Melissa Hampton
Melissa remembers exactly when her love affair with classical music began.
“All 4th graders in Hillsborough County, Florida, went on a fall field trip to the Tampa Philharmonic. The program wrapped up with Sibelius’ ‘Finlandia.’ It was the most thrilling thing I had ever heard. That moment changed my life’s direction.”
Years of violin and piano lessons followed culminating in an undergraduate degree in Music Education and graduate studies in Musicology at Florida State University.
A lucky set of circumstances led from the study of music to a career in radio and television.
“It was one of those weird quirks of fate,” says Melissa. “The National Public Radio affiliate in Tallahassee, WFSU-FM, recruited for DJ’s at the Florida State University School of Music because of the pronunciation demands in classical music. I applied and got a job as a weekend host of ‘Going for Baroque.’ Everything about broadcasting just clicked with me, and that became my career.”
After many years as a classical music DJ and program producer for NPR affiliates in Florida and Georgia, Melissa segued into television, first as a program host and ultimately as a writer and producer of documentaries.
“I found that I enjoyed the writing and story-telling part of television production more than hosting shows,” recalls Melissa. “As documentary producer, I essentially got paid to learn new things, meet interesting people, and travel!”
Melissa has served on the Board of Steamboat Creates, as a community representative for the Steamboat Pilot & Today Editorial Board, and as an English-language tutor for Integrated Community.
She and husband, Dave, relocated to Steamboat from Atlanta in 2015; they also spend part of each year in Zihuatanejo, Mexico. Together they have a band, “WayBack,” featuring Dave playing finger-style guitar and vocals, and Melissa on violin, vocals, and keyboard.
They enjoying skiing, entertaining (“I love to cook; Dave is the wine guy”), hiking, biking, and hanging out with their dogs, a Papillon and Toy Aussie.
