Melissa Brooks-Rubright
Melissa Brooks-Rubright, Associate Principal Cello of the Saint Louis Symphony, has been a member of the orchestra since 1992. She is a native of New York City where from 1977-1988 she attended the pre-college division of the Juilliard School. Melissa received her undergraduate degree from the New England Conservatory where she studied with Laurence Lesser. She graduated from both schools with Distinction in Performance. Melissa has performed chamber and solo concerts throughout the country including a duo concert with cellist Janos Starker and has won numerous awards and honors. In 1988 Melissa was nominated by Leonard Bernstein for an Avery Fisher career grant. She has participated in summer festivals such as Marlboro, Tanglewood, Aspen, the Portland Chamber Music Festival, Concert Artists Guild Summer Festival and the Sun Valley Summer Festival, among others. Melissa has appeared twice as soloist with The Saint Louis Symphony under Maestro Hans Vonk and also performed Pierre Boulez's demanding Messagesquisse scored for solo cello and six other cellos, under the direction of Maestro David Robertson. She is an active chamber musician and was a co-founder of the St. Louis based arts organization, Crossings Concerts.
