What would inspire a little girl from the Pacific Isles to grow up to become a classical singer? And to continue to sing on the stage through out her entire life. God almighty knows!

Maybe early on there was an ethereal mystical clue. As a tiny tot, her family lived in Lilly Ponds, a Washington, D.C. suburb. For years, she thought that her neighborhood was named after Lilly Pons, the famous Metropolitan Opera soprano. The neighbors purported that this child's baby cry was like a siren when the ice cream truck went by. Was it two years later when her father, fresh out of the navy, took the family to primitive Palmyra. There a special gift of old 78 records was given including two of Lilly Pons arias from Daughter of the Regiment. The child recognized the arias much later when she began her own vocal studies. A light went on, and she knew her career was to be classical singing!

Melanie has studied and performed at the Zurich Opera House in Switzerland as well as the Institute of Musical Studies tour Ba