Melissa Draper has been playing and loving the violin since she was four years old.      She has won many competitions including MTNA, ASTA, the Utah State Fair, and             Stillman-Kelly. She studied violin performance, first at BYU, and then pursued her     Masters at Manhattan School of Music. Currently Melissa works as both a teacher and     a freelance musician. Melissa is proficient on violin and viola and often records for   groups such as LA East, LDS Motion Picture Studios and MTPit. Melissa has also   played with the Orchestra at Temple Square and Ballet West on many occasions. She currently teaches at The Waterford School and was faculty at the Gifted Music School for several years. She was Director of Artistics for the Stradivarius International Violin Competition in 2007 and 2010.  Melissa feels greatly indebted to all her teachers including, Hiroko Primrose, Debbie Moench, Jack Ashton, Igor and Vesna Gruppman, and Robert and Nicholas Mann. They have greatly enriched her life through their knowledge and skill. Melissa enjoys spending time with her husband and her three boys: Lance, Richard, and Oliver. 

---