One hour and 20 minutes into his marathon recital of Bach’s suites for unaccompanied cello at Leipzig’s historic Nikolaikirche, as applause erupts after the Fourth Suite, Yo-Yo Ma does something at once strange and typical. Cello in one hand, he hops off the podium and starts jumping up and down, waving his arms and beaming as he encourages the audience to join him in an impromptu aerobics class. Then, quick as a flash, silence is restored, focus regained, and he launches into the sombre Fifth Suite.
“People know when they come they’re signing up for two hours and 15 minutes of uninterrupted music, but it’s nice to sort of say, ‘I see you and I know the pews may be hard’,” Ma explains with a laugh when we meet at Kaffeehaus Riquet, just around the corner from the church, for brunch the next morning. “Music gives you a ton of information subliminally; it’s not just an aural performance, it’s visual, it’s the body language you’re receiving from the audience and relaying back,” he adds. “There was an elderly gentleman last night who was smiling and just really into the music, and I would look at him once in a while and . . . ” — he mimes a smile and nod of recognition. “I like to pick out certain people and just occasionally play for them.”
Heir to a legacy left by Pablo Casals and Mstislav Rostropovich, the greatest cellists of the 20th century, Ma is now pre-eminent — but he is loved not just for his musicianship but for the openheartedness he brings to his art.