Yo Yo Ma 11/10

There are a lot of things I don't care for on Facebook. However, there are some AWESOME things, too.

The Japanese government wanted to thank the US for helping out during the tsunami. They gave out tickets to the Yo Yo Ma concert right here in YOKOSUKA!

I saw a little blurb on FB for one of the sites I follow that told what the procedures for getting tickets that you'd signed up for. I immediately called and asked if there were any tickets left. We got 2! I didn't sign up for William, since the start of the show was his bed-time. The tickets were very expensive. Over $200 USD each. We were extremely lucky to be honored with such a gift.

I got a sitter, and Tim and I went! A couple of busloads came from the US Embassy in Tokyo. There were 2 lines. One for them, and one for the Yokosuka locals (mainly the upper-crust folks on base). What was interesting, is that the two lines DIDN'T talk to each other!?! It was like we knew our own groups, and we didn't interact. I thought that was interesting.
I only had my cell phone. We got pretty good seats. He played Dvorak.
Okay, it is pretty blurry, but on the left, you can see a guy with the cello. That is Yo Yo Ma. The guy bowing to him is David Zinman, director of Zurich, Switzerland's Orchestra.

We heard Dvorak Cello Concert in B-minor Op 104. It lasted about 45 minutes. Then, Yo-Yo-Ma left, and the orchestra continued playing without him.

Oddest thing, the Japanese don't clap between movements. It is silent. They wait for the end!

It was a thrill to see Mr. Ma. It's obvious he does these one-time things with different orchestras. It was impressive.

And I must say, the orchestra (about 100 of the tallest people I've seen for awhile) was phenomenal, as well.