WE THE PEOPLE: OUR SHARED PAST, PRESENT, AND FUTURE to Launch at Tanglewood with Yo-Yo Ma

Yo-Yo Ma will join Tanglewood, the Boston Symphony Orchestra, and a roster of guest artists, educators, and speakers for We The People: Our Shared Past, Present, and Future, a weeklong residency taking place August 1–9. Curated by Ma, the series will feature concerts, conversations, community events, and educational programs exploring themes of shared history, civic engagement, and cultural connection.

The residency begins with a series of free community events, including a sunrise gathering at Bousquet Mountain featuring Passamaquoddy musician and educator Chris Newell, Nipmuc flutist Hawk Henries, Tanglewood musicians, and Berkshire-area artists. Additional events include performances at Berkshire Busk! in Great Barrington, Community Day at Hancock Shaker Village, and a family concert featuring Newell and fiddler Ida Mae Specker.

A reimagined Tanglewood on Parade will take place August 4, featuring performances by Ma, members of the Boston Symphony Orchestra, Tanglewood Music Center Fellows, the Boston Pops, and the Tanglewood Music Center Orchestra. Activities throughout the day include lawn events, a musicians' parade, chamber music performances, and an evening concert.

Other residency highlights include a recital featuring Ma and the cellists of the Boston Symphony Orchestra; a performance with violinist Renaud Capuçon; a public conversation between historian Heather Cox Richardson and Equal Justice Initiative founder Bryan Stevenson; and An American Journey with Yo-Yo Ma and Friends, featuring James Taylor, Aoife O'Donovan, Jennifer Kreisberg, Richardson, and Stevenson.

The closing weekend will also include performances by vocalist Arooj Aftab, cellist Karen Ouzounian, composer and kamancheh player Kayhan Kalhor, and BSO cellist Christine Lee in a program featuring works by John Tavener, Kalhor, and Osvaldo Golijov.

In a statement, Ma said, “I am grateful to the BSO for this opportunity to share some of what has helped me to understand how I fit into this American experiment. I hope that this week of music by the people, for the people, and of the people will inspire us to imagine our country's next 250 years and more.”

Additional Tanglewood programming announced for the summer includes Berkshire Day on July 19, four free Community Concerts featuring local performers, weekly Talks & Walks discussions hosted by Anthony Fogg, a new Tanglewood Teens initiative for Berkshire County high school students, and an additional performance of Peter and the Wolf through the Tanglewood Learning Institute family series.

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