HAPPY 100TH BIRTHDAY TO DR. H.T. MA (Founder of COS)!!

About Dr. H. T. Ma, Founder of Children's Orchestra

Dr. Hiao-Tsiun Ma (July 11, 1911-August 28, 1991) was a violinist, musicologist, conductor, teacher and founder of the Children's Orchestra in NY (1962). He believed that all children should be able to communicate through "the language of music".

Born in Ningpo, China, he studied at the National Central University in Nanking. He met his Marina Lu while he served on its faculty, whom he married later after his studies at the Paris Conservatoire, the Ecole Cesar Franck, and his doctorate in Chinese musicology at the Sorbonne.

He home-schooled both children before moving to New York in 1961. He taught them patience, persistence, the desire to improve each day, and to break down any difficulty into manageable "bites". Through this method, Yo-Yo Ma learned an entire Bach Suite (two measures a day) in 6 months, and performed it at age 5.

He shared his love of music with his students at the Children's Orchestra. Alumna Astrid Schween, of the Lark Quartet, recalls fondly how he "filled my head with wisdom". He conducted the orchestra and taught its young players until his retirement in 1977. In 1984, the orchestra was revived by his daughter Yeou-Cheng Ma, and her husband, Michael Dadap, who now conducts it.

In 1977, Dr. Ma moved to Taiwan, where he taught at the Chinese Cultural University of Yangming Shan, and continued conducting. His musical compositions include "Suzy," an operetta; a string quartet, children's works, and two method books, "First Steps of Violin Playing" and "First Steps of Cello Playing," in 1976.

On February 4th, 2007, he was inducted posthumously to the Long Island Volunteer Hall of Fame for his inspirational work with the COS and contribution to the cultural arts. 

His daughter Yeou-Cheng talks about his teaching method, and her wish to perpetuate her father's work through the Dr. H. T. Ma Scholarship:

I was a home-schooled child, and spent a lot of time practicing by myself, and only later in life found out what fun it is to get together to play with other musicians. This sense of community is empowering, and through the Children’s Orchestra, each child is encouraged to find his or her own voice, and to make a place for themselves now, as well, as in the future. Children nowadays have many opportunities to engage in many activities. We find that the friendships that our students make through their chamber music groups last for a lifetime. We have expanded on the “tailor-made” parts my father used to write so that each child could take part in the group experience, despite differing levels of competence, and make room for children with special needs to participate in our programs, thus integrating my experience with Developmental Pediatrics with my music teaching.

The Children’s Orchestra Society (COS), founded in 1962 by Dr. H. T. Ma, is a not-for-profit organization dedicated to “teaching children the language of music,” and to presenting these young musicians in orchestra and chamber music concerts with their peers and well-established artists.

Under the leadership of Executive Director Dr. Yeou-Cheng Ma and Music Director Michael Dadap since 1984, COS has held a firm belief in a child’s innate capability to learn and develop musical talent of the highest level when nurtured in a supportive environment. With this vision, enormous support of its board members, and the hard work of its talented faculty and staff, COS has grown from an 18-member ensemble to more than 125 members comprising of four orchestras, a chamber music department, and musicianship classes.

The Children’s Orchestra Society’s most advanced orchestra, the Young Symphonic Ensemble, has presented annual concerts at Lincoln Center’s Alice Tully Hall and Carnegie Hall, since the establishment of the Discovery Concert Series in 1994. COS has also toured numerous North American cities as well as the Far East and the United Kingdom.

About Dr. H. T. Ma:
My father had a simple dream. He believed that music is a language, which is best learned from early childhood, and is accessible to any child. He founded the Children’s Orchestra in 1962, so that children could not only learn their instrument, but also grow in community, and speak to each other and their audience through the language of music.

He instilled his children, and students with a sense of urgency to value our time, and to make sure that each day, we make some progress. When I was about 4 years old, he pointed to a plant, and said to me: “Do you see this plant? It grows everyday. If you do not progress each day, then you are less than a plant!”

The secret to his method is simple. He, like the French, thought that nothing is impossible. “Whatever seems difficult, chop it up into smaller pieces. Work on each segment, until it is perfect, before going on”. For instance, if you were asked to learn everything on a large newspaper page, that would be overwhelming. However, it you cut it in 1/2, and again in 1/2, and again in 1/2, etc. … eventually you would find a “bite size” of information that even the smallest child could digest. This is how he was able to teach my brother to learn an entire Bach Suite on the Cello at the age of four, 2 measures per day.

In 1964, the Children’s Orchestra shared the Carnegie stage with Isaac Stern on parents’ night for the École Française. This year, our 42nd performing year, we are performing at Alice Tully Hall, a very exciting program on May 26, 2011, featuring our Young Symphonic Ensemble, with conductor Michael Dadap, this year’s Discovery Winner, Hinano Ishii, flutist, and guest artists Eliot Fisk and Zaira Meneses, guitarists. We invite you to join us at Lincoln Center, and to visit our website, for more information about our educational programs, and concerts.