Melissa Holm-Johansen

Melissa Holm-Johansen is a lyric soprano and voice teacher based in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

In 2020, she released  Edvard Grieg: Songs from the Heart  with pianist Stephen Swanson, on the Norway House label. Featuring fresh translations by Dr. William Halverson, it’s the first known professional English-language recording of Grieg’s art songs.

In November 2025, Melissa will premiere The Temptations of Veslemøy by Norwegian composer Kjell Habbestad, with texts based on the Haugtussa poems of Arne Garborg in new translations by Dr. Halverson. The premiere will take place in Minneapolis, at Mindekirken, the Norwegian Lutheran Memorial Church, as part of the 2025-2026 season of the Edvard Grieg Society of Minnesota.

In the winter of 2026, Dr. Holm-Johansen will be doing a lecture performance and master class residency at St. Olaf College in Northfield, Minnesota, featuring Edvard Grieg: Songs from the Heart. She will also perform songs by Grieg in its original Dano-Norwegian, as well as Nynorsk (the two official languages of Norway).

Her recent featured performances include two performances for the 2025 LEIF Festival, a performance of “Crossings: Now We Belong” with the Minot Chamber Chorale in October 2024, and “The Golden Age of Danish Song” for Minnesota Orchestra’s “Nordic Landscapes Festival” in January 2025. She continues to promote art song in performance, advocating for local composers and premiering their pieces for Source Song Festival. She will also be featured in the much anticipated Luminiscence North America premiere at The Basilica of St. Mary’s in November 2025.

An ensemble singer as well as a solo artist, Melissa has appeared with First Readings Project, Bach Roots Festival, The Dale Warland Singers, The Singers – Minnesota Choral Artists, The Minnesota Beethoven Festival Chorus, The Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra Chorale, The Oratorio Society, The Saint Olaf Choir and The Norwegian Youth Choir.

A native of Halden, Norway, Melissa earned a Doctor of Musical Arts with an emphasis in vocal pedagogy and performance from the University of Minnesota in 2008, she graduated cum laude from St. Olaf College in 1998.

Dr. Holm-Johansen serves with the voice faculty at Carleton College in Northfield, Minnesota. She also maintains a vibrant and active home studio where she works with professional singers, emerging theater professionals, avocational singers and aspiring young singers. A longtime member of the National Association of Teachers of Singing (NATS), she is a recipient of the NATS Independent Teacher Award. Her students often advance at state, regional and national levels of competitions.

Melissa is a certified vinyasa yoga teacher and avid golfer. She lives in St. Louis Park, Minnesota with her partner, Doug Rohde, and their 3-year-old husky mix rescue dog, Vesla.