Melissa Knutson

Adjunct Instructor of Piano

I Serve in...

Music, Theatre & Dance Department

Education

• BA, Music, Taylor University

Career Highlights

Melissa is entering her second year of teaching piano at Taylor University. While at Taylor she participated in the Taylor Symphony Orchestra as a violist and was a member of the Taylor String Quartet. Following this she studied viola for a year at Ball State University under the tutelage of Dr. Katrin Meidell, and performed in Ball State’s Symphony Orchestra and Graduate String Quartet. She has performed with amateur orchestras in the Chicago suburbs, as well as the Muncie Symphony, Marion Philharmonic, and Anderson Symphony orchestras in east central Indiana.

She has taught students of viola, violin, and piano for six years, in both Indiana and Illinois, focusing on healthy physical technique and mental practices to develop effortless playing for her students and maximum fun. Highlights of her career include performing Carmina Burana with the Ball State Symphony Orchestra in Indianapolis, and helping her students overcome severe performance anxiety and play joyfully. She now resides in Upland, Indiana.