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Teaching Artist Review
About the Artist
Melissa is a classically trained harpist based in Indianapolis. She earned a B.A. in Music from Indiana University and a Master's of Music in Harp Performance from Butler University.
A musician for more than 30 years, she has worked as a teaching artist for Arts for Learning Indiana for 17 years.
"I play on a full-size concert harp and perform solo, chamber, and orchestral music in venues as small as a client's living room to as large as a concert hall stage," Melissa explains. "School classrooms and auditoriums fit right in the middle of those extremes. In those educational settings, I use the harp to enchant students with my instrument's beautiful sounds and melodies and teach concepts in music, language arts and science."
Melissa was the first harpist to receive a Creative Renewal Fellowship from the Arts Council of Indianapolis, as well as the first harpist to perform on the Palladium Stage at the Carmel Center of Performing Arts. She also serves as principal harpist with the Lafayette Symphony Orchestra and the Indiana Wind Symphony.
"Listening to the harp enriches students by bringing a sound they may have heard in a movie or video game right to their classroom. And it enhances their education by using visual, aural, and kinesthetic experiences to learn concepts in music, science, and language arts."
A musician for more than 30 years, she has worked as a teaching artist for Arts for Learning Indiana for 17 years.
"I play on a full-size concert harp and perform solo, chamber, and orchestral music in venues as small as a client's living room to as large as a concert hall stage," Melissa explains. "School classrooms and auditoriums fit right in the middle of those extremes. In those educational settings, I use the harp to enchant students with my instrument's beautiful sounds and melodies and teach concepts in music, language arts and science."
Melissa was the first harpist to receive a Creative Renewal Fellowship from the Arts Council of Indianapolis, as well as the first harpist to perform on the Palladium Stage at the Carmel Center of Performing Arts. She also serves as principal harpist with the Lafayette Symphony Orchestra and the Indiana Wind Symphony.
"Listening to the harp enriches students by bringing a sound they may have heard in a movie or video game right to their classroom. And it enhances their education by using visual, aural, and kinesthetic experiences to learn concepts in music, science, and language arts."
