Marc Yu
Frauenthal Center for Performing Arts, Muskegon
Feb. 26 and 27, 8 p.m.
$14-$38
westmichigansymphony.com, (231) 727-8001
When it comes to musical artists, it is rare for someone to rattle off a list of favorites like Bach, Mozart, Beethoven and Rachmaninoff and Wagner, and then assert that he has only heard Lady Gaga mentioned on TV once or twice. It is even rarer when that person is 11 years old.
Marc Yu has been interested in classical music since his car seat years. At two, when his mother noticed him singing along to Beethoven symphonies, it was clear that lessons were a good plan. Since then, he has been practicing the art of music. He started out on piano and cello, but has focused on the piano in more recent years.
Yu will be the featured performer at the West Michigan Symphony's "Beethoven and Blue Jeans," performances Feb. 26 and 27 at 8 p.m. The event is aimed at making classical music more accessible for those that may perceive the symphony as a high-brow affair with a black tie dress code.
"I enjoy dressing up for performances because it creates a tone of respect for the music, but surely great art cannot be made trivial by clothing," Yu said when asked about the casual dress code for his performance.
That well-spoken, almost diplomatic tone is a constant signature in any conversation with Yu, no doubt a skill gained by discussing his talents with media figures from Jay Leno to Ellen Degeneres at so young an age.
He has used a lot of that lime light to bring attention to major international issues like the earthquake victims in Sichuan, China and climate change. Yu says the only thing more immediate than climate change is a house burning down, and realizes that to affect change will have more to do with media taking up the issues than politicians solving it. He even incorporates his art into his plea, arguing that composers showed us a more beautiful world through music which was meant to inspire us to change our world for the better.
Yu and nine other performance artists have also started a YouTube campaign to help Haitian earthquake victims.
It is clear that Yu throws himself into everything he does with passion. He is currently studying as a conductor under Dr. Jeffery Bernstein at Occidental College in Los Angeles. Predictably, he prefers a very animated style.
Lest you think the young Mr. Yu is serious all the time, however, watch any of his many on-air performances on YouTube. He loves a good joke, and rattled a few off during the interview.
"What's brown and sounds like a bell?" he asked.
"DUNG! Do you get it?" he said, excited to have the opportunity to make someone laugh.
The light-hearted joke reminds us that this fantastic performer is still just a kid, even though he has played to celebrating audiences around the world. He knows it is his responsibility to entertain, and not just perform, and he does so, as everything else he does; with great success.
The ‘Beethoven and Blue Jeans" performance will take place at the Frauenthal Center for the Performing Arts in Muskegon. It will feature performances from other artists, and the conductor for the event will be Bohuslav Rattay, who has devoted his career to the accessibility of classical music.
