Dialogue · Yo-Yo Ma
> Interview Next Episode (2020) | Cellist · Yo-Yo Ma <
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△ Yo-Yo Ma
At the age of 4, he studied cello, and at the age of 8, he performed on the same stage with the famous American conductor Bernstein at Carnegie Hall. Cellist Yo-Yo Ma embarked on the road to fame in his childhood. After a teenage rebellion, he did not choose to specialize in music school, but went to Harvard University to study anthropology. For four years, the anthropology and history courses that fascinated him were like a seed buried in his heart. In the days that followed, the seed gradually sprouted, influencing every choice on his life path.
When he was a student at Harvard, Yo-Yo Ma once heard a speech by the conductor Bernstein, in which Bernstein said: What can music do? When wars and disasters pour in to us, how should musicians relate to the world? By the time he graduated from university, Yo-Yo Ma had become one of the world's top cellists. Gradually, he was no longer satisfied with performing only in traditional concert halls, and began a new musical experiment.
△ Ma Youyou in his youth
He began to collaborate with artists in various fields, gardening, architecture, painting, dance, film, expanding the possibilities of classical music. However, this choice puzzled many conservatives in the classical music industry, and some orchestras even cancelled their contracts with him.
Yo-Yo Ma: I've met some people who may be my teachers but don't approve of what I'm doing. Do you know what I'm saying to those people? Those who are afraid of being criticized, just don't do anything, and if you don't do anything, no one will criticize you. I have to regain trust in myself every moment, because if you're going to do something, you're going to be insecure. Is what I do worthy of criticism? If I really think it's worth it, then I have to put up with the criticism.
At the age of 40, Yo-Yo Ma is still looking for answers. In 1998, he launched the public welfare action "Silk Road Project" and formed a "Silk Road Orchestra". It's a group of dozens of artists who, along with their respective instruments and cultures, travel to perform around the world, connecting people with music.
Wu Man, the first Chinese pipa player to join the band, recalls that at first, Ma Youyou's idea was to form a small band with limited funds, and he did not have a long-term plan. It was not until the "911 incident" in 2001.
After the "9/11", the U.S. entry visa policy for foreigners was tightened, and many musicians participating in the "Silk Road Program" were affected by their visas. During that time, they happened to receive an invitation to perform in Syria.
Everything has become difficult, raising funds, applying for visas, And Yo-Yo Ma once said that some days I really can't do it. But looking at this world of panic and confrontation, the orchestra's musicians realized that their performances were not only about music, but also promoted dialogue and understanding among people of different races and faiths through music.
Yo-Yo Ma: Ethnomusicologists, critics, they're going to say, you should do this, but I'm not in business, not that it's going to be successful, so that's what you should do. That's not what a musician should do, the musician is always listening. Sometimes it's a good business plan, but not a good music plan.
Yo-Yo Ma: Why am I a musician? If I'm going to be a musician, I have to listen, I have to care, I have to empathize, I have to be curious, because I end up having to represent people's voices. Their voices became mine. Then I can say to people, this sound is amazing, I want to share it with you.
Three years ago, Yo-Yo Ma launched the "Bach Project" to play Bach's a cappella suite in 36 places around the world, and he learned the first cello piece with his father when he was 4 years old. In his heart, Bach is like a friend, who dares not tell his parents the secrets he can tell him, and for sixty years, in the face of pressure and loss, Bach's music has brought him sustenance and comfort.
He went to the border cities of Texas and Mexico, and also to the 38th parallel north of the Inter-Korean Demilitarized Zone, not to solve political problems, but to get people to start a dialogue.
△ Yo-Yo Ma participated in the rehearsal of Guangdong International Youth Music Week
Yo-Yo Ma: In my heart, music and service are like that, we play, that's what it should be. I've been telling people that this act of 'playing' is like giving you a gift from your heart. It's something inside me, and we're giving it to you. This gift is not an economic transaction, it is another special kind of transaction.
Last year, when we met Yo-Yo Ma, we were still talking about the fires in Australia and the upcoming Chinese New Year. Soon, a global outbreak quickly changed everyone's life. On the days when he could not take the stage, Yo-Yo Ma launched a campaign on the Internet, Songs Of Comfort, to repair the wounds in people's hearts with music.
△ Yo-Yo Ma launched the "Songs Of Comfort" campaign on the Internet
Yo-Yo Ma: I'm a grandparent now. In 2100, my grandson will be 82 years old, so I don't want to ruin the world, we are all responsible, if the world is completely chaotic, we are deliberately doing something that is not conducive to the future of our children. We say that we care about our families, so we should show the appearance of caring. So when I drink water in plastic bottles I think, there are a lot of whales that die because they eat too much plastic, so every time someone gives me a bottle of water in a plastic bottle, I want to say, don't do it. These start with small things, and I think we can all be part of it.
What can I do for the world?
Yo-Yo Ma's experiment continues.
Choreographer: Gao Shuqing
Editors: Liu Mengqi, 612, Lin Zi