Kasey Chan has played piano since age 6, and has been taking piano lessons with Zita Jefferson for about 3 years. She loves music and reading! Kasey is a National Honors Society at Cleveland High School, and will be attending Oregon State University Honors program, majoring in Biology. She has participated in a few medical programs for high school students such as Partnership for Scientific Inquiry Program, the Perry Initiative, and Student Healthcare Leaders, and volunteered as a Student Leader at Outdoor School.
CMC Salutes our Seniors this Spring!
Brandon Chen has been learning violin and piano for many years. His teachers at CMC included Zita Jefferson, Ellen Godula, Cynthia Scott, Brian Bennett, Lisa Zweben, and most recently Erica Liebert. On piano, studying with Carol Ratzlaf, he’s passed Level 10 of Oregon Music Teachers Association (OMTA) Syllabus, and won the highest level of FMCA Junior Festival and the OMTA Baroque Festival division. He’s been Principal 2nd Violin of the David Douglas High School Symphonic Orchestra and is now Assistant Concertmaster, which was Mt. Hood district champions four years in a row and placed at OSAA state competition three years in a row. Brandon enjoys volleyball (including being on the boy’s varsity team), and video games to relax.
Seth Filner studied violin with Anthony Dyer for 10 years, and then with Isabel Dammann, and played in CMC youth string orchestra under teacher Margaret Murer for three years, and was also in CMC’s summer chamber music program. Seth was awarded CMC’s Louis & Annette Kaufman Music Achievement Award in 2024, and played at the Oregon State Solo Competition in 2024 and 2025. He gives “special thanks to Margaret Murer for being my accompanist and teaching me many things in the last year.” He enjoys writing, reading, hiking, & video games, will be graduating from Grant Hight School this spring, and looks forward to continue playing violin and being a part of ensembles.
Andrew Kobus has been taking private violin lessons, and viola for a short time, with Ms. Scott since age six. He also participated in beginner and intermediate orchestra for several years with teacher Margaret Murer, as well as group violin lessons, and then the teen vocal ensemble since 2021. Outside of CMC he enjoys playing guitar, doing vocals, and making music on a digital audio workspace. Andrew received the Community advocate Award from TriMet in 2024, is a member of the National Honors Society, and is the Valedictorian (GPA 4.25!) for his graduating class. After graduating from Cleveland High School, Andrew plans to attend college and major in journalism or marketing with a minor in music composition. As a music student with visual impairment, he is grateful for the support he’s gotten from CMC in his classes. Outside of his ‘day job’, Andrew wants to be a singer-songwriter.
Christian Manarang will be graduating from Sam Barlow high school. He has played piano for eleven years and has begun exploring the violin. He came to CMC through their partnership with Y.O.U.TH, where he currently works as an assistant piano teacher and camp counselor. He will be attending Mt. Hood Community College, then transfer to the University of Oregon to study Business Administration with a minor in music. He then hopes to continue on to law school.
Andrew Tran started at CMC while in elementary school. CMC instructors include Natasha von Bartheld, Kara Lane, Hong Chou, Andrew Ehrlich, and Jamie Chimchirian. At Clackamas High School he is an Honors Award recipient due to his 3.9 GPA, and the most improving swimmer on his team. He’s been in the Metropolitan Youth Symphony and also enjoys writing songs and publishing to Spotify (he thanks CMC for giving him a ‘solid knowledge of music’ for this). Andrew has been accepted to Portland State University Honors College, where he plans to major in computer engineering and minor in electrical engineering.
Lucas Ward has been taking piano lesson with Zita Jefferson for 12 years, starting with group lessons and then individual instruction. He also played the saxophone for three years and flute for a year. Lucas was awarded CMC’s Louis and Annette Kaufman Music Achievement Award in 2023. While not playing music, he enjoys outdoor activities like camping, boating, swimming, rock climbing, and hiking in the summer, and skiing and snowboarding weekly in the winter. He’s planning on pursuing a BioHealth Sciences major at Oregon State University. Says Lucas, “Throughout my entire time at the CMC, Zita Jefferson was my instructor. She made me the pianist I am today and I acknowledge her amazing skills as a teacher. Zita always was understanding, patient, and supportive. She inspired me to make the piano such a large aspect of my life.”
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