UMS Concert Program, February 27, 2019 - Yo-Yo Ma

Culture, Understanding, and Survival
Yo-Yo Ma
Wednesday Evening, February 27, 2019 at 7:00 Hill Auditorium
Ann Arbor
Yo-Yo Ma and UMS: A Day of Action
Thursday, February 28, 2019 Flint, Michigan
Yo-Yo Ma will host a “Day of Action” in Flint, MI, with the theme “Flint Voices: Culture, Community, and Resilience.” This day-long set of activities will bring together 50 Flint-based community leaders for a working session on cultural collaboration for social change led by Yo-Yo Ma, as well as a Community Cultural Showcase celebrating Flint’s past and future, which is open to the public.
Flint Voices: Culture, Community, and Resilience
Flint Community Cultural Showcase
Thursday, February 28, 4–6:00 pm
(Berston Field House, 3300 Saginaw Street, Flint) Free and open to the public, until capacity is reached
This community showcase will feature a wide spectrum of performances and presentations that show off Flint’s vitality, diversity, and artistry and tell Flint’s story in new ways. This event is an open and inclusive community celebration that will include food from Flint Farmers’ Market vendors, an interactive community visual art project, and a live storytelling experience.
This week's events with Yo-Yo Ma are supported by the Of ce of the Chancellor and Of ce of the Provost of the University of Michigan-Flint.
Funded in part by the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation, The Hagerman Foundation, and the Ruth Mott Foundation. Special thanks to the Community Foundation of Greater Flint for providing invaluable support as a convening partner.
Flint community members have played an active role in developing the Day of Action and welcoming Yo-Yo Ma to Flint. This extraordinary group of individuals and organizations includes Kevin Collins’ African Drum and Dance, Berston Field House, Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Flint, Charles Stewart Mott Foundation, Communities First, Inc., Chosen Few Arts Council, Ed Morrison, Dallas and Sharon Dort,
El Ballet Folklórico Estudiantil, Factory Two, Flint & Genesee Chamber of Commerce, Flint Area Chapter of The Links, Inc., Flint Cultural Center Corporation, Flint Fresh Food Hub (Cheryl McHallam), Flint Institute of Music, Flint Neighborhoods United, Flint Public Art Project, Friends of Berston Field House, Greater Flint Arts Council, The Hagerman Foundation, Mayor’s Of ce of the City of Flint, McCree Theatre, Rachel Bendit, Ruth Mott Foundation, Sphinx Organization, Sylvester Broome Empowerment Village, Tapology, The Community Foundation of Greater Flint (Lisa Graham, Artina Sadler, and Lynn Williams), University of Michigan Regent Michael J. Behm, University of Michigan, University of Michigan-Flint (Chancellor Susan Borrego, Interim Provost Susan Alcock, and Jennifer Hogan), and Wallace House of the University of Michigan (Lynette Clemetson).
This project has evolved through a series of planning meetings convened by UMS and the Community Foundation of Greater Flint. Special thanks to the individuals who participated in ongoing planning meetings: Jennifer Acree, Susan Alcock, A. Bruce Bradley, Kevin Collins, Lisa Graham, Jennifer Hogan, Valorie Horton, Dena Johnson, Carma Lewis, Rodney Lontine, Bryant Nolden, Sue Quintanilla,
Joe Schipani, and Lynn Williams.
Special thanks to Natasha Thomas-Jackson, UMS community liaison and project coordinator, for the incredible impact she has had on this project.
Special thanks to U-M Wallace House for providing complimentary transportation to/from Flint for tonight’s event.
UMS is grateful to Berston Field House and the Flint Fresh Food Hub for hosting Day of Action activities. Special thanks to Tunde Olaniran for co-hosting the Flint Day of Action with Yo-Yo Ma.
Special thanks to SavCo Hospitality and Sava’s.
Yo-Yo Ma appears by arrangement with Opus 3 Artists.
In consideration of the artist and the audience, please refrain from the use of electronic devices during this event.
The photography, sound recording, or videotaping of this event is prohibited.
Yo-Yo Ma’s multi-faceted career is testament to his enduring belief in culture’s power to generate trust and understanding. Whether performing new or familiar works from the cello repertoire, collaborating with communities and institutions to explore culture’s role in society, or engaging unexpected musical forms, Mr. Ma strives to foster connections that stimulate the imagination and reinforce our humanity.
With partners from around the world and across disciplines, he creates programs that stretch the boundaries
of genre and tradition to explore music- making as a means not only to share and express meaning, but also as a model for the cultural collaboration he considers essential to a strong society. Expanding upon this belief, in 1998 he established Silkroad, a collective of artists from around the world who create music that engages their many traditions.
This year, Mr. Ma begins a new journey, setting out to perform Johann Sebastian Bach’s six suites for solo cello in one
sitting in 36 locations around the world, iconic venues that encompass our cultural heritage, our current creativity, and the challenges of peace and understanding that will shape our future. Each concert will be an example of culture’s power to create moments of shared understanding, as well as an invitation to a larger conversation about culture, society, and the themes that connect us all.
Mr. Ma was born in 1955 to Chinese parents living in Paris. He began to study the cello with his father at age four and three years later moved with his family
to New York City, where he continued his cello studies with Leonard Rose at the Juilliard School. After his conservatory training, he sought out a liberal arts education, graduating from Harvard University with a degree in anthropology in 1976. He has performed for eight American presidents, most recently at the invitation of President Obama on the occasion of the 56th Inaugural Ceremony.
ARTIST
UMS ARCHIVES
Tonight marks Yo-Yo Ma’s 14th appearance under UMS auspices, following
his UMS debut in April 1982 in Hill Auditorium as soloist with the Philadelphia Orchestra under the baton of Eugene Ormandy. In March 2013, Mr. Ma received the UMS Distinguished Artist Award with the Silk Road Ensemble. Mr. Ma most recently appeared at UMS in April 2017 with mandolin player Chris Thile and bassist Edgar Meyer in Hill Auditorium in a performance of Bach trios.
 THIS WEEK'S VICTORS FOR UMS:
Office of the Chancellor, University of Michigan-Flint —
Office of the Provost, University of Michigan-Flint —
Charles Stewart Mott Foundation
—
The Hagerman Foundation —
Ruth Mott Foundation
Supporters of this week’s events with Yo-Yo Ma.
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