The second and third evenings of "We the People," a series curated by Yo-Yo Ma (sorry I forgot to post yesterday).
Saturday August *, 2026
Here's what WCRB says: https://www.classicalwcrb.org/show/the-boston-symphony-orchestra/2026-03-25/we-the-people-part-2-yo-yo-ma-aoife-odonovan-and-jennifer-kreisberg-at-tanglewood
Saturday, August 8, 2026
8:00 PMSpecial guests Jon Batiste, Jennifer Kreisberg (a founding member of the Native women’s trio ULALI), Aoife O’Donovan, James Taylor, historian Heather Cox Richardson, and Bryan Stevenson come together for the second of three concerts curated by Yo-Yo Ma. This quintessentially American program — featuring compositions with close ties to Tanglewood and the BSO, including works by Brent Michael Davids, Julia Wolfe, Bernstein, Copland, and Ives — reflects the triumphs, tragedies, and possibilities of our country, asking who we are, where we are going, and who we can be.
“America is an experiment, and to be an American is to always ask: Who are we? What is our purpose? What gives us meaning?” — Yo-Yo Ma
Boston Symphony Orchestra
Teddy Abrams and Ken-David Masur, conductor
Yo-Yo Ma, cello
Aoife O'Donovan, vocals
Jennifer Kreisberg, vocals
James Taylor, vocals
Jon Batiste, piano and vocals
Heather Cox Richardson, guest speaker
Bryan Stevenson, guest speaker
Diana Wyenn, director and dramaturgAaron COPLAND Fanfare for the Common Man
Charles IVES The Unanswered Question
Brent Michael DAVIDS Indigenous/Undigenous II – Lenape
Stephen FOSTER Slumber My Darling
Traditional, (arr. Jeremy KITTEL) Lakes of Pontchartrain (with Bonnie Bewick, violin)
John Knowles PAINE Columbian March and Hymn
Antonín DVOŘÁK Cello Concerto, third movement
Leonard BERNSTEIN Improvisation on Somewhere from West Side Story
Jennifer KREISBERG naká·yè·r sihskę̀·nę (may it be that you have peace)
Julia WOLFE Liberty Bell
Jon BATISTE American Symphony theme; Big Money
FOSTER Hard Times Come Again No More
Carole KING You've Got a Friend
COPLAND Symphony No. 3, fourth movementHear a conversation with Yo-Yo Ma about "We The People":
The BSO page is here: https://www.bso.org/events/august-8-boston-symphony-orch?performance=2026-08-08-20:00
Boston Symphony Orchestra Teddy Abrams, conductor Ken-David Masur, conductor Yo-Yo Ma, cello Aoife O'Donovan, vocals Jennifer Kreisberg, vocals James Taylor, vocals Jon Batiste, piano and vocals Heather Cox Richardson, guest speaker Bryan Stevenson, guest speaker Diana Wyenn, director and dramaturgCOPLAND Fanfare for the Common ManIVES The Unanswered Question Brent Michael DAVIDS Indigenous/Undigenous II – Lenape FOSTER Slumber My DarlingTraditional, (arr. Jeremy KITTEL) Lakes of Pontchartrain (with Bonnie Bewick, violin) PAINE Columbian March and HymnDVOŘÁK Cello Concerto, third movement intermission BERNSTEIN Improvisation on Somewhere from West Side StoryJennifer KREISBERG naká·yè·r sihskę̀·nę (may it be that you have peace) Julia WOLFE Liberty Bell Jon BATISTE American Symphony theme; Big Money FOSTER Hard Times Come Again No More Carole KING You've Got a Friend COPLAND Symphony No. 3, fourth movement
This journey in music and words brings Ma and the BSO together with special guests including Jon Batiste, Jennifer Kreisberg (a founding member of the Native women’s trio ULALI), Aoife O’Donovan (of Crooked Still and I’m With Her), James Taylor, historian Heather Cox Richardson, and Bryan Stevenson, founder of the Equal Justice Initiative.
This quintessentially American program — featuring compositions with close ties to Tanglewood and the BSO, including works by Brent Michael Davids, Julia Wolfe, Bernstein, Copland, and Ives — reflects the triumphs, tragedies, and possibilities of our country, asking who we are, where we are going, and who we can be.
There are apparently no program notes, but there are links to performer bios.
August 9, 2026
Again, WCRB synopsizes: https://www.classicalwcrb.org/show/the-boston-symphony-orchestra/2026-03-31/we-the-people-part-3-yo-yo-ma-the-bso-and-voices-of-our-time-at-tanglewood
Sunday, August 9, 2026
7:00 PMIn the final part of a three-concert series curated by Yo-Yo Ma Grammy-winning vocalist Arooj Aftab and Ma are the soloists in John Tavener’s Mahámátar,with the Boston University Tanglewood Institute Chorus. Then, cellist and Silkroad Ensemble member Karen Ouzounian is the soloist in Iranian composer Kayhan Kalhor’s Venus in the Mirror, with the composer as co-soloist, and BSO cellist Christine Lee is the soloist in Osvaldo Golijov’s BSO-commissioned Azul.
“We offer a prayer for the future, one that encompasses all the world’s people, that acknowledges sacrifice and seeks inspiration, that contains the arc of the human and natural world, from the primordial planet, through the emergence of humanity, all the way into space and a planetary, humanist, universal future.” — Yo-Yo Ma
Anna Handler, conductor
Samy Rachid, conductor
Yo-Yo Ma, cello (Tavener)
Karen Ouzounian, cello (Kalhor)
Christine Lee, cello (Golijov)
Kayhan Kalhor, kamanche
Arooj Afjab, vocalist
Boston University Tanglewood Institute ChorusJohn TAVENER Mahámátar, for cello, voice, chorus, and orchestra
Kayhan KALHOR Venus in the Mirror, for kamanche, cello, and orchestra
Osvaldo GOLIJOV Azul, for cello and orchestraHear a conversation with Yo-Yo Ma about "We The People":
Here's the BSO page: https://www.bso.org/events/august-9-boston-symphony-orch?performance=2026-08-09-14:30
Boston Symphony Orchestra Anna Handler, conductor Samy Rachid, conductor Yo-Yo Ma, cello (Tavener) Karen Ouzounian, cello (Kalhor) Christine Lee, cello (Golijov) Kayhan Kalhor, kamancheh Arooj Aftab, vocalist Boston University Tanglewood Institute ChorusTAVENER Mahámátar, for cello, voice, chorus, and orchestra Kayhan KALHOR Venus in the Mirror, for kamancheh, cello, and orchestra Osvaldo GOLIJOV Azul, for cello and orchestra (originally a BSO 125th Anniversary Commission made possible through the generous support of Catherine and Paul Buttenwieser)
We The People’s closing concert is a celebration of human creativity and a prayer for our future. From Mahámátar — John Tavener’s astonishing choral invocation, featuring Grammy-winning vocalist Arooj Aftab — to Venus in the Mirror — Kayhan Kalhor’s visceral plea for peace and equality, featuring cellist Karen Ouzounian and Kalhor on the kamancheh — to Azul — Osvaldo Golijov’s world-expanding sonic tapestry, featuring BSO cellist Christine Lee — this afternoon’s program offers us space to imagine a better future.
“We offer a prayer for the future, one that encompasses all the world’s people, that acknowledges sacrifice and seeks inspiration, that contains the arc of the human and natural world, from the primordial planet, through the emergence of humanity, all the way into space and a planetary, humanist, universal future.” — Yo-Yo Ma
This time there are program notes.
To my mind, the Saturday program is more appealing than Sunday's. You may feel differently.
