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, Raúl Gómez-Rojas, and Amy Faust, 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.
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
January 14, 2023
On Deck with Soren Cowell-Shah
Soren Cowell-Shah has been singing his whole life. Now a 17-year-old senior at Catlin Gabel, he joined Pacific Youth Choir when he was only five years old. In this episode of On Deck, Soren shares with Raúl Gómez-Rojas how he loves the breadth of music he gets to sing in PYC, as well as the… More
December 10, 2022
On Deck with Tristan Kriz
Multi-instrumentalist, Tristan Kriz is a sophomore at Roosevelt High School. He started playing flute in the 5th grade while already playing the guitar. He picked up the clarinet and saxophone as well and loves jazz and classical music. Tristan joined the Metropolitan Youth Symphony’s Flute Ensemble last year and enjoys it very much. He is… More
November 26, 2022
On Deck with Mia Williams
Amy Faust chats with Mia Williams, a senior at Sam Barlow High in Gresham who is a lead soprano with the Pacific Youth Choir and a passionate participant in her high school theater program. (She’s starring in the title role of “Mary Poppins” this month, in fact!) Mia has been singing since she can remember… More
November 19, 2022
On Deck with Ishan Ghosh
Ishan Ghosh is a 16-year-old junior at Westview High School. He is a highly accomplished oboist and violinist who plays with Metropolitan Youth Symphony’s top ensembles: Symphony Orchestra (oboe) and MYSfits (violin). In this episode of On Deck, Ishan chats with Raúl Gómez-Rojas about his beginnings in music, learning to play the tabla and being… More
