May 2020

What inspired you to share Annie Yeh Music/Annie Yeh Performances in May 2020? 

Music heals, spiritually and emotionally, especially during times of uncertainty and self-isolation, as the world is experiencing. As a natural introvert, I find the constraint of Sheltering in Place to be a liberating setting for personal reflection, practicing, and creative deep diving. I find that through the cello, I can safely and authentically connect with and move people, whether it be friends, neighbors, family or socially distanced strangers passing by on the street. Also, since it was no longer possible to travel to Los Angeles right before SIP to rehearse with a colleague, I had to think of new ideas. This combined energy, along with the amazing help of technology and the inspiring work of other like-minded wonderful musician colleagues and creative people, is a perfect storm for Annie Yeh Music/Performances in May 2020.  

Why now?

I have always wanted to share my music performance with a wider audience. After exciting concert collaborations with colleagues over the past year, having launched The Intarsia Trio and Duo Viello, now is just a continuation of the momentum in a different format.  May is a busy month of transition and celebration - as we fully enjoy Spring and the outdoors again, and get ready for the Summer, this is the perfect time for a new beginning! Also, since May is Asian Pacific American Heritage month, I feel that it’s a personal honor to contribute something to the world now. 

What inspires you as a musician/artist? 

I’m deeply inspired by walking in nature, practicing yoga, eating good food, my 2 cats, knitting, and of course, playing with and listening to other musicians who are not only inspiring artists but great human beings. The beautiful homes around the hills in my neighborhood in Berkeley, and beautiful clothing also inspire me. Laughter helps too! The joy of performing for retirement communities and audiences in beautiful intimate spaces is uniquely rewarding. I’m excited to bring this experience in a new way via more online sharing. 

What can we expect you to share in the coming months? 

A general answer to this question: I’ll be sharing performances of solo cello music as well as arrangements of chamber music for multiple cello lines, in a variety of genres by living and deceased composers. Of course there will eventually also be performances of chamber music with my collaborators again, once I work out those logistics! I’ll leave it at that for now! 

Will you be dropping an album, or sharing music, or video content? 

I’m so excited about bringing the performance experience to the homes of everyone Sheltering in Place from my living room, and for everyone to meet my cats, Wilson and Pepper, that it will be a series of video content. Eventually I’ll weave in live online performances. 

The Bach Quadrupletet, what is it? What inspired this format? 

The Bach Quadrupletet is my new “solo Bach Chorales” project! It’s a fun and ambitious undertaking, with the goal of performing all 371 of the Bach Chorales on my cello. After a series of live performances over the past 6 months of the Bach suites for solo cello, and since Sheltering in Place on March 17, I was craving polyphony. So I thought to myself, “hey! I could record all 4 voices myself” after seeing a huge wave of musicians doing the same with other pieces of music.

When and how can we see/hear it?  

I will be posting one Bach Chorale a week on my Youtube Channel, “Annie Yeh Performances.” Look for the Playlist title, “The Bach Quadrupletet”