Isaac Melamed

Cello

Cellist Isaac Melamed’s musical career has connected him with many of the leading musicians and ensembles of his generation. As a member of the New Century Chamber Orchestra, Isaac has toured internationally to critical acclaim under the direction of Nadja Salerno-Sonnenberg and Daniel Hope.

Since joining the Garth Newel Piano Quartet in 2014, Isaac and the Quartet have performed extensively throughout the United States and abroad, including appearances in Croatia, Scotland, and Italy, as well as at the Chautauqua Institution. Together, the Quartet programs and presents more than 50 chamber music concerts annually and directs a wide range of educational initiatives at the historic Garth Newel Music Center in Hot Springs, Virginia.

A native of San Francisco, Isaac studied with Grammy Award–winning cellist Antonio Lysy in Los Angeles, where he also appeared as a soloist with the UCLA Philharmonia and Symphony Orchestras and the Los Angeles Youth Orchestra. He earned graduate degrees from the Manhattan School of Music, studying with Alan Stepansky and David Geber.

Isaac’s musical training has also included advanced studies with Dmitri Ferschtman at the Conservatorium van Amsterdam, Daniël Esser of the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, and Steven Isserlis and Miklós Perényi at the Kronberg Academy in Germany.

He performs on a cello crafted for him in 2016 by Robert Brewer Young of Sentaraille à Berdot, France, modeled after the Marquis de Corberon Stradivari (1726).

At Garth Newel Music Center

As a Co-Artistic Director, Isaac Melamed plays an integral role in shaping the artistic and educational mission of Garth Newel Music Center, contributing to its performance programming, touring activity, and commitment to chamber music education.