprises 26 inter ...
in New York City. The work is based on a poetic description written for the composer of the evolution of brain into mind by neuroscientist Antonio Damasio. A film of brain scans provided by
Hanna Damasio Hanna Damasio is a scientist in the field of cognitive neuroscience. Using computerized tomography and magnetic resonance imaging, she has developed methods of investigating human brain structure and studied functions such as language, memory, ...
, and other images, were coordinated with the performance. On August 29, 2009, Ma performed at the funeral mass for Senator Edward M. Kennedy. Pieces he performed included the Sarabande movement from Bach's '' Cello Suite No. 6'' and
Franck Franck can refer to: People * Franck (name) Other * Franck (company), Croatian coffee and snacks company * Franck (crater), Lunar crater named after James Franck See also

* Franc (disambiguation) * Franks * Frank (disambiguation) * Fran ...
's ''
Panis angelicus (Latin for "Bread of Angels" or "Angelic Bread") is the penultimate stanza of the hymn "" written by Saint Thomas Aquinas for the feast of Corpus Christi as part of a complete liturgy of the feast, including prayers for the Mass and the Liturgy of ...
'' with Plácido Domingo. On October 3, 2009, Ma appeared with Canadian prime minister
Stephen Harper Stephen Joseph Harper (born April 30, 1959) is a Canadian politician who served as the 22nd prime minister of Canada from 2006 to 2015. Harper is the first and only prime minister to come from the modern-day Conservative Party of Canada, ...
at the National Arts Centre gala in Ottawa. Harper, a fan of The Beatles, played the piano and sang a rendition of " With a Little Help from My Friends" while Ma accompanied him on cello. On October 16, 2011, Ma performed at the memorial of
Steve Jobs Steven Paul Jobs (February 24, 1955 – October 5, 2011) was an American entrepreneur, industrial designer, media proprietor, and investor. He was the co-founder, chairman, and CEO of Apple; the chairman and majority shareholder of Pixar; a ...
at Stanford University's Memorial Church. In 2011, Ma performed with American dancer Charles "Lil Buck" Riley in the United States and in China at the U.S.-China Forum on the Arts and Culture. On April 18, 2013, he performed at an interfaith service to honor the victims of the Boston Marathon bombing, held at the Cathedral of the Holy Cross, where he played the Sarabande from Bach's ''Cello Suite No. 5 in C Minor''. He and other musicians also accompanied members of the
Boston Children's Chorus Boston Children's Chorus (BCC) is composed of over 300 singers from 10 choirs in over three locations around Boston. Its mission is to address the social problems of Boston's children and communities. Founded in 2003, BCC has performed all over t ...
in a hymn. On September 9, 2015, Ma performed all six of Bach's cello suites at the
Royal Albert Hall The Royal Albert Hall is a concert hall on the northern edge of South Kensington, London. One of the UK's most treasured and distinctive buildings, it is held in trust for the nation and managed by a registered charity which receives no govern ...
(London) as part of the BBC Proms Season. On September 12, 2017, Ma performed all six of Bach's cello suites at the
Hollywood Bowl The Hollywood Bowl is an amphitheatre in the Hollywood Hills neighborhood of Los Angeles, California. It was named one of the 10 best live music venues in America by ''Rolling Stone'' magazine in 2018. The Hollywood Bowl is known for its distin ...
(Los Angeles). After the first three suites, there was a "ten-minute pause" (as the Bowl video screen described it). The audience of around 17,000 also heard him play an encore, a tribute to "cellist Pablo Casals, who as a 13-year-old in 1890 discovered an old copy of the Bach suites in a secondhand music store, bringing them to modern attention. Ma's memorable last words were, "If there are any 13-year-here—don't throw anything away." On November 11, 2018, Ma performed at the
Arc de Triomphe The Arc de Triomphe de l'Étoile (, , ; ) is one of the most famous monuments in Paris, France, standing at the western end of the Champs-Élysées at the centre of Place Charles de Gaulle, formerly named Place de l'Étoile—the ''étoile'' ...
in Paris, with violinist Renaud Capuçon, in front of a crowd of world leaders during a ceremony marking the 100th anniversary of the end of World War I. On May 1, 2019, he performed at
Paranal Observatory Paranal Observatory is an astronomical observatory operated by the European Southern Observatory (ESO). It is located in the Atacama Desert of northern Chile on Cerro Paranal at altitude, south of Antofagasta. By total light-collecting area, it ...
in the Atacama desert. He said that his interest in astronomy motivated him to visit and perform there. On June 20, 2019, Ma performed the Bach ''Complete Cello Suites'' in plein air at
Jay Pritzker Pavilion Jay Pritzker Pavilion, also known as Pritzker Pavilion or Pritzker Music Pavilion, is a bandshell in Millennium Park in the Loop community area of Chicago in Cook County, Illinois, United States. It is located on the south side of Randolph Str ...
in Chicago, Illinois. The free performance attracted what might have been his largest audience, with a pavilion capacity of 11,000, and many thousands more listening from surrounding
Millennium Park Millennium Park is a public park located in the Loop community area of Chicago, operated by the Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs. The park, opened in 2004 and intended to celebrate the third millennium, is a prominent civic center near ...
. On January 20, 2021, Ma's performance of " Amazing Grace"—pre-recorded due to the COVID-19 pandemic—was played during the inauguration of Joe Biden. In March 2021, Ma played " Ave Maria" in an impromptu waiting room concert, after receiving his second dose of a
COVID-19 vaccine A COVID19 vaccine is a vaccine intended to provide acquired immunity against severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS‑CoV‑2), the virus that causes coronavirus disease 2019 ( COVID19). Prior to the COVID19 pandemic, an e ...
at
Berkshire Community College Berkshire Community College is a public community college in Berkshire County, Massachusetts with its primary campus in Pittsfield. It also has a satellite campus in Great Barrington and classroom spaces in the city of Pittsfield. Established i ...
in Massachusetts. On September 14, 2021, Ma again performed Bach's six cello suites at the
Hollywood Bowl The Hollywood Bowl is an amphitheatre in the Hollywood Hills neighborhood of Los Angeles, California. It was named one of the 10 best live music venues in America by ''Rolling Stone'' magazine in 2018. The Hollywood Bowl is known for its distin ...
, this time without intermission, pausing only briefly for applause between suites, and to announce his dedications for two of them.


Media appearances

Ma appeared as himself in an episode ("My Music Rules") of the animated children's television series '' Arthur'', and on '' The West Wing'' (the episode " Noël"), where he played the prelude to Bach's ''Cello Suite No.1'' at a Congressional Christmas party. He made five appearances on '' Sesame Street'', all of which first aired during the show's 17th season in 1986. He appeared in '' The Simpsons'' episode "
Puffless "Puffless" is the third episode of the twenty-seventh season of the American animated television series ''The Simpsons'', and the 577th episode of the series overall. It aired in the United States on Fox on October 11, 2015. Plot Homer, Bart, Lis ...
", where he played a serenade and theme music. Ma's likeness appeared in another ''Simpsons'' episode, "Missionary: Impossible", but he was played by regular ''Simpsons'' cast member Hank Azaria rather than Ma himself. Ma appeared twice on '' Mister Rogers' Neighborhood'', developed a friendship with creator and host Fred Rogers, and later received the inaugural Fred Rogers Legacy Award. He also starred in the visual accompaniment to his recordings of Bach's '' Six Suites for Unaccompanied Cello''. Ma was often invited to press events by Apple Inc. and Pixar CEO
Steve Jobs Steven Paul Jobs (February 24, 1955 – October 5, 2011) was an American entrepreneur, industrial designer, media proprietor, and investor. He was the co-founder, chairman, and CEO of Apple; the chairman and majority shareholder of Pixar; a ...
, performed during the company's major events, and appeared in a commercial for the Macintosh computer. Ma's Bach recordings were used in a memorial video released by Apple on the first anniversary of Jobs's death. Ma was a guest on the "Not My Job" segment of '' Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me!'' on April 7, 2007, where he won for listener Thad Moore. On October 27, 2008, Ma appeared as a guest and performer on '' The Colbert Report''. He was also one of the show's guests on November 1, 2011, where he performed songs from the album '' The Goat Rodeo Sessions'' with musicians
Stuart Duncan Stuart Duncan (born April 14, 1964) is an American bluegrass musician who plays the fiddle, mandolin, guitar, and banjo. Life Duncan was born in Quantico, Virginia, and raised in Santa Paula, California, where he played in the school band. He ...
, Edgar Meyer and Chris Thile. He also performed several of Bach's cello suites for the 2012 film ''
Bill W. William Griffith Wilson (November 26, 1895 – January 24, 1971), also known as Bill Wilson or Bill W., was the co-founder of Alcoholics Anonymous (AA). AA is an international mutual aid fellowship with about two million members worldwide b ...
'' On October 5, 2015, he appeared on Colbert's new program, '' The Late Show with Stephen Colbert'', in support of ballerina Misty Copeland, and prematurely celebrating his 60th birthday. In August 2018, Ma appeared on NPR's Tiny Desk Concerts. On June 19, 2020, the same group of musicians who recorded '' The Goat Rodeo Sessions'' released a second album, ''
Not Our First Goat Rodeo ''Not Our First Goat Rodeo'' is a 2020 collaborative album by Stuart Duncan, Yo-Yo Ma, Edgar Meyer, and Chris Thile, featuring Aoife O'Donovan. It was released on June 19, 2020. Background On October 24, 2011, Stuart Duncan, Yo-Yo Ma, Edgar ...
''. On September 1, 2020, the same group performed a virtual concert of some songs from ''
Not Our First Goat Rodeo ''Not Our First Goat Rodeo'' is a 2020 collaborative album by Stuart Duncan, Yo-Yo Ma, Edgar Meyer, and Chris Thile, featuring Aoife O'Donovan. It was released on June 19, 2020. Background On October 24, 2011, Stuart Duncan, Yo-Yo Ma, Edgar ...
'' on NPR's Tiny Desk Concerts. On June 13, 2021, Ma was the guest on BBC Radio 4's '' Desert Island Discs''. His musical choices included "Tin Tin Deo" by the
Oscar Peterson Trio Oscar Emmanuel Peterson (August 15, 1925 – December 23, 2007) was a Canadian virtuoso jazz pianist and composer. Considered one of the greatest jazz pianists of all time, Peterson released more than 200 recordings, won seven Grammy Awards, ...
and " Podmoskovnye Vechera - Moscow Nights" by Vasily Solovyov-Sedoi. He selected as his book the 24 volumes of the '' Encyclopædia Britannica'', and as his luxury item a Swiss Army knife. He revealed that his career in music felt like a "gift" after
scoliosis Scoliosis is a condition in which a person's spine has a sideways curve. The curve is usually "S"- or "C"-shaped over three dimensions. In some, the degree of curve is stable, while in others, it increases over time. Mild scoliosis does not t ...
threatened his ability to play in his 20s. Ma makes a cameo appearance as himself in the 2022 Netflix film '' Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery''.


Personal life

Since 1978, Ma has been married to Jill Hornor, an arts consultant. They have two children, Nicholas and Emily. Although he personally considers it the "worst epithet he's ever faced", he was "tagged" in 2001 as "Sexiest Classical Musician" by '' People''. He has continued to receive such accolades over the years, including from
AARP AARP (formerly called the American Association of Retired Persons) is an interest group in the United States focusing on issues affecting those over the age of fifty. The organization said it had more than 38 million members in 2018. The magazin ...
in 2012. He has also been praised as a person of unquestionable character, and singled out for his humble spirit, self-effacing manner, and humanitarianism. According to research presented by
Henry Louis Gates Jr. Henry Louis "Skip" Gates Jr. (born September 16, 1950) is an American literary critic, professor, historian, and filmmaker, who serves as the Alphonse Fletcher University Professor and Director of the Hutchins Center for African and African Ame ...
for the PBS series '' Faces of America'', a relative hid the Ma family genealogy in his home in China to save it from destruction during the Cultural Revolution. Ma's paternal ancestry can be traced back 18 generations to the year 1217. The genealogy was compiled in the 18th century by an ancestor, tracing everyone with the surname Ma, through the paternal line, back to one common ancestor in the 3rd century BC. Ma's generation name, Yo, was decided by his fourth great grand-uncle, Ma Ji Cang, in 1755. DNA research revealed that Ma is distantly related to actress Eva Longoria. Aside from English, Ma is fluent in
Chinese Chinese can refer to: * Something related to China * Chinese people, people of Chinese nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity **''Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic concept of the Chinese nation ** List of ethnic groups in China, people of va ...
and
French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...
.


Discography

Ma's albums include recordings of cello concertos (including, among others, Shostakovich, Brahms, Elgar, and Haydn), sonatas for cello and piano, Bach's cello suites, and a variety of chamber music. He has also recorded in non-classical styles, notably in collaboration with Bobby McFerrin, Chris Botti, Carlos Santana, James Taylor, and Chris Thile.


Awards and recognition

;Grammy Award Grammy Award for Best Chamber Music Performance: *
1986 The year 1986 was designated as the International Year of Peace by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 ** Aruba gains increased autonomy from the Netherlands by separating from the Netherlands Antilles. **Spain and Portugal ente ...
'' Brahms: Cello and Piano Sonatas in E Minor Op. 38, and F Op. 99'' (RCA 17022) *
1987 File:1987 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The MS Herald of Free Enterprise capsizes after leaving the Port of Zeebrugge in Belgium, killing 193; Northwest Airlines Flight 255 crashes after takeoff from Detroit Metropolitan Airport, k ...
'' Beethoven: Cello and Piano Sonata No. 4 in C & Variations'' (CBS 42121) *
1992 File:1992 Events Collage V1.png, From left, clockwise: 1992 Los Angeles riots, Riots break out across Los Angeles, California after the Police brutality, police beating of Rodney King; El Al Flight 1862 crashes into a residential apartment buildi ...
''Brahms: Piano Quartets Op. 25, Op. 26'' (Sony 45846) *
1993 File:1993 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The Oslo I Accord is signed in an attempt to resolve the Israeli–Palestinian conflict; The Russian White House is shelled during the 1993 Russian constitutional crisis; Czechoslovakia is peace ...
''Brahms: Sonatas for Cello & Piano'' (Sony 48191) *
1996 File:1996 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: A Centennial Olympic Park bombing, bomb explodes at Centennial Olympic Park in Atlanta, set off by a radical Anti-abortion violence, anti-abortionist; The center fuel tank explodes on TWA Flight 8 ...
''Brahms/Beethoven/
Mozart Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (27 January 17565 December 1791), baptised as Joannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart, was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical period (music), Classical period. Despite his short life, his ra ...
: Clarinet Trios'' (Sony 57499) Grammy Award for Best Instrumental Soloist(s) Performance: *
1990 File:1990 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 1990 FIFA World Cup is played in Italy; The Human Genome Project is launched; Voyager I takes the famous Pale Blue Dot image- speaking on the fragility of Humankind, humanity on Earth, Astroph ...
'' Barber: Cello Concerto, Op. 22/ Britten: Symphony for Cello and Orchestra, Op. 68'' (CBS 44900) *1993 '' Prokofiev: Sinfonia Concertante/ Tchaikovsky: Variations on a Rococo Theme'' (Sony 48382) *
1995 File:1995 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: O.J. Simpson is O. J. Simpson murder case, acquitted of the murders of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Goldman from the 1994, year prior in "The Trial of the Century" in the United States; The ...
''The New York Album – Works of Albert, Bartók &
Bloch Bloch is a surname of German origin. Notable people with this surname include: A–F * (1859-1914), French rabbi *Adele Bloch-Bauer (1881-1925), Austrian entrepreneur *Albert Bloch (1882–1961), American painter * (born 1972), German motor journal ...
'' (Sony 57961) *
1998 1998 was designated as the ''International Year of the Ocean''. Events January * January 6 – The '' Lunar Prospector'' spacecraft is launched into orbit around the Moon, and later finds evidence for frozen water, in soil in permanently ...
''Yo-Yo Ma Premieres – Danielpour, Kirchner, Rouse'' (Sony Classical 66299) Grammy Award for Best Instrumental Soloist Performance: *
1985 The year 1985 was designated as the International Youth Year by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 ** The Internet's Domain Name System is created. ** Greenland withdraws from the European Economic Community as a result of a ...
''Bach: The Unaccompanied Cello Suites'' (CBS 37867)
Grammy Award for Best Classical Contemporary Composition The Grammy Award for Best Contemporary Classical Composition is an award presented at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards, to composers for quality works of contemporary classical ...
: *1995 ''The New York Album'', '' Stephen Albert: Cello Concerto'' (Sony 57961) Grammy Award for Best Classical Album: *1998 ''Yo-Yo Ma Premieres – Danielpour, Kirchner, Rouse'' (Sony Classical 66299)
Grammy Award for Best Classical Crossover Album The Grammy Award The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by ma ...
: *
1999 File:1999 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The funeral procession of King Hussein of Jordan in Amman; the 1999 İzmit earthquake kills over 17,000 people in Turkey; the Columbine High School massacre, one of the first major school shootin ...
''Soul of the Tango – The Music of Astor Piazzolla'' (Sony Classical 63122) *
2001 The September 11 attacks against the United States by Al-Qaeda, which Casualties of the September 11 attacks, killed 2,977 people and instigated the global war on terror, were a defining event of 2001. The United States led a Participants in ...
''
Appalachian Journey ''Appalachian Journey'' is the second album from the string trio of bassist and composer Edgar Meyer, fiddler and composer Mark O'Connor, and cellist Yo-Yo Ma. James Taylor and Alison Krauss join the trio individually on two Stephen Foster ...
'' (Sony 66782) *
2004 2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and its Abolition (by UNESCO). Events January * January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight 6 ...
''Obrigado Brazil'' (Sony 89935) *
2009 File:2009 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The vertical stabilizer of Air France Flight 447 is pulled out from the Atlantic Ocean; Barack Obama becomes the first African American to become President of the United States; 2009 Iran ...
'' Songs of Joy & Peace'' (Sony Classical B001BN1V8U) Grammy Award for Best Folk Album: *
2012 File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gather ...
'' The Goat Rodeo Sessions'' w/
Stuart Duncan Stuart Duncan (born April 14, 1964) is an American bluegrass musician who plays the fiddle, mandolin, guitar, and banjo. Life Duncan was born in Quantico, Virginia, and raised in Santa Paula, California, where he played in the school band. He ...
, Edgar Meyer & Chris Thile Grammy Award for Best World Music Album: *
2017 File:2017 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The War Against ISIS at the Battle of Mosul (2016-2017); aftermath of the Manchester Arena bombing; The Solar eclipse of August 21, 2017 ("Great American Eclipse"); North Korea tests a ser ...
''Sing Me Home'' – Yo-Yo Ma &
The Silk Road Ensemble Silkroad, formerly the Silk Road Project, Inc., is a not-for-profit organization, initiated by the cellist Yo-Yo Ma in 1998, promoting collaboration among artists and institutions, promoting multicultural artistic exchange, and studying the ebb and ...
Grammy Award for Best Chamber Music/Small Ensemble Performance: *
2022 File:2022 collage V1.png, Clockwise, from top left: Road junction at Yamato-Saidaiji Station several hours after the assassination of Shinzo Abe; 2022 Sri Lankan protests, Anti-government protest in Sri Lanka in front of the Presidential Secretari ...
''Beethoven: Cello Sonatas - Hope and Tears'' – Yo-Yo Ma & Emanuel Ax


Honorary doctorates

* 1991: Honorary Doctor of Music, Harvard University * 2005: Honorary Doctor of Musical Arts, Princeton University * 2019: Honorary Doctor of Music, University of Oxford *2019: Honorary Doctor of Arts, Dartmouth College *2022: Honorary Doctor of Music,
Stony Brook University Stony Brook University (SBU), officially the State University of New York at Stony Brook, is a public research university in Stony Brook, New York. Along with the University at Buffalo, it is one of the State University of New York system's ...
*2022: Honorary Doctor of Music, Columbia University ;Others *1978:
Avery Fisher Prize The Avery Fisher Prize is an award given to American musicians for outstanding achievement in classical music. Founded by philanthropist Avery Fisher in 1974, it is regarded as one of the most significant awards for American instrumentalists. Th ...
*1993: Member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences *1999: The Glenn Gould Prize *1999: Member of the American Philosophical Society *2001:
National Medal of Arts The National Medal of Arts is an award and title created by the United States Congress in 1984, for the purpose of honoring artists and Patronage, patrons of the arts. A prestigious American honor, it is the highest honor given to artists and ar ...
*2004:
Harvard Arts Medal ARTS FIRST is an annual arts festival held at Harvard University over four days each May. It includes performances or shows involving musical, theatrical, and artistic groups on campus. It was founded by alum John Lithgow in 1994 to honor the artis ...
*2004: Latin Grammy for Best Instrumental Album at the 2004 Latin Grammy Awards for ''Obrigado Brazil'' (Sony 89935) *2006: Dan David Prize *2006: Léonie Sonning Music Prize *2007: Award of Distinction at the International Cello Festival *2011:
Kennedy Center Honor The Kennedy Center Honors are annual honors given to those in the performing arts for their lifetime of contributions to American culture. They have been presented annually since 1978, culminating each December in a gala celebrating five honor ...
*2011: Presidential Medal of Freedom awarded on February 15, 2011 *2012: Polar Music Prize *2012: Best Cross-Cultural Collaboration Award by ''
Songlines A songline, also called dreaming track, is one of the paths across the land (or sometimes the sky) within the animist belief systems of the Aboriginal cultures of Australia which mark the route followed by localised "creator-beings" in the Dre ...
'' magazine's 2012 annual
Songlines Music Awards ''Songlines'' is a British magazine launched in 1999 that covers music from traditional and popular to contemporary and fusion, featuring artists from around the globe. ''Songlines'' is published 10 times a year and contains CD reviews, artist in ...
, for his work '' The Goat Rodeo Sessions'' with
Stuart Duncan Stuart Duncan (born April 14, 1964) is an American bluegrass musician who plays the fiddle, mandolin, guitar, and banjo. Life Duncan was born in Quantico, Virginia, and raised in Santa Paula, California, where he played in the school band. He ...
, Edgar Meyer and Chris Thile *2013: Vilcek Prize in Contemporary Music *2014: Midwest Young Artists Golden Baton Award *2014: Fred Rogers Legacy Award, inaugural recipient, given by the Fred Rogers Center for Early Learning and Children's Media at Saint Vincent College. Upon reception of the award, Ma stated, "This is perhaps the greatest honor I've ever received." *2016: Commander of the Order of Arts and Letters *2020: The
Asia Society The Asia Society is a non-profit organization that focuses on educating the world about Asia. It has several centers in the United States (Manhattan, Washington, D.C., Houston, Los Angeles, and San Francisco) and around the world (Hong Kong, Man ...
Asia Game Changer Award *2021: Praemium Imperiale *2022:
Birgit Nilsson Prize The Birgit Nilsson Prize is the largest prize in classical music, awarded approximately every three years to an active artist or institution who has contributed an important chapter to music history. Towards the end of her unparalleled, long an ...
Yo-Yo Ma receives the 2022 Birgit Nilsson Prize
/ref>


References


External links

* *
Yo-Yo Ma at Sony Classical

Yo-Yo Ma's Gearboard
* * * Carlos Santana ''Guitar Heaven''
Santana - Guitar Heaven: The Greatest Guitar Classics Of All Time
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ma, Yo-Yo 1955 births 20th-century American male musicians 20th-century American musicians 21st-century American male musicians 21st-century American musicians American classical cellists American classical musicians of Chinese descent Asia Game Changer Award winners Canadian Screen Award winners Child classical musicians Columbia University alumni Commandeurs of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres Contemporary classical music performers Emmy Award winners Fellows of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences French emigrants to the United States French people of Chinese descent Glenn Gould Prize winners Grammy Award winners Harvard College alumni Honorary Members of the Royal Academy of Music Juilliard School alumni Kennedy Center honorees Latin Grammy Award winners Living people Members of Committee of 100 Members of the American Philosophical Society Musicians from Cambridge, Massachusetts Musicians from New York City Musicians from Paris PBS people People from Belmont, Massachusetts Presidential Medal of Freedom recipients Recipients of the Léonie Sonning Music Prize Sony Classical Records artists United Nations Messengers of Peace United States National Medal of Arts recipients 20th-century cellists 21st-century cellists