Stephen Colbert - Guest Cellist and United Nations Messenger of Peace Yo Yo Ma (3 videos) [View all]

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Last edited Wed Jan 14, 2026, 06:07 AM - Edit history (1)

Like Humans, Nature Is Unbelievably Creative And Utterly Destructive - Yo Yo Ma

National treasure Yo-Yo Ma sits down with Stephen Colbert for a conversation about music, energy, and how humans relate to the rest of the natural world. Stick around for a performance by Yo-Yo Ma and listen to the "Our Common Nature" podcast, available now.





Bach Prelude from the 1st Cello Suite / "Over The Rainbow" - Yo-Yo Ma (LIVE on The Late Show)

After a fascinating conversation with Stephen Colbert about the meaning of music, legendary cellist Yo-Yo Ma takes the stage for a gorgeous performance that begins with Bach and blends into Harold Arlen and Yip Harburg's classic, "Over The Rainbow." Keep up with Yo-Yo Ma by following his latest project, the "Our Common Nature" podcast.





7-Year-Old Cellist Prodigy Yo-Yo Ma's Debut Performance for President JFK - The Kennedy Center

Leonard Bernstein introduces 7-year-old Yo-Yo Ma and his 11-year-old sister Yeou-Cheng Ma to Presidents John F. Kennedy and Dwight D. Eisenhower at "An American Pageant of the Arts," on November 29, 1962. The purpose of the event was to raise funds for the National Cultural Center, begun under Eisenhower's administration and encouraged under Kennedy's. The prodigious duo performed the first movement of the Concertino No. 3 in A Major, by Jean-Baptiste Breval.

Two months after President Kennedy's assassination in November 1963, Congress passed and President Johnson signed into law legislation renaming the National Cultural Center as a "living memorial" to John F. Kennedy.