Play It Forward – Haruka Sakiyama

Music that inspires one of 2024 All Classical Radio’s Youth Artist Ambassadors, Haruka Sakiyama.

Meet Haruka Sakiyama. One of All Classical Radio’s Youth Artist Ambassadors for 2024.
We recently asked Haruka what pieces of music have inspired her to become the musician she is today. Here are a few of her selections.

Jupiter by Gustav Holst

I heard this piece for the first time when I was really little at the Gala Concert in Japan, performed by the Pacific Music Festival. Since then, this piece has become a pocket of magic to turn to when life gets rocky.

Minuet 2 by Bach

This was one of the first pieces I ever performed on the violin when I was 3 years old. My mom made up a small storyline to help me memorize the piece and teach me about color and tone changes. 

Bach Double by Bach

I performed this piece with my sister when I was in kindergarten at our school talent show, and again when my sister was a senior for her last solo and ensemble. This piece holds a special place in my heart as our song.

Tchaikovsky’s 5th Symphony

I played this piece my freshman year with PYP, and the last couple of minutes of the fourth movement fills me with indescribable joy. I can’t put into words how much I love this piece.

Gliere Horn Concerto in Bb Major

This is a concerto that I worked endlessly on for countless competitions and awards. It was also the first piece I ever performed with an orchestra.

Tchaikovsky’s Nutcracker Suite

It used to be a family tradition to go see the Nutcracker every holiday season in our family, and it holds a lot of special memories for me. 

Beethoven’s 9th Symphony

I performed this at the final concert of my first season as principal horn with the Portland Youth Philharmonic. Getting to play with a choir and having the privilage of playing first horn was truly a special moment for me. 

About Haruka

Haruka Sakiyama is a junior at West Linn High School and plays the French horn (since 2019) and violin (since 2011). Haruka has been a part of the Portland Youth Philharmonic (PYP) for nine years, playing both instruments and currently plays first horn for both the Conservatory Orchestra and the Philharmonic Orchestra. She was a finalist for the 2024 Oregon Mozart Players Young Soloist Competition and the 2024 Young Metro Artists Competition and was a winner of the 2024 Jewish Community Orchestra Young Artist Competition. She was also a member of the 2022 and 2024 All-State Ensembles and the 2023 All-Northwest Orchestra. In addition to horn and violin, she enjoys composing and won the 2020 and 2021 OMEA State Composition Contest and the 2022 National Federation of Music Clubs Junior Composers Competition. Haruka is a member of the Young Composers Project. Her first work for the full symphony was premiered by the Oregon Symphony in 2018, with many of her other works being performed by groups of the PYP. Outside of music, Haruka enjoys reading and ski racing.