In addition to recordings of the standard classical repertoire, Ma has recorded a wide variety of folk music, such as American bluegrass music, traditional Chinese melodies, the tangos of Argentine composer Astor Piazzolla, and Brazilian music. He has also collaborated with artists from a diverse range of genres, including Bobby McFerrin, Carlos Santana, Chris Botti, Diana Krall, James Taylor, Miley Cyrus, and Sting.
Ma has been a United Nations Messenger of Peace since 2006. He has received numerous awards, including the Avery Fisher Prize in 1978, The Glenn Gould Prize in 1999, the National Medal of Arts in 2001, the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2011, Kennedy Center Honors in 2011, the Polar Music Prize in 2012, and the Birgit Nilsson Prize in 2022. He was named as one of Time's 100 Most Influential People of 2020. Aside from English, Ma is fluent in Mandarin Chinese and French.
Ma's primary performance instrument is the Davidov cello, made in 1712 by Antonio Stradivari
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 to France during the Chinese Civil War. Ma's sister, Yeou-Cheng Ma, played the violin and piano professionally before obtaining a medical degree from Harvard and becoming a pediatrician. The family moved to New York City when Ma was seven.
From the age of three, Ma played the drums, violin, piano, and later viola, but settled on the 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 the cello instead. When his father realized 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. 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, where he graduated at age 15. He appeared as a soloist with the Harvard Radcliffe Orchestra in a performance of Tchaikovsky's Rococo Variations.
Ma studied at the Juilliard School at age 19 with Leonard Rose 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, conductor and Ma’s childhood hero Pablo Casals. He spent four summers at the Marlboro Music Festival after meeting and falling in love with Mount Holyoke College 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, often with pianist Emanuel Ax, with whom he has a close friendship from their days at Juilliard. Ma received his bachelor's degree in anthropology from Harvard in 1976, and in 1991 received an honorary doctorate from Harvard.
Yo-Yo 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 pieces using period instruments; American bluegrass music; traditional Chinese melodies, including the soundtrack to the film Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon; the tangos 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, in such works as the 2002 Naqoyqatsi.
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.
On May 1, 2019, he performed at Paranal Observatory in the Atacama desert. He said that his interest in astronomy motivated him to visit and perform there.
Ma's albums include recordings of cello concertos, sonatas for cello and piano, works for solo cello, and a variety of chamber music. He has also recorded in non-classical styles, notably in collaboration with artists such as Bobby McFerrin, Carlos Santana, Chris Botti, Chris Thile, Diana Krall, James Taylor, Miley Cyrus and Sting.
Here Comes The Sun
Yo-Yo Ma Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And every time I do, I keep seein' this picture of you.
Here comes my baby, here she comes now,
And it comes as no surprise to me, with another guy.
Here comes my baby, here she comes now,
Walking with a love, with a love that's all so fine,
Never could be mine, no matter how I try.
You never walk alone, and you're forever talkin' on the phone.
I've tried to call you names, but every time it comes out the same.
Here comes my baby, here she comes now,
And it comes as no surprise to me, with another guy.
Here comes my baby, here she comes now,
Walking with a love, with a love that's all so fine,
Never could be mine, no matter how I try.
I'm still waiting for your heart, cause I'm sure that some day it's gonna start.
You'll be mine to hold each day, but 'till then, this is all that I can say.
Here comes my baby, here she comes now,
And it comes as no surprise to me, with another guy.
Here comes my baby, here she comes now,
Walking with a love, with a love that's all so fine,
Never could be mine, no matter how I try.
The song "Here Comes the Sun" by Yo-Yo Ma and James Taylor talks about a man who is struggling to get over a woman he still loves. The song starts with him walking alone in the night, and every time he takes the walk, he keeps seeing a picture of his former lover. He sings about how this woman, whom he addresses as "my baby," is now walking with another guy, something that does not come as a surprise to him since he accepts that he has lost her to someone else. He admits to himself that he could never have her love again, no matter how much he tries.
In the chorus, he sings about how the woman is walking with her new lover, and their love is so great that it could never be his. He acknowledges that he is still waiting for her to come back to him, but until then, this is all he can say.
The song captures the heartbreak of a man who is unable to move on from a failed relationship. He knows he has lost her, but his heart still holds onto the hope that one day, things may change.
Line by Line Meaning
In the midnight moonlight I'll, be walkin' a long and lonely mile.
I often find myself walking alone at night, wishing I had someone by my side.
And every time I do, I keep seein' this picture of you.
Every time I walk alone, my mind seems fixated on thoughts of you.
Here comes my baby, here she comes now,
I see you approaching me now.
And it comes as no surprise to me, with another guy.
But I'm not surprised to see you with another man, as you've never been mine to keep.
Walking with a love, with a love that's all so fine,
You seem to be in love with someone else and it all looks so perfect.
Never could be mine, no matter how I try.
But I know that I can never have you, no matter how hard I may try.
You never walk alone, and you're forever talkin' on the phone.
I see that you're always surrounded by people and on the phone, but I'm not one of them.
I've tried to call you names, but every time it comes out the same.
In frustration, I've tried to think of ways to hurt you, but I can't bring myself to do it.
I'm still waiting for your heart, cause I'm sure that some day it's gonna start.
I'm still holding out hope that someday you'll realize that we're meant to be together.
You'll be mine to hold each day, but 'till then, this is all that I can say.
I imagine a future where we're together, but for now, all I can do is pour my heart out in song.
Lyrics © Bocu Music USA
Written by: Cat Stevens
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@viviangarcia2631
4 am I’m on YouTube bc I had a bad day yesterday and can’t sleep. Got this on my feed. R u kidding me? There is a God and these 2 angels are playing it like it is. Pure and simple heaven. Man, I’m humbled. It’s gonna be a great day.
@gregagervais
Alleluia 🔥
@dirogue7132
Yes there is a God and He’s calling you to believe that Jesus died for you and repent of your sins. He loves you and wants you to join the family.
@mombamonday5151
Bless you , my friend.
@Ceeby
I listen to this in the evening, it soothes me. 🎶🎶🎶
@elizabethdevries8028
<3
@CherieMonique5
The collab I didn’t know I needed until now 😊
@Moonbeamchild8
When yo yo won the Kennedy Center Honor award, Taylor and several other amazing artists included this song in their tribute to him. It was incredible! I think you can find it on here somewhere.
@barbarawarren9443
Yes - Me too. I burst out in tears when I heard it. ❤
@Peter-oh3hc
@@Moonbeamchild8 I love that video. The look on yo yo's face, the tear in Anne Hathaway's eye