In September, I had the pleasure of photographing cellist @yoyoma for two days in Korea. Under the theme of “Culture Connects Us”, Yo-Yo Ma has embarked on the “Bach Project”. It is an audacious, international mission as part of which he is performing Bach’s six suites for solo cello in thirty-six locations around the world. Seoul was the twentieth place he visited.

Over the course of three days, Yo-Yo Ma held a talk about K-pop at Seoul’s Starfield Library and played solo for two and a half hours for an audience of thousands of people at the city’s Olympic Park. He also had a “day of action” at the Demilitarized Zone, meeting villagers and soldiers and performing for them.

Yo-Yo Ma’s producers asked me to document the project from a journalist’s perspective. Still, I have to admit I was instantly mesmerized by his gracious and warm personality. He was a kind soul and a thinker, full of passion and ideas. I cherished our conversations at the back of the tour minibus. Thank you, Yo-Yo Ma. You were and are nothing but an inspiration.