Tuesday Student Takeover

Bassist Jacob Evans just completed his 3rd year in the Popular Music Performance Program at the USC Thornton School of Music. With an acceptance rate of less than 5%, Evansʻ major is one of the most popular and competitive music programs in the country. The Kamehameha Schools Kapalama alum shares his experiences with the admissions process and his life at USC.

Mid Pacific Institute Junior, Jason Allen is an enthusiastic musician who is working toward bringing young musicians in our community together to listen, play and share music.

Students from Hanahauʻoli School's After School Enrichment Harp Class bring their joy, energy (and harps!) to Classical Pacific's Tuesday Student Takeover in this yearly tradition of showcasing how Hanahauʻoli's young students can learn to listen, play together and have fun!

As Hawaii Youth Opera Chorus prepares for their 63rd Annual Spring Concert, "Aloha E Na Pua O Hawaiʻi," seniors Lily Carlson and Drew Yos visit Classical Pacific to share music they love and memories of growing up in the choirs of HYOC.

Maui High School graduate Skyler Stook is a Communicolgy major at the University of Hawaii at Manoa. He taught himself to play the guitar and is in the Universityʻs Jazz Ensemble. Skyler Stook brought in his guitar and played music, shared how he got interested in jazz, and offered advice for anyone wanting to learn the guitar.

In his last year at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa, we speak with J. P. Ovens, a composition major who plays the bassoon and electric bass. Originally from Las Vegas, J.P. gives advice to young musicians and musicians looking at studying at UH Mānoa.

Ye Stanton is a pianist and a piano teacher at Manoa School of Music & The Arts. Stanton is getting her PhD in ethnomusicology at the University of Hawaii at Manoa. She shares her experiences as a classically trained musician and as a member of the gamelan ensemble at UH.

Deanna Wen makes good on her promise a year ago to come back to Classical Pacific. Wen is now an 11th grader at Punahou School, and she and her teacher Duane Padilla return with music, advice and experiences to share. Listen to Deanna's 2023 Tuesday Student Takeover.

Mililani High School senior Belise Swartwood is a violinist, a swimmer, and will be attending M.I.T. in the Fall. She studies the violin with Wu Hung, and was the concert master in Hawaii Youth Symphonyʻs YSI last semester. Swartwood brought in some of her favorite pieces and explained how she balances all of her activites,

Musician sisters Evie Tjoeng (cello) and Ellie Tjoeng (violin) both play in Hawaii Youth Symphony's Concert Orchestra. Evie and Ellie brought in their favorite pieces to share along with great advice and stories of how they started in music.