Biography





Melissa Ann Shallberg, Associate Music Director
and Senior Vocal Coach

Melissa Ann Shallberg is originally from Mason City, Iowa, the town on which Meredith Wilson based River City for his Music Man. After brief study at Luther College, Melissa graduated from Iowa State University with a degree in Music Education. She has continued her education in voice and conducting at St. John’s University, the University of Missouri-Kansas City Conservatory of Music, and Baker University. She is also a member of the Voice Care Network and has completed four summer studies with the Network in Minnesota.

Melissa has been heard as soloist in Carl Orff’s Carmina Burana, Handel’s Messiah, Vivaldi’s Gloria, Mozart’s Solemn Vespers and John Rutter’s Requiem. Her stage works include major roles in Brigadoon, The Mikado, and Die Zauberflöte. In a 2002 review, Paul Horsley of The Kansas City Star said, "Soprano Melissa Ann Shallberg sang O Holy Night with a thrilling crystal-clear voice that never cloyed." She is currently studying for a Master's Degree in Vocal Pedagogy at the University of Kansas.

She has been a member of the William Baker Festival Singers since 1999, and was appointed Associate Music Director of the ensemble in 2002. She has appeared as a soloist frequently with the Festival Singers, in addition to performances with the Summer Singers of Atlanta and the Summer Singers of Kansas City. She has also taught choral music in the Olathe, Kansas School District, and is now enjoying the role of mother to two-year-old daughter Annika.