Music

 Musical Instruments:

My painting Musical Instruments is a metaphor for my intercultural journey. I chose this theme,

inspired by Yo-Yo Ma, the famous cellist, after spending a memorable evening at the Kennedy Center

in Washington, DC, listening to his exquisite musical talent. Young Kim’s article on

Intercultural Personhood includes an excerpt from Yo-Yo Ma, who reflects on his musical journey and his quest for intercultural learning and synthesis. He mentions that through music he learned immense compassion and grace, and through his travel, music has been a means of intercultural communication (Kim, Y. Y., 2008). 

My painting Musical Instruments is a metaphor for my intercultural journey. The harmony created by a well-constructed rhythm or melody is comparable to understanding and transmitting the appropriate culturally sensitive messages to achieve effective communication and intercultural competency. The colours in the painting represent the myriad of colourful and dynamic experiences in my life. Each instrument represents the social and physical environment in which my intercultural communication takes place, using the practices 

I use to communicate, which includes: artistic expression, language, and cultural sensitivity. 

The musical notes and rhythms are my inner thoughts and feelings and the painting represents the dimensions of my Intercultural Praxis. Inquiry, Framework, Positioning, Dialogue, Reflection and Action. Communicative understanding is reached by appropriate inquiry of the message which in this case is transmitted through music, the frames are my perspectives on how I view the world, the positioning of the instruments represent my experiences of hierarchy, the musical rhythm is my dialogue, the reflection of the light in the painting represents introspection on the experiences that have shaped my communication and the action of playing the instruments in unison creates harmony which is the essence of understanding. Through music, one can communicate feelings and emotions that are understood universally, which is the objective of intercultural communication.

Notes for the Future

Yo-Yo Ma with ABAO, Lila Downs, Jeremy Dutcher, Angélique Kidjo, Mashrou'Leila, Andrea Motis, Tunde Olaniran, Marlon Williams |

Won’t Give Up

Yo-Yo joins environmentalist and drag performer Pattie Gonia and Ahtna Athabascan/Iñupiaq songwriter Quinn Christopherson in Alaska to perform “Won’t Give Up,” inspired by our melting glaciers.