Draft:Raúl Gómez-Rojas
Portland, Oregon classical music conductor
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Raúl Gómez-Rojas (born 30 March 1984) is a Costa Rican conductor, violinist, music educator, and radio host. He is the current music director of the Metropolitan Youth Symphony in Portland, Oregon, a position he has held since 2016. He also hosted classical music radio at Portland's classical station, All Classical Radio, and guest conducts with the Oregon Symphony.
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Raúl Gómez-Rojas | |
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| Website | raulgomezrojas |
Early life and education
Gómez-Rojas was born in San José, Costa Rica. His father, an administrator at a university, sparked the young boy's interest in music by teaching him the four chords he knew on a guitar. Gómez-Rojas proceeded to teach himself the guitar, and his mother aided in the growth of his musical interest by encouraging him to play the tambourine in church and his elementary school marching band. Gómez-Rojas was nine years old when he picked up the violin. He studied for ten years with the concertmaster of Costa Rica’s National Symphony Orchestra, José Aurelio Castillo, who became a mentor in his early musical life and a family-friend.
Upon his graduation from high school, Gómez-Rojas had an offer to play in the Costa Rica National Symphony. While he figured music would remain in his life, this moment was a crossroads, as he had not envisioned himself pursuing music professionally and had plans to attend university. Accepting the job, he entered the path of music, and, quickly deciding that he was on the right path, had attained a bachelor's degree in music performance by 2005.
In 2006, Gómez-Rojas moved to the United States for further musical studies. [1] On full scholarships, he earned an MM in violin/viola and a DMA in conducting at Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge, studying with Kevork Mardirossian and Carlos Riazuelo, respectively.[2]
Educator
In 2016, Gómez-Rójas became the music director of the Metropolitan Youth Symphony in Portland, Oregon.[3]
Radio host
Gómez-Rojas was one of the hosts for the radio program On Deck with Young Musicians on Portland's All Classical Radio, which showcased local young musicians through interviews.[4]
Personal life
Gómez-Rojas is married to Portland writer Sarah Smith.[5]