Gustaf accepted the Birgit Nilsson Prize, which is endowed with one million US dollars (1.03 million euros). The 67-year-old has announced that he will use the prize money for projects related to the preservation of nature and international understanding.
Yo-Yo Ma is the first instrumentalist to receive the world’s most valuable classical music award. He always explicitly combines social commitment with his artistic work. “How can I help?” That was the question he internalized, Ma reported in an interview with journalists before the award ceremony. But he always experiences how powerfully music touches people, how much culture can create a space for encounters.
“take part in the world”
Following the example of the Swedish opera singer Nilsson, who died in 2005, it is always important to “dedicate yourself to things with everything you have” and thus to take an interest in the world. With the prize money, Ma is starting a project in US national parks that aims to bring together people from science, politics, business and culture as well as from the indigenous population to talk about the sustainable conservation of nature.
Source: Nachrichten
