Melanie Ohnstad has been a church musician since her graduation from St. Olaf College. She led the music ministries of St. Stephen Lutheran Church, Wausau, WI, Trinity Episcopal Cathedral, Phoenix, AZ, and Westminster Presbyterian Church, Minneapolis. During her Arizona years she earned a Master of Music degree at Arizona State University studying organ with David N. Johnson. She played multiple concerts with the Phoenix Symphony birthing a lifelong love of collaborative music making. When Melanie moved back to the Midwest she enjoyed over a decade as an assistant organist to Howard Don Small at St. Mark’s Cathedral, Minneapolis, and participated frequently in the nationally acclaimed St. Mark’s Music Series.

Melanie advanced her organ playing through a DMA with Dean Billmeyer at the University of Minnesota and is ever grateful for a sabbatical spent taking lessons with Rachel Laurin in Ottawa. Melanie has accompanied Minnesota choirs on three separate European tours and has made multiple recordings with Twin Cities choral ensembles. She has served as dean of the TCAGO chapter and is currently on its board.

Melanie was named Minister of Music and the Arts Emerita during her retirement celebrations at Westminster where her tenure included the installation of a Dobson organ, growth of the church’s musical ensembles and community partnerships, and the introduction of new worship styles and global repertoire. Melanie is now freelancing as an organist, expanding her culinary explorations, and enjoying more time in hiking boots and cross country skis. She and her husband travel frequently and are delighted by more regular visits with kids and grands in CA and CO.