Emily Seo, 17, is a senior at Jesuit High School. She began studying cello at age five and currently works with Hamilton Cheifetz. Emily is a member of the Portland Youth Philharmonic, where she served as assistant principal for two seasons. In 2026, she won the Amadeus Chamber Orchestra Competition and placed first in the OMEA District 15 Solo & Ensemble Festival. She won first place in the 2025 OMTA Orchestral Instrument Scholarship Competition and was the winner of the 2024 MetroArts Young Artists Debut! Competition. She also placed second in the 2024 OMEA State Solo Contest. In 2023, she received the Monday Music Club Scholarship and earned an Honorable Mention in the Oregon MTNA Senior Strings Competition. She has been selected for the Oregon All-State Orchestra since her freshman year, serving as assistant principal, and in 2025 performed with the All-Northwest Orchestra. Emily has attended numerous summer music programs, most recently the Meadowmount School of Music in 2026, where she studied with Hans Jørgen Jensen. Her previous summer programs include the Bowdoin International Music Festival, the National Symphony Orchestra’s Summer Music Institute at the Kennedy Center, where she served as principal cellist, Center Stage Strings at the University of Michigan, and the Jacobs School of Music Summer String Academy at Indiana University. Through these programs, she has also studied with Richard Aaron, Amir Eldan, Horacio Contreras, and Danielle Cho, and has performed in masterclasses for Norman Fischer, Peter Prosser, Dennis Parker, and Bion Tsang.

Kaylee Nah, 17, is a senior at Sunset High School and has studied violin with Hae-Jin Kim since the age of five. She serves as co-concertmaster of the Portland Youth Philharmonic orchestra. Kaylee was selected as concertmaster of NYO2 2025/2026 (National Youth Orchestra), performing at Carnegie Hall and the Edinburgh International Festival. She was also chosen as concertmaster for both the 2024 and 2025 OMEA All-State Symphony Orchestras, and for the World Youth Symphony Orchestra of the Interlochen Arts Camp. Kaylee was honored as a 2026 YoungArts Award Winner. She is also the three-time OMEA State Solo Contest 1st place Champion for 2024, 2025, and 2026, and the winner of the Oregon MTNA 2025-2026 Senior Strings Competition. Additional honors include 1st place in the Oregon ASTA Solo Competition, Eugene Symphony Guild Legacy Young Artist Competition, MetroArts Young Artists Debut! Competition, and the Monday Musical Club Award Competition, where she received the $2,000 Phillips Award for Best Instrumental Performance. As an active soloist, Kaylee has performed with the Eugene Symphony, Camerata PYP, Amadeus Chamber Orchestra, Jewish Community Orchestra, and Oregon Sinfonietta. She has participated in masterclasses with numerous renowned artists including Ray Chen, Vadim Gluzman, Simone Porter, and Benjamin Beilman. Kaylee enjoys performing in many smaller chamber ensembles. Her chamber music accomplishments include first place in the 2024 OMEA State Small Ensemble Contest and the 2025 Maude Sardam Collaborative Scholarship Awards Competition. She has also studied piano for 10 years and completed the OMTA syllabus Level 10 with distinction.

Sara, 15, a sophomore currently attending Sunset high school. She has been playing piano for almost 9 years, and won first in several OMTA piano festivals since 2019. She also won first place in the Tom O’Brian Junior’s scholarship competition and alternate winner in the 2023 Junior MTNA Competition. She is also entering as a pianist in Portland's Youth Philharmonic.