Melissa Barnard

Melissa Barnard holds degrees with Distinction from the Sydney Conservatorium of Music, New England Conservatory, Boston and the Mannes College of Music, New York. She has appeared as soloist with Australian orchestras including the ACO, the Sydney Symphony Orchestra and the Adelaide Symphony Orchestra and is the winner of several awards including the ABC Young Performers’ Competition String Finals, Radio 2MBS-FM Listener’s Award and a British-Australian Big Brother Award. She has performed at major international festivals in the UK, the US and Europe and has twice been an Artist-in-Residence at the Banff Centre for the Arts in Canada. She collaborated with composer Elena Kats-Chernin and director Sandie Eldridge for the ACO Families original production How to Catch a Star. Melissa performs on her own fine Joseph Hill cello, made in 1760, as well as a beautiful 1846 Jean-Baptiste Vuillaume cello generously loaned to her by the ACO.