Songs from the Arc of Life

Yo-Yo Ma is one of the most famous and best cellists in the world and has been awarded 18 Grammys, among others. After some very successful excursions into the musical world of jazz, American folk music and traditional Chinese music, the cellist is now releasing another classical album. With his longtime friend, pianist Kathryn Stott, Yo-Yo Ma has recorded well-known and popular classical melodies on "Songs from the Arc of Life". The album begins and ends with two popular "Ave Maria" settings: Bach/Gounod's bright, radiant version begins, and Schubert's more reflective, serious version concludes. In between are beloved classics such as Brahms' Lullaby, Dvorák's Lieder, Elgar's Salut d'amour, Jacob Gade's Jalousie, Saint-Saëns' Swan, as well as atmospheric pieces by Debussy, Fauré, Gershwin and Tchaikovsky. These are all pieces that Ma and Stott have often played together in concert, but have never recorded until now. "We want to invite our audience to remember and imagine what the soundtrack of their own lives might sound like," Yo-Yo Ma says. "Kathy and I have wanted for years to record an album of works that are close to our hearts, music that depicts the context of a life."