On Deck with Young Musicians
As of March 2025, On Deck with Young Musicians is no longer producing new episodes. This program featured inspirational interviews that celebrate and showcase the incredibly talented young musicians who live and perform in the Pacific Northwest: the young people who are shaping the future of classical music. The archive below features episodes hosted by Christa Wessel, Adam Eccleston, Raúl Gómez-Rojas, Jahlysa Azaret, and Lisa Lipton.
May 14, 2022
On Deck with Margo Pullen
Margot Pullen is a 17-year-old junior at Ida B. Wells-Barnett High School in Portland. Her primary instrument is trumpet, which she plays with her school’s wind ensemble and with the Metropolitan Youth Symphony, but she also plays flute, piano and dabbles in other instruments. Margot finds her creative work deeply fulfilling. She has been a …
May 7, 2022
On Deck with Lorelei Gorton
15-year old high school sophomore Lorelei Gorton loves the term ‘artist’ because of its range, and that’s exactly how she describes herself. She’s primarily a dancer and musician, but she also has a passion for writing, singing, acting, and visual art. That’s why she loves being able to go to the Arts & Communication Magnet …
April 30, 2022
On Deck with Diego Fernandez
Adam Eccleston shares a heart-to-heart moment with flutist and All Classical Portland Young Artist Ambassador, Diego Fernandez. This joyous junior of South Salem High School has already contributed much to our greater Portland community. Diego is a well-rounded musician supporting works of modern living composers of diverse background. He has aspirations to become a leading …
April 16, 2022
On Deck with Joey Young
Amy Faust chats with Joey Young, a senior at Mountain View High School in Vancouver. After picking up a viola for his school music program in the 5th grade, Joey’s love of classical music led to an interest in composing, which he has been doing now for several years. Through Fear No Music’s Young Composers …
April 2, 2022
On Deck with Paul Zupan
In this episode of “On Deck,” Christa Wessel chats with Paul Zupan. A sophomore at Franklin High School, Paul loves nothing more than being with friends in band (Paul plays saxophone) and in the Pacific Youth Choir (Paul sings bass). Paul has been making music since 5th grade, but says it has only gotten more …
March 5, 2022
On Deck with Cael Farrow
Amy Faust gets to know Cael Farrow, a senior at Grant High School in Portland and a passionate advocate for classical music. Cael started playing the cello at age 4, and very soon was entertaining crowds at the Hollywood Farmer’s Market, playing for tips while sitting in her car seat. Now a member of the …
January 29, 2022
On Deck with Mindy Moradi
Christa Wessel speaks with 15-year-old violinist Mindy Moradi about perseverance, about playing with adults in the Westside Community and Youth Orchestra, and about what music does to her brain.
January 15, 2022
On Deck with Heaven Fay Scroggins
Amy Faust chats with Heaven Fay Scroggins, a pianist, viola player and composer who’s in the seventh grade. In the second grade, Heaven Fay was introduced to classical music by Bravo Orchestras when they came to her elementary school, Rosa Parks in North Portland. After several years playing the viola, her perfect attendance earned her …
January 8, 2022
On Deck with Paul Lee
Paul Lee is an 18-year-old pianist and violinist with an already long list of awards and accomplishments. In this episode of On Deck, Paul shares with Raúl Gómez how he went from being a “competition guy” to an “outreach guy,” putting his music to the service of others. He and his brother Timmy -also a …
December 18, 2021
On Deck with Elijah Zacharia
Violist Elijah Zacharia was only 11-years old when he joined the most advanced ensemble at the Portland Youth Philharmonic, a remarkable achievement at such young age. Now a 16-year-old homeschooled junior, he chats with Raúl Gómez-Rojas about the reasons why he chose the viola when he was only 3 years old, the importance of youth …
