At last, violist Helen Callus has given us another recital disc. Her first had music by women composers (Nov/Dec 2002) that was well chosen and even better played.

Immediately distinguishing this recital is the distinctive timbre that Helen Callus elicits from her instrument – this is neither a darker-toned violin nor an anaemic-sounding cello.

For her latest recording, Helen Callus has researched the many transcriptions made by the ‘Father of the Russian Viola School’, Vadim Borisovsky.

Four years ago I began my research into British women composers’ literature for the viola and it didn’t take long for that voyage to lead to Rebecca Clarke. As a student, I had fallen in love with her Viola Sonata and coming back to it I had the chance to fall in love with the piece all over again.

Violas are a staple of the orchestral and chamber-music worlds, but they usually end up playing the harmony - scarcely ever the melody. As a recital instrument, the viola is something of a rarity; rarer by far is a recital of the caliber offered by violist Helen Callus and pianist Rachel Matthews this past weekend.

The viola seldom gets center stage as a solo instrument, but Wednesday night's Seattle Chamber Music Festival recital by Helen Callus demonstrated just how ably a well-played viola can command the spotlight.

Sandwiched between the second fiddles and the deeper strings of the cello and bass, the viola gets the monotonous harmony parts instead of the virtuoso melodies - and the instrument sometimes has been a magnet for less able players.

The BridgeEnsemble built some spectacular bridges last night, with its first concert in the Nordstrom Recital Hall at Benaroya. The best was the musical and emotional connection between the players and their rapt audience, which seemed genuinely moved by the four musicians.

The concert showed how difficult it is to make the viola a star: not because there is anything less expressive or less beautiful about its innate properties than, say, the violin, but because, with its middle register and generally gentler timbre, it tends to land in a background position to brighter or higher instruments.

On Saturday, Nov. 3, UW violist Helen Callus will present a program of music close to her heart. The concert features works it took her four years of research to obtain, works that have in many cases never been performed or published.

The Bridge Ensemble’s performances are always of more than ordinary interest because of their quality and ability to move the listener. Its performance Sunday was no exception.

Helen Callus presents a rare full length viola recital at Town Hall. That often-unsung hero of the orchestra and chamber ensemble – the viola – gets a room of its own tomorrow night.

More than 350 professional and amateur violists from as far away as China, Australia and Europe are converging on Seattle this week.

Helen Callus, UCSB’s new faculty violist, brings the viola center stage.

Helen Callus, British-born but based in America, plays with sumptuous tone matched by flawless intonation to give the most beautiful account I have ever heard of the Walton Concerto.

Helen Callus's (Nov/Dec 2002) recording of the sonata and several other short pieces by Clarke reveals two virtues a soloist must have to become a real artist; an analytical mind and the imagination to express the wisdom gained from analysis.