As the 2021-2022 school year comes to a close, we’re thrilled to celebrate the graduating class of 2022 and all of the amazing things they have accomplished. When the pandemic began, this year’s graduating seniors were sophomores in high school, having to negotiate a challenging shift to online learning in the middle of their musical education. However, they remain dedicated and have grown immensely over the past two years.

This year, thankfully, PCM was able to return to presenting live senior recitals (last year, we recorded senior recitals and presented them on YouTube). What follows is a collection of statements from our seniors, as well as their teachers about their inspiring students and their accomplishments.

Congratulations to the Class of 2022, we are so proud of you!

Alejandro Ceva

Alejandro is a graduating senior from Polytechnic School who has studied guitar at PCM since 2014 with Felix Bullock. He will be attending Stanford University in the fall, and he is passionate about both Flamenco and classical guitar styles.

Nina Dinan

Nina graduated from Pasadena High School and will be heading to UCLA to study English next year. Nina studied for two and a half years with Dr. Nic Gerpe at PCM. She has played in Master Classes with Dr. Joel Clifft and Dr. Nadia Shpachenko, and has performed in collaboration with the Ojai Music Festival.

Grayson Gooden

Grayson graduated from Polytechnic School and studied guitar at PCM with Adan Pettit for 12 years. He was a member of the Los Angeles Youth Guitar Orchestra for numerous years where he participated in performances across both the West Coast and Europe in collaboration with the Stuttgarter Musikschule. He has also participated in master classes with founding member of the Los Angeles Guitar Quartet, Scott Tennant.

Isabella Hayden

Isabella graduated from Crossroads School in Santa Monica and is attending Williams College in the fall. She has been a member of the Colburn Youth Orchestra, the Colburn Chamber Orchestra, and the Pasadena Youth Symphony Orchestra. Isabella studied violin with Aimée Kreston and chamber music with Andrew Cook at PCM. This summer, she will be a member of the 2022 Verbier Festival Junior Orchestra.

Michael Holmes

Michael has played flute and oboe at PCM since 2018, studying with Jenni Olson and Jennifer Cullinan.

Julian Hovanec

Julian studied Jazz Piano with Amy Rowe and will be going to the University of Chicago this fall. He has won awards in several classical piano competitions, such as SYMF and the US International Open. Julian has also written multiple pieces for theater productions at his school, including Failure: A Love Story and 365 Days/365 Plays, in addition to acting.

Lily Keating

Lily graduated from Polytechnic School and will attend Barnard College at Columbia University next year. Lily received her earliest training as a member of the Los Angeles Children’s Chorus, singing as a chorister with the Los Angeles Opera and the Los Angeles Philharmonic. She studied vocal performance with Mariné Ter-Kazaryan here at PCM for two years. Watch Lily Keating’s senior recital.

Cecilia McIntyre

Cecilia has studied violin with Elizabeth Hedman and piano with Elizabeth Babor at PCM since 2013. She has also been a member of the Pasadena Youth Symphony for three years, and during the 2021/2022 season, she was Co-Principal 2nd Violin.

Kylie Rodriguez

Kylie will attend Bob Cole Conservatory at CSULB. She has been in Masterclasses with Reid Bruton, Kathleen Roland Silverstein, and Rene Barbera. She has performed her school musicals such as, The Wizard of Oz, Suessical, Bye Bye Birdie, You’re a Good Man Charlie Brown, and Beauty and the Beast. Kylie has studied with Mariné Ter-Kazaryan since 2014.

Norty Roosa

Norty began studying piano at PCM in 2015 with Elizabeth Babor. Next fall he will study at the University of Redlands.

Neel Sadda

Neel just graduated from Flintridge Preparatory School and will attend Georgetown University in the fall. He has studied at PCM since he was three years old in the Young Musicians program before he moved on to study guitar with Felix Bullock. Neel was an original member of PCM’s Los Angeles Youth Guitar Orchestra (LAYGO), and performed with the group for several years both in California and abroad in Germany and the Czech Republic.

After leaving LAYGO, Neel was a member of Guitarra Del Alma, PCM’s senior quartet, where he was coached by LAGQ member and PCM Artist-Teacher Scott Tennant; Guitarra Del Alma has performed in various venues throughout California.

Eddie Zhou recently graduated from Pasadena High School and will attend Northwestern in the fall to study music. He studied violin with Aimée Kreston, chamber music with Andrew Cook, and started in the Young Musicians program at PCM in 2005. Eddie has been a member of the Pasadena Youth Symphony Orchestra for the past three years, and currently serves as co-concertmaster. This summer, he plans to attend the Verbier Festival as a member of the Verbier Festival Junior Orchestra.