On Deck with Young Musicians – showcasing the incredibly talented young musicians who live and perform in the Pacific Northwest. This weekly interview segment highlights their many accomplishments. Hosted by Christa Wessel, Adam Eccleston, and Raúl Gómez-Rojas, the program reveals a deep appreciation for the value of youthful energy in the world of classical music.
If you know of a young musician who should be profiled On Deck, please email Christa Wessel at christa@allclassical.org.
Follow On Deck with Young Musicians on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or Google Podcasts.
Support for On Deck comes from individual donors. Additional support comes from Metropolitan Youth Symphony.
April 22, 2023
On Deck with Minntah Haefker
Raúl Gómez-Rojas chats with Minntah Haefker, a 16 year old Junior enrolled at Lincoln High School in Portland, Oregon. Minntah often sings as a guest vocalist with the band “3 Leg Torso,” studies Opera with her voice coach Angela Niederloh, and competes in state/regional competitions singing in multiple languages. She also loves to perform gigs… More
April 15, 2023
On Deck with Sophia Folawn
Sophia Folawn is a junior at St. Mary’s Academy. She’s been playing flute with the Metropolitan Youth Symphony for 3 years and enjoys it very much; she first started out in the Flute Ensemble led by Adam Eccleston and has recently joined one of the top orchestras in the organization. A proud student of Liberty… More
April 8, 2023
On Deck with Aria Morgan
18-year old saxophonist Aria Morgan spent her first three years of high school at Portland’s Ida B. Wells-Barnett High School, then her senior year at the Interlochen Arts Academy. Now a freshman at USC’s Thornton School of Music, she speaks with Raul Gomez-Rojas about her love of music as well as the importance of activism… More
April 1, 2023
On Deck with Chloe Zhang
17-year old pianist Chloe Zhang (“zang”) was a finalist in Portland Piano International’s Concerto Competition, and also was one of the winners in the Beaverton Symphony’s Young Artist Competition. She deeply adores music, but interestingly -given her successes- it’s not going to be the focus of her life. She engages in music purely for the… More
March 11, 2023
On Deck with Ben McHarris
Ben McHarris is a 17-year-old senior at Cleveland High School in Portland, and a clarinetist with Metropolitan Youth Symphony, where he has played since 2020. In this episode of On Deck, Ben speaks with Raúl Gómez-Rojas about his initial inspiration to choose the clarinet and his journey at MYS. Also, Ben shares about his other… More
February 18, 2023
On Deck with Alessandro Diaz Ayala
Alessandro Diaz Ayala is a cellist and conductor who hails from BRAVO Youth Orchestras. He’s a 9th grader at Jefferson high school and enjoys classical music very much. Lately, he’s been exploring other instruments like the flute and quickly realized how much air is needed for the instrument, but he still enjoys playing it in… More
February 11, 2023
On Deck with Sarah Hohndel
Sarah Hohndel is an 18-year-old tuba player with the Metropolitan Youth Symphony. In this episode of On Deck, she chats with Raúl Gómez-Rojas about starting to learn the tuba when she was only in fifth grade, horseback riding and earning her third degree black belt in Taekwondo. In addition to those passions and skills, Sarah… More
February 4, 2023
On Deck with Maya Hausman
Amy Faust gets to know Maya Hausman, a senior at Cleveland High school who plays flute and piccolo (plus a little bit of clarinet!) for various school ensembles as well as the Metropolitan Youth Symphony. Maya started playing the piano at age 5, but as a member of the Cherokee Nation she was drawn early… More
January 28, 2023
On Deck with Sam Lines
Sam Lines is a 17-year-old junior at Lake Oswego High School. He has been a member of the top orchestra at the Metropolitan Youth Symphony since 2020, where he often plays principal horn. In this episode of On Deck, Sam chats with Raúl Gómez-Rojas about the joys and challenges of being a horn player, plus… More
January 21, 2023
On Deck with Aili Deibert
Aili Deibert is a Junior at PorRoosevelt High School. She’s been playing flute with BRAVO Youth Orchestras (an El Sistema inspired afternoon music program based in North Portland) since 2015. She has performed at the Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall and was selected to perform in the National Youth Orchestra of Los Angeles (YOLA). Aili is… More
