Member
Contact Information
melinda.p.oneal@dartmouth.eduhttp://music.dartmouth.edu/people/melinda-pauly-oneal
Location
Syria, Virginia
Early Music Skills & Interests
Conductor, Voice - Mezzo-SopranoEarly Music Affiliations
Advocate, Conductor, Educator, Music/Artistic Director, Writer
Biography
Conductor Melinda O’Neal has been praised for her “lucid and musical understanding of the score,” “moving and satisfying interpretations,” and her “stylish and clear manner on the podium” by Hugh Macdonald, Berlioz scholar and music critic. She is professor of music emerita at Dartmouth College, where she conducted Handel Society of Dartmouth and Dartmouth Chamber Singers and taught conducting, theory, and literature courses. She founded and conducted the New Hampshire Symphony Chorus and Sonique of Boston Music Artists. O'Neal is artistic director & conductor emerita of Handel Choir of Baltimore (MD) and author of Experiencing Berlioz (Rowman & Littlefield, 2018). Having conducted numerous Berlioz works, she currently is editing a collection of his choruses with piano accompaniments composed in the 1820's-1850's based on the latest printed editions he oversaw during his lifetiime. She encourages ensembles interested in 19thc vocal music, now commonly understood as early music, will perform them with the keyboards Berlioz endorsed (Érard, Pleyel) or modern pianos.
