Published 9:29 am Monday, May 4, 2026 You don’t start a musical project and see it thrive for two decades without a bunch of stuff: Hard work. Good ideas. Dedication and perseverance. Luck. Clear goals help, too. And Portland Cello Project has those. We know this because they lay them out clearly on their website: 1: To bring the cello places you wouldn’t normally see it 2: To perform music on the cello you wouldn’t normally associate with the instrument 3: To build bridges between different musical communities through collaborations and community outreach Over the past 20 years, the PCP has accomplished those goals. This is a combo that started out as nine cellists playing what they thought was a one-off gig at the beloved Portland venue Doug Fir Lounge. But that gig turned into more gigs, which turned into tours across the country playing every space you can imagine, from punk clubs to symphony halls.…