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.
In the Still of the Night
Yo-Yo Ma Lyrics
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As I gaze out of my window
At the moon in it's flight
My thoughts all stray, stray to you
In the still of the night
While the world lies in slumber
Oh the times without numberWhen I say to you
Do you love me
Just like I love you
Are you my life to be
That dream come true
Or will this dream of mine
Will it fade way out of sight
Just like that moon growing dim
Way out on the rim of the hill
In the still of the night
The lyrics to Yo-Yo Ma's song, "In the Still of the Night," convey the singer's sense of longing and restlessness as they gaze out their window at the moon in flight during the nighttime hours. The singer's thoughts stray to an unnamed "you," whom they appear to be deeply enamored with. The world around them sleeps, as the singer inwardly asks if their love is reciprocated. They wonder if this person is their "life to be" and if the dreams they hold dear will ultimately fade away into obscurity.
The use of vivid imagery in this song helps to convey the singer's sense of longing and romantic yearning. The moon in flight represents the passage of time and the ever-present reminder of the fleeting nature of all things. The stillness of the night creates a sense of solitude and introspection, and the singer's thoughts seem to swirl around in their own head as they try to come to terms with their emotions. The repetition of the phrase "in the still of the night" enhances the dreamlike quality of the song and adds to its wistful tone.
Line by Line Meaning
In the still of the night
During the silent hours of the night
As I gaze out of my window
Looking out through my windowpane
At the moon in it's flight
Watch the moon move across the sky
My thoughts all stray, stray to you
My mind wanders and lingers on thoughts of you
While the world lies in slumber
When everyone else is sleeping
Oh the times without number
So many instances
When I say to you
I ask of you
Do you love me
Do you have love for me
Just like I love you
The way I feel about you
Are you my life to be
Will you be my life partner
That dream come true
The desire and hope for my dream to be fulfilled
Or will this dream of mine
Possibly not accomplishable dream that I have
Will it fade way out of sight
Gradually diminish and become forgotten
Just like that moon growing dim
Similar to the fading of the moon's light
Way out on the rim of the hill
At the edge of the horizon
In the still of the night
During the silent hours of the night
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Reservoir Media Management, Inc.
Written by: Hoagy Carmichael, Jo Trent
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind