Music and conversation, a perfect pairing that can tell a story in a multitude of different ways. On Sunday, April 27th at 3 pm, we are proud to host cellist Yo-Yo Ma, in Conversation with PBS NewsHour host Jeffrey Brown, in an afternoon that will use this pairing to take the audience on the journey of Yo-Yo Ma’s fascinating life and how he became the force that he is today.

Yo-Yo Ma was born to Chinese parents in Paris in 1955. He began to play music at just four years old and at the age of seven, his family moved to New York City which provided the opportunity for his music career to flourish. Ma attended The Juilliard School to continue his cello training and he later attended Harvard where he received a Liberal Arts degree. Since then, Ma has released more than 120 albums, 19 of which are Grammy Award winners. Ma’s lifelong mission has been to use music to create a stronger society that leads the future with humanity. Ma has created two platforms, one being Our Common Nature, which is a cultural journey that reconnects individuals with nature and with each other, and the other being Silkroad, a musical ensemble that brings artists together in a cultural collaboration. He is also a United Nations Member of Peace, he was the first artist to be appointed to the board of trustees for the World Economic Forum, and he is a member of the board of Nia Tero which is the US non-profit organization that works in solidarity with Indigenous peoples. His musical and advocacy accolades speak for themselves as he has been awarded some of the highest honors including, but not limited to, the 2001 National Medal of the Arts and the 2010 Presidential Medal of Freedom. Additionally, he has performed for nine U.S. presidents.

Jeffrey Brown is widely known from PBS NewsHour where he has worked for over 30 years and has served in a range of positions from field reporter, to co-anchor, to now, the Senior Correspondent and Chief Arts Correspondent. Throughout his career, Brown has interviewed some of the world’s most popular newsmakers and has covered a wide variety of topics, especially in the arts. He currently leads Canvas which is NewsHour’s in-depth coverage on the arts, making him the perfect candidate to lead the conversation with such a renowned cellist. In addition to his position at NewsHour, Brown has also served as a juror at the Sundance festival and the National Poetry Out Loud Competition. Brown attended the University of California, Berkeley and the UC Berkeley School of Law, and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.

Both Ma and Brown have made it their life mission to educate and spread awareness through the arts. An Afternoon with Yo-Yo Ma, in Conversation with Jeffrey Brown will be about a 50/50 split between musical performances by Ma and conversation about Ma’s personal music journey. With Brown’s interview expertise and Ma’s talent and dedication to advocacy, this performance is one you definitely will not want to miss. Make sure to get your tickets at our website today!