Clarinetist Cheryl Melfi holds the Doctor of Musical Arts degree from the University of Arizona, the Master of Music degree from the University of Michigan, and the Bachelor of Music degree from Baldwin-Wallace College Conservatory of Music. Her clarinet teachers include Jerry Kirkbride, E. Fred Ormand, and David Bell.

Cheryl has performed with many orchestras in the United States and Southeast Asia, including the Thailand Philharmonic Orchestra, the Tucson Symphony Orchestra, the Flagstaff Symphony Orchestra, the Catalina Chamber Orchestra, the Arizona Symphony Orchestra, and the Michigan Pops Orchestra. She is also an experienced chamber musician. She was artist-in-residence at the annual chamber music festival Music From Greer and the clarinetist in the Arizona-based wind quintet Fünf. As a member of the quartet THUD, she was artist-in-residence at the Third Annual New Music Festival at the University of Minnesota. Cheryl has performed with the Tucson Symphony Orchestra, the Flagstaff Symphony Orchestra, the Arizona Wind Quintet, and other ensembles. She has also performed with several contemporary music groups, including the Contemporary Directions Ensemble, the Prime Directive, and the Nova Chamber Players, and has collaborated with several composers on new works for the clarinet.

From 2005 – 2007 Cheryl was Instructor of Clarinet at Mahidol University College of Music in Salaya, Thailand. She taught clarinet lessons, coached chamber ensembles, and oversaw her teaching assistant in the management of the Mahidol University Clarinet Ensemble, which she founded in 2005. While in Thailand Cheryl also served as faculty artist for the Southeast Asian Youth Orchestra and Wind Ensemble (SAYOWE), and presented clinics and workshops at the Asian Symphonic Band Competition (ASBC) and other events throughout Southeast Asia.

As a recitalist Cheryl has appeared with leading pianists, including Azusa Hokugo, Kit Young, Jung-Min Lee, and Billie Whittaker. She has presented recitals and clarinet workshops throughout the United States, as well as in Thailand, Singapore, and Myanmar.

Currently Cheryl resides in Kansas City, Missouri, where she is Assistant Director of the Community Music and Dance Academy at the University of Missouri-Kansas City. Please see the contact information on this page to schedule a lesson, workshop, or concert.