The Essential Yo-Yo Ma

Disc 1
1	Suite for Cello solo no 1
2	Concerto for Violin in F
3	Herz und Mund und Tat und
4	Was mir behagt, ist nur d
5	Wachet auf, ruft uns die
6	Carnival of the animals:
7	Havanaise for Violin and
8	Thaďs: Meditation
9	Liebesfreud
10	Preludes (3) for Piano: n
11	Songs (14), Op. 34: no 14
12	Sonata for Cello and Pian
13	Andante cantabile for Cel
14	Quartet for Piano and Str
15	Concerto for Cello in B m
Disc 2
1	Cristal
2	A Lenda do Caboclo, W 166
3	Chega de Saudade
4	Wapango
5	Libertango
6	Appalachia Waltz
7	Butterfly's Day Out
8	1B
9	Pieces (3) for Cello solo
10	Simple Gifts
11	The Mission: Gabriel's Ob
12	The Mission: The Falls
13	Crouching Tiger, Hidden D
14	Cellist of Sarajevo, Op.
15	Chi passa per 'sta strada
16	Mido Mountain
17	Mohini (Enchantment)
18	Suite for Cello and Jazz
19	Anything Goes: Anything g
20	My Fair Lady: I could hav
The Essential Yo-Yo Ma
1.	Suite for solo cello No. 1 in G major, BWV 1007: Prélude 2:19
	Composed by Johann Sebastian Bach
	Performed by Yo-Yo Ma
2.	Violin Concerto, for violin, strings & continuo in F minor ("L'inverno," The Four Seasons; "Il cimento" No. 4), Op. 8/4, RV 297: II. Largo 1:46
	Composed by Antonio Vivaldi
	Performed by Amsterdam Baroque Orchestra, Ton Koopman and Yo-Yo Ma
	Conducted by Ton Koopman
	Additional Notes: transcribed for cello & orchestra
3.	Cantata No. 147, "Herz und Mund und Tat und Leben," BWV 147 (BC A174): Jesus, bleibet meine Freude 2:42
	Composed by Johann Sebastian Bach
	Performed by Amsterdam Baroque Orchestra, Ton Koopman and Yo-Yo Ma
	Conducted by Ton Koopman
	Additional Notes: transcribed for cello & orchestra~transcribed by Koopman, Ton
4.	Cantata No. 208, "Was mir behagt," (Hunt Cantata), BWV 208 (BC G1, G3): Schafe können sicher weiden 3:37
	Composed by Johann Sebastian Bach
	Performed by Amsterdam Baroque Orchestra, Ton Koopman and Yo-Yo Ma
	Conducted by Ton Koopman
	Additional Notes: transcribed for cello & orchestra~transcribed by Koopman, Ton
5.	Wachet auf, ruft uns die Stimme, chorale prelude for organ (Schübler Chorale No. 1), BWV 645 (BC K22) 3:48
	Composed by Johann Sebastian Bach
	Performed by Amsterdam Baroque Orchestra, Ton Koopman and Yo-Yo Ma
	Conducted by Ton Koopman
	Additional Notes: transcribed for cello & orchestra~transcribed by Koopman, Ton
6.	The Swan (from "Carnival of the Animals"), original (for 2 pianos & ensemble) and arrangements 3:08
	Composed by Camille Saint-Saëns
	Performed by Gaby Casadesus, Philippe Entremont and Yo-Yo Ma
7.	Havanaise, in E major for violin & piano (or orchestra), Op. 83 8:50
	Composed by Camille Saint-Saëns
	Performed by Yo-Yo Ma and Kathryn Stott
	Additional Notes: transcribed by Ma, Yo-Yo~transcribed for cello & piano
8.	Méditation, for violin & orchestra (or other arrangement) (from opera "Thäis") 5:48
	Composed by Jules Massenet
	Performed by Yo-Yo Ma and Kathryn Stott
	Additional Notes: transcribed by Ma, Yo-Yo~transcribed for cello & piano
9.	Liebesfreud (Love's Joy), for violin & piano 3:11
	Composed by Fritz Kreisler
	Performed by Yo-Yo Ma and Patricia Zander
	Additional Notes: transcribed for cello & piano
10.	Preludes (3) for piano: Prelude No. 1. Allegro ben ritmato e deciso 1:43
	Composed by George Gershwin
	Performed by Jeffrey Kahane and Yo-Yo Ma
	Additional Notes: transcribed for cello & piano
11.	Vocalise, instrumental arrangement, Op. 34/14 6:26
	Composed by Sergey Rachmaninov
	Performed by Bobby McFerrin and Yo-Yo Ma
	Additional Notes: transcribed for cello & voice
12.	Sonata for cello & piano in D minor, Op. 40: IV. Allegro 4:25
	Composed by Dmitry Shostakovich
	Performed by Emanuel Ax and Yo-Yo Ma
13.	Andante cantabile, for cello and string orchestra in D major (arr. of 2nd mvt. from String Quartet No.1) 8:21
	Composed by Peter Ilich Tchaikovsky
	Performed by Yo-Yo Ma and Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra
	Conducted by Lorin Maazel
14.	Piano Quartet No. 1 in G minor, Op. 25: IV. Rondo alla Zingarese. Presto 8:04
	Composed by Johannes Brahms
	Performed by Emanuel Ax, Jaime Laredo, Yo-Yo Ma and Isaac Stern
15.	Cello Concerto in B minor, B. 191 (Op. 104): III. Finale. Allegro moderato 12:50
	Composed by Antonin Dvorák
	Performed by New York Philharmonic and Yo-Yo Ma
	Conducted by Kurt Masur
16.	Cristal 2:50
	Composed by César Camargo Mariano
	Performed by Yo-Yo Ma and César Camargo Mariano
17.	A lenda do caboclo, for piano, A. 166 3:11
	Composed by Villa-Lobos-Duo
	Performed by Sergio Assad, Odair Assad and Yo-Yo Ma
18.	Chega de Saudade 5:01
	Composed by Antonio Carlos Jobim
	Performed by Yo-Yo Ma, Kathryn Stott, Cyro Baptista, Nilson Matta, Rosa Passos and Rosa Passos
19.	Wapango, for woodwind quintet 3:46
	Composed by Paquito d'Rivera
	Performed by Paquito d'Rivera, Yo-Yo Ma, Kathryn Stott and Cyro Baptista
20.	Libertango, tango 3:11
	Composed by Astor Piazzolla
	Performed by Yo-Yo Ma, Horacio Malvicino, Antonio Agri, Hector Console, Leonardo Marconi and Néstor Marconi
21.	Appalachia Waltz, for solo cello 4:20
	Composed by Mark O'Connor
	Performed by Yo-Yo Ma
22.	Butterfly's Day Out 4:46
	Composed by Mark O'Connor
	Performed by Edgar Meyer, Yo-Yo Ma and Mark O'Connor
23.	1B, for violin, cello & double bass 4:01
	Composed by Edgar Meyer
	Performed by Edgar Meyer, Yo-Yo Ma and Mark O'Connor
24.	Pieces (3) for solo cello: Pickin' 2:34
	Composed by John Williams [composer]
	Performed by Yo-Yo Ma
25.	Simple Gifts 2:31
	Composed by Shaker Traditional
	Performed by Yo-Yo Ma and Alison Krauss
26.	The Mission, film score: Gabriel's Oboe 3:11
	Composed by Ennio Morricone
	Conducted by Ennio Morricone
	Performed by Yo-Yo Ma and Roma Sinfonietta
27.	The Mission, film score: The Falls 2:28
	Composed by Ennio Morricone
	Conducted by Ennio Morricone
	Performed by Yo-Yo Ma and Roma Sinfonietta
28.	Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, film score: The Eternal Vow 3:01
	Composed by Tan Dun
	Conducted by Tan Dun and Chen Xieyang
	Performed by Yo-Yo Ma, Shanghai Symphony Orchestra, Shanghai National Orchestra and Shanghai Percussion Ensemble
29.	The Cellist of Sarajevo, a lament in rondo form for cello, Op. 12 6:57
	Composed by David Wilde
	Performed by Yo-Yo Ma
30.	Chi Passa per 'Sta Strada, for voices, lutes & violin 4:41
	Composed by Fillippo Azzaiolo
	Performed by Yo-Yo Ma and Silk Road Ensemble
31.	Mido Mountain 3:51
	Composed by Chinese Traditional
	Performed by Yo-Yo Ma and Silk Road Ensemble
32.	Mohini (Enchantment) 1:47
	Composed by Sandeep Das / Indrajit Dey
	Performed by Yo-Yo Ma and Silk Road Ensemble
33.	Suite for cello & jazz piano trio: Baroque in Rhythm 4:25
	Composed by Claude Bolling
	Performed by Claude Bolling, Jean-Luc Dayan, Yo-Yo Ma and Marc Michel
34.	Anything Goes, song (from "Anything Goes") 5:53
	Composed by Cole Porter
	Performed by Roger Kellaway, Stéphane Grappelli, Marc Fosset, Daniel Humair, Yo-Yo Ma and Jon Burr
35.	I Could Have Danced All Night, song (from "My Fair Lady") 3:43
	Composed by Frederick Loewe
	Performed by Yo-Yo Ma and Stephen Prutsman
	Additional Notes: arranged by Prutsman, Steven~arranged for cello & piano

Barnes & Noble

As if being the world's greatest living cellist weren't enough, Yo-Yo Ma is also one of the mere handful of genuine celebrities the classical music world has produced. In a recording career approaching three decades, he's put his stamp on nearly every nook and cranny of the standard cello repertoire while allowing his curiosity to lead him into a virtual world tour of crossover projects, too, each more successful than the last. With such a hit parade to choose from, it must have been daunting to select this program of his "essentials," but the results do justice to both the diversity and the consistent excellence of his work. It helps that the two discs divide neatly into a classical résumé and a crossover one. The former includes meaty excerpts from Bach, Shostakovich, Brahms, and Dvorák, as well as lighter encores such as Saint-Saëns' The Swan and Rachmaninoff's Vocalise, to name a few that show off the unsurpassed beauty of Ma's playing. The second disc, which is programmed even better for straight-through listening, draws from popular albums including the Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon soundtrack, Appalachian Journey, Soul of the Tango, Obrigado Brazil, and pieces by film composers John Williams and Ennio Morricone, as well as the most recent installment of the cellist's ambitious Silk Road project. It looks like a grab-bag assortment on paper, but Ma's impeccable taste and artistry tie it all together and leave you wondering where his insatiable musical appetites will lead him -- and his listeners -- next. Scott Paulin

All Music Guide

Unlike the recent Classic Yo-Yo, really a single-disc sampler of the recorded work of our true superstar cellist, The Essential Yo-Yo Ma purports to be something more -- the Yo-Yo Ma album to own if you're going to own just one. Where Classic Yo-Yo more or less alternated track by track between Ma's straight classical and crossover music, The Essential Yo-Yo Ma devotes one of its two discs to the classics and the other to a generous sampling of music Ma has explored from around the popular sphere and around the world, including selections from his Silk Road Project and from his disc devoted to the music of Ennio Morricone.

There's a lot to be said for this approach; Ma has really maintained parallel classical and crossover careers, and when it comes to actualy mixing things up on the concert stage, others have been bolder than he. The crossover second disc is nicely sequenced and remastered, concluding with a previously unreleased arrangement of "I Could Have Danced All Night" as a bonus track. It's a very reasonable greatest-hits group.

The first disc is less successful as a representation of Ma's abilities in traditional repertoire. No complete multi-movement works are included, and most of the performances included are of the encore type. The disc moves more or less chronologically, beginning with a group of Bach and Vivaldi melodies (though Ma's involvement with Vivaldi is underrepresented by the single "Four Seasons" movement included) and proceeding to Romantic and late Romantic works. Many of these pieces (Gershwin's "Prelude No. 1," Rachmaninov's "Vocalise," Massenet's "Méditation") are arrangements, and a few could have been sacrificed to make room for the consistent warmth that Ma brings to, say, Dvorák's cello concerto. Still, there's nothing here that makes this set anything less than a good introduction to a great musician, one who connects with audiences in a way that was second nature to the famed virtuosi of the past. James Manheim