Photo by Juergen Frank
Melissa Reardon, viola
Grammy-nominated violist Melissa Reardon is an internationally renowned performer whose solo and chamber playing spans all musical genres. Ms. Reardon is the Artistic Director of the Portland Chamber Music Festival in Portland, Maine, Artist in Residence at Bard College and Conservatory, a founding member and the Executive Director of the East Coast Chamber Orchestra (ECCO), and, since 2022, violist in the Borromeo String Quartet. As a member of the Ensō String Quartet from 2006 until its final season in 2018, Ms. Reardon toured both nationally and internationally, with highlight performances in Sydney, Melbourne, Rio de Janeiro, Carnegie Hall, and the Kennedy Center, to name a few. Lauded by Classical Voice for her “elegant” and “virtuosic” performances, the Massachusetts-born musician won first prize at the Washington International Competition, and is the only person to win top prizes in consecutive HAMS International viola competitions. A sought-after collaborative musician and teacher, she has appeared in numerous festivals across the United States and around the world, and has toured with Yo-Yo Ma’s Silkroad Ensemble, and with Musicians from Marlboro. She held the post of Associate Professor of Viola at East Carolina University from 2007–13, and earned degrees from the Curtis Institute of Music and the New England Conservatory. Ms. Reardon is married to cellist Raman Ramakrishnan and they live in Rhinebeck, New York and New York City with their nine-year-old son Linus.