Native Oregonian, Dog Lover, and a Tech Enthusiast 

Meet Andrew Poecker. Andrew is a native Oregonian who goes to the University of Oregon. He was born on Leap Day 22 years ago in Salem, Oregon. He then moved to Sublimity, a small town close to Salem when he was a year and a half.

Andrew is a dog lover, he has owned 3 dogs in his life. He thinks dogs are a great companion and they are always there for him when he needs someone to play with. It was Andrew’s fondest memory during his childhood period when he received his first dog, Woody, in second grade. Woody was a cocker spaniel/golden retriever mix. He always let Andrew dress him up and took funny pictures of him. Andrew also brought his little companion to school a few times and he loved the attention and love. It was absolutely traumatic when Woody died at 14, Andrew felt so heartbroken because Woody was his first dog and had him for eight years. He now owns an amazing long hair black chihuahua/sheltie mix, Misty. Misty is the most loving dog Andrew has ever had!

Andrew is also a computer-tech person. He is interested in design and obsessed with everything related to the computer and technology. He loves computers so much because he has been using one since he was 3. He loves troubleshooting and problem solving. He was an editor and manager for his high school newspaper. That was why he chose to major in Advertising and have two minors in Digital Arts and Computer and Information Technology. Andrew also worked for Oregon Daily Emerald as a designer when he was a freshman at the University of Oregon. He always got an outstanding award for his design works at Emerald. 

Andrew is also a major TV series fan. “I love watching TV so much because it is a great way for me to relax and I like the story lines that a lot of TV shows have to offer. You never know what is going to happen next!” says Andrew. His most recent favorite show is The Big Bang Theory, a sitcom centered on a gang of geeky and socially awkward characters. He explains, “I was always being looked down as a nerdy person, and I have appreciation for the show because it kind of makes fun of the ‘regular’ people.” 

Even though Andrew’s stayed in Oregon for his whole life, he has traveled to different places across nation- Washington D.C., Yellowstone National Park, Grand Teton National Park, and New Mexico. His most exciting trip was to D.C. when he was 15 years old. As an only child, Andrew was super thrilled visiting his cousins, and touring around the White House, George Washington’s Mount Vernon, Lincoln Memorial, and other historical places. He enjoyed spending time with his cousins and paddling a boat on the private lake named Champion Lake in Herndon, Virginia. Even though it was 106˚and there were a lot of bugs and insects around the lake, Andrew was really happy enjoying his family reunion during summer vacation .

Other than traveling to different states, Andrew has traveled out of the country once for a day. He traveled to Canada to visit the Glacier National Park in August of 2008. It was his most recent memorable vacation. Even though it was just for a day, Andrew enjoyed the breathtaking glacial scenery. It was an amazing trip for Andrew because he got to see so many new places and so much wild life, he was super excited when he saw bears and mountain goats.

For more information on Andrew, check out his portfolio website here.

Hi, I’m Nicole and I am a music lover and an instrumental music enthusiast. I used to attend concerts every now and then and I love to watch the performances of amazing and talented musicians on Youtube. Check out this inspiring musical group, PianoGuys.

That IS REALLY the Great Wall of China. The musical group’s goal was to film in front of all Seven Wonders of the World. This was their first stop, they also performed in front of the Christ the Redeemer in Rio de Janeiro. Isn’t that amazing?

Now, after watching that awesome performance with the breathtaking view, let me give you a short introduction of various musical instruments.Musical instruments can be classified into four families: brass, percussion, strings, and woodwinds, according to their construction, tone quality and pitch range.  The earliest musical instruments were constructed with wood and metal. Instruments were then developed by different generations and cultures.

Here are some images that show the name and the image of the instruments:

In 2009, scientists have found a 42,000 year-old Aurignacian vulture-bone flute in the Hohle Fels Cave in Germany. It was believed to be the oldest-known musical instrument in the world.

Lastly, piano was invented by a Italian mechanical genius, Bartolomeo Cristofori, in the early 1700s. He created this keyboard instrument that worked by pushing a key, the mechanism inside makes a hammer go up or forward to strike the strings. For more of the story behind the evolution of piano, read The “Why of the Piano by Dr. William Leland.

You might ask: why don’t I see a piano in any of the families? Piano can be argued as a Percussion because we play the piano by striking the keys. There are also an ongoing debate that piano belongs to a String because there are strings inside the piano. What do you think? A string or a percussion instrument? Or a hybrid?

Over the term, I am hoping to explore and talk to a number of instrumental musicians at the University of Oregon or in local Eugene. Students and musicians like Priscilla Dantas are talented and are genuinely passionate about music. Dantas is a Brazilian pianist and a student in the School of Music and Dance, who performed during the Oregon Coast Music Festival, described music is a way for her to express herself without any words. She originally grew up in several slums in Brazil where there were high crime rate and drug activity. She did not give up on music, and now, she has even performed with the Symphonic Orchestra of Recife. I would love to hear personal stories from different musicians.