About Yo-Yo Ma
Yo-Yo Ma was born in Paris to Chinese parents on October 7, 1955 and is an American cellist with an estimated net worth of $30 million. At the age of four, he was enrolled into private cello lessons. Shortly thereafter, he and his parents moved to New York City where he began studying with Leonard Rose of the Julliard School. When he was just 15, he gained international attention when Leonard Bernstein presented him on a televised fundraising event for the Kennedy Center.
Yo-Yo Ma Quick Facts:
- Yo-Yo Ma was born in Paris, France to Chinese parents and educated in New York City, United States. Ma was a child prodigy, performing from the age of four and a half.
- Yo-Yo Ma has won 15 Grammy Awards.
- Along with many classical and romantic works, Yo-Yo Ma also plays a wide variety of contemporary music, folk music, and lesser-known works.
- Yo-Yo Ma plays a 1733 Montagnana cello from Venice and the 1712 Davidoff Stradivarius.
Early Adult Years
To expand upon the knowledge he gained from Julliard, Yo-Yo Ma attended Harvard University. He graduated with a liberal arts degree in 1976. Soon after his graduation, he began his professional career.
Mid Adult Years
Presently, Yo-Yo Ma has recorded over 50 albums with Sony Classical Music ranging from Bach’s Cello Suites to his Brazilian music crossover album. He has performed with many of the world’s leading orchestras including the New York Philharmonic, the London Symphony Orchestra, and the Berlin Philharmonic. Today, along with the many orchestral performances, solo and chamber concerts, and record making, Yo-Yo Ma manages to find time with his wife and two children, as well as his Silk Road Project.
Ma directed at the annual Youth Music Culture Guangdong, in 2019. As of 2023, Yo-Yo Ma’s net worth is estimated to be $30 million. Ma was awarded The Glenn Gould Prize in 1999, the National Medal of Arts in 2001, he has been a United Nations Messenger of Peace since 2006, the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2011, and the Polar Music Prize in 2012.
