Portrait of the Viola
Available at amazon.com
Link to the Sanctuary Classics click here
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Audio Samples (.mp3)
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Reviews of "Portrait of the Viola" CD (links open full review in new window)
"This superbly stylish recording [shows Helen Callus with] secure technique and a lustrous tone production. her partnership with McDonald is an unbridled success. There’s always flexibility and poetry in abundance, yet concentration never falters; sample the tingling tension which these artists bring to [this recording]. [No previous recording] surpassed this newcomer in terms or sweep or communicative ardour. The sound is vivid and true….a hearty recommendation overall." -Gramophone Magazine
"Helen Callus is a violist of the highest caliber. Among Clarke’s shorter works Morpheus stands out……beautifully interpreted by Callus. McDonald plays impeccably while Callus’ viola sings and lulls with somnolent abandon." -Strings Magazine
"In Helen Callus these composers have found an ideal advocate; herself an alumna of the Royal Academy of Music, she shows a complete empathy with their respective idioms. She has all the fire needed for the more extrovert parts of the Clarke Sonata while never losing a certain reserve that is (or used to be) thought to be considered typically English. her partnership with McDonald is finely honed, with unanimous phrasing and perfect balance." -Strad Magazine
"Helen Callus now gives a startlingly vivid and compelling account….with an energetic and impassioned reading….the dashing scherzo [of the Clarke Sonata] proving the mettle of her partnership with McDonald." -BBC Music Magazine
"Helen Callus is a fine violist with a rich, mellow tone and she and Robert McDonald have excellent timing. A fascinating recording, which will reward your curiosity." -The American Record Guide
"This is a remarkable anthology of music for viola by British women composers. A fascinating recording which will reward your curiosity. bright energetic performances from Helen Callus and Robert McDonald." -Fanfare Magazine
"Helen Callus delivers Rebecca Clarke’s viola sonata with authority and impressive technical command. Throughout the opening she plays with greater abandon and expressive license [than on other recordings]. The scherzo Vivace is very fast indeed but Callus retains full technical control. Callus and her pianist Robert McDonald are entirely convincing [in some of the most awkward sections of the work] and McDonald is superb. It is difficult to imagine any better case being made for the unfamiliar but attractive work by Pamela Harrison." -Classics Today