By Clare Frucht
Scott Yoo digs into the stages of growth for classical musicians in Now Hear This Season 5, revisiting his relationship with renowned cellist Yo-Yo Ma to explore the transition from virtuoso to maestro.
Ahead of his appearance in Now Hear This “Old Friends,” learn about Yo-Yo Ma’s artistic journey with the following facts!
1) Yo-Yo Ma began studying cello at four years old (after a brief stint with the violin).
Hailing from a musical family, Yo-Yo Ma started cello at the age of four and played his first high-profile performance just three years later to Presidents John F. Kennedy and Dwight D. Eisenhower. He went on to study at Juilliard under Leonard Rose before receiving his bachelor’s degree from Harvard.
Watch his 1962 debut:
2) He’s the founder of Silkroad, a global music collective and non-profit.
Yo-Yo Ma conceived Silkroad in an effort to promote cross-cultural artistic collaboration, inspired by the Eurasian Silk Road trade routes. He served as Artistic Director from the organization’s 1998 inception through 2020.
Watch him perform with Silkroad Ensemble:
3) He was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom.
Yo-Yo Ma’s career-spanning accolades include the Avery Fisher Prize, the National Medal of Arts, and 19 Grammy Awards. He received the 2010 Presidential Medal of Freedom, having joined the President’s Committee on the Arts and the Humanities under the Obama Administration.
Watch him reflect on the honor:
4) His 18th century cello took a solo trip in a New York taxi.
Yo-Yo Ma’s primary instruments include the 1712 Davidov Stradivarius and a 1773 Montagnana, nicknamed Petunia. The Montagnana, valued at $2.5 million, was almost lost when Ma forgot the cello in a cab trunk after performing at Carnegie Hall. The pair was luckily reunited four hours later, having journeyed from Manhattan to Queens.
Listen to Petunia’s namesake from Appalachia Waltz:
5) He’s built a roster of cameos across film and television.
Yo-Yo Ma’s appearance in Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery was hardly his first acting foray. He can be seen in notable episodes of Sesame Street, Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood, and The West Wing, along with animated visits to Arthur and The Simpsons.
Watch his Sesame Street jam session:
