Music as truth to power

Pacifist: Yo-Yo Ma playing during a rehearsal at the Xinghai Concert Hall in Guangzhou, China, a few years ago. — Filepic/China Daily/ANN

I WATCHED Yo-Yo Ma perform Dmitri Shostakovich’s two cello concertos with the Boston Symphony Orchestra (BSO) recently. It was, as expected, a full house at the Symphony Hall, with the legendary cellist playing not just one but two masterpieces from one of the 20th century’s greatest composers.

I have always viewed classical music performances as meaningful occasions that link me to my childhood (I grew up to listening to my father’s CDs of Antonio Vivaldi and Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart), my college days (my friends introduced me to Ludwig van Beethoven and Sergei Rachmaninov), and the rest of the world (I have since tried to watch performances wherever I am).