World-Class Viola Instructors and Coaches
Ann Marie Brink
Violist Ann Marie Brink has performed in solo and chamber music recitals at Carnegie Hall, the Mostly Mozart Festival at Lincoln Center, Aspen Music Festival, Library of Congress, Severance Hall, Rockport Music Festival, Newport Music Festival, Banff Centre for the Arts, Interlochen Center for the Arts, Alice Tully Hall and the Bravo Vail Valley Music Festival, and has been a featured soloist with the Dallas Symphony. An avid chamber musician, Ms. Brink’s performances with the Amernet String Quartet were praised by The New York Times as “an accomplished and intelligent ensemble. Their fine performances were most notable for the quality of unjaded discovery that came through so vividly.”
Ann Marie received her Bachelor of Music with academic honors from the Cleveland Institute of Music and was awarded the Jim Hall prize for achievement and leadership in music. She received her Master of Music from the Juilliard School, where she was awarded the prestigious William Schuman Prize, the single graduate prize given at commencement exercises. Her principal teachers were Karen Tuttle, Heidi Castleman and David Holland, and her chamber music mentors include the Emerson, Juilliard, Cleveland, Orion, and Cavani String Quartets. Ms. Brink has served on the faculties of Baylor University, Southern Methodist University, University of North Texas, Interlochen Arts Camp, Wintergreen Academy, Hot Springs Music Festival, Music in the Mountains Conservatory, Dallas Symphony Young Strings and The Institute for Strings.
In 2019, after performing 20 seasons as Associate Principal Viola of the Dallas Symphony, Ms Brink joined the faculty of DePaul University School of Music in Chicago, serving as Assistant Professor of Viola.
Helen Callus
Hailed as “one of the world’s greatest violists” (American Record Guide), and “one of the foremost violists of her generation” (Fanfare Magazine), Helen Callus continues to captivate audiences with her lyrical tone, technical command, and profound artistry. Sought after as a recitalist, chamber musician, and concerto soloist, Ms. Callus has performed with such world-class ensembles as the Tokyo and Juilliard String Quartets and the BBC Concert Orchestra, and delighted audiences around the world, in Russia, Europe, New Zealand, Australia, Canada, and throughout the US.
Ms. Callus’s career includes distinguished work as an award-winning recording artist. Her seven releases include the works of Walton, Prokofiev, Vaughn Williams, J.S. Bach, Gordon Jacob, and more, and have been met with high critical acclaim. The American Record Guide observed, “Only really great artistry can hold a listener in thrall like that, and that is the artistry of Helen Callus.”
Ms. Callus currently holds the appointment of Professor of Viola at the University of California, Santa Barbara, and has recently accepted an invitation to join the faculty of the prestigious Colburn Young Artists Academy in Los Angeles. Sought after as a visiting professor, she has given over 60 masterclasses at many of the world’s leading schools of music. She also served as the first female President of the American Viola Society.
Born in England, Ms. Callus graduated from London’s Royal Academy of Music and was bestowed an Honorary ARAM for her achievements in the field. She continued her graduate studies at the Peabody Conservatory.
Joan DerHovsepian
Joan DerHovsepian holds the position of Associate Principal Viola of the Houston Symphony Orchestra and is currently serving as Acting Principal. She joined the viola section of the Houston Symphony in 1999, hired by Christoph Eschenbach, and began serving as Associate Principal in the fall of 2010. Ms. DerHovsepian was Principal Viola of the Charleston Symphony Orchestra for two seasons and played in the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra. As a soloist, she has performed the Walton Concerto, Penderecki Concerto, Mozart’s Sinfonia Concertante, Vaughan Williams Suite for Viola and Orchestra, the viola concertos of Telemann, Handel/Casadesus and J. C. Bach, and Wolff’s Italian Serenade for Viola and Chamber Orchestra.
Ms. DerHovsepian is an Artist Teacher of Viola at Rice University’s Shepherd School of Music, instructing students in viola orchestral repertoire and chamber music. She is regular guest faculty for the New World Symphony and has given master classes in the study of orchestral excerpts at the New England Conservatory and for the viola students of the Juilliard School. Students who have come through her orchestral repertoire course have gone on to win positions in the Cincinnati Symphony, Colorado Symphony, Dallas Symphony, Fort Worth Symphony, Houston Symphony, Metropolitan Opera, North Carolina Symphony, Orchestre de la Suisse Romande, Pittsburgh Symphony, Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, San Diego Symphony, Utah Symphony, Washington National Opera, and many other fine ensembles.
Ms. DerHovsepian participates annually at the Mimir Chamber Music Festival, the Grand Teton Music Festival, the National Orchestral Institute, and as Principal Viola of the Peninsula Music Festival. She was the violist of the award winning Everest Quartet, top prize winners at the Banff International String Quartet Competition and the Fischoff Chamber Music Competition. Ms. DerHovsepian was the second prize recipient of the Primrose International Viola Competition. Ms. DerHovsepian holds a Bachelor and Master of Music degrees and the Performer's Certificate from the Eastman School of Music, studying with James Dunham. She also attended the Hochschule fur Musik in Freiburg, Germany, where she studied with violist Kim Kashkashian.
Daphne Gerling
Daphne Gerling enjoys an international career teaching, performing, and writing about the viola. From Amsterdam to Vietnam, and New Zealand to Costa Rica, Daphne’s travels and performances have taken her to 30 universities around the United States, and to 14 countries overseas. In recent years she has been a summer fellow at Lincoln Center Education in New York, and enjoyed performing on baroque viola with the Washington Bach Consort. She has participated in commissioning projects with composers Libby Larsen and Jorge Variego, leading to premieres in Los Angeles, Cremona, and Rome. She is currently assistant professor of viola at the University of North Texas, associate director of the UNT Summer String Institute, and chair of the College of Music’s Graduate Performance Degree Committee. She serves as secretary of the American Viola Society, for whom she edited the blog “From the Studio.”
Her website is www.daphnegerling.com.
Andrew Griffin
Currently, the viola chair for the Broadway musical Ain't Too Proud, Andrew Griffin is an award-winning violist, composer, and orchestrator. He has performed in such diverse settings as Saturday Night Live, Radio City Music Hall, and in the viola section of the Houston Symphony Orchestra. Andrew was also a semifinalist at the 2012 Washington International Competition for Strings.
As an active copyist and editor, his credits include Kidding (Showtime, feat. Jim Carrey); Ride the Cyclone (Off-Broadway); Planet Earth 2 (BBC); Lempicka (Williamstown Theater); Witness Uganda/Invisible Thread (Off-Broadway), and many more. His arrangements, orchestrations, and original compositions have also been performed by notable groups such as Simply Three, Sphinx Virtuosi, the Queens College Orchestra, and Alkali.
Andrew received his bachelor’s degree with honors as a double major from Carnegie Mellon University under Toby Appel (viola BFA) and Nancy Galbraith (composition BFA), and a master’s degree (viola MFA) from Rice University under Ivo-jan van der Werff.
More at andrewgriffinmusic.com
William Johnston
William Johnston is a violist and Licensed Body Mapping Educator. As a teacher, he specializes in making the connection between beautiful movement and beautiful music. William has taught viola at the University of Florida; as a guest artist, Body Mapping instructor, and adjudicator, he has worked with musicians at more than forty institutions including the University of Toronto, Florida State University, the University of Arizona, as well as the American Viola Society Festival. He is the principal violist of The Atlanta Opera and earned his DMA at the Cleveland Institute of Music.
Introduction to Body Mapping for Violists
Your body map is a self-representation in your brain of your body and how it moves. If your map is accurate and sufficiently detailed, congratulations! However if you’re like many of us you might have developed some inaccuracies or gray areas in your map, which can result in movement that is less efficient and may result in pain or musculo-skeletal injuries.
Body Mapping is a powerful tool for identifying and correcting mapping errors in order to improve movement. During this class, you’ll learn about some of the most common mismappings violists have, as well as effective and fun strategies for correcting them.
More at www.williamjohnston.info
Kayleigh Miller
Kayleigh Miller is a violist and movement educator based in Seattle, WA. She is currently a member of the Pacific Northwest Ballet Orchestra and regular extra musician with the Seattle Symphony and Opera. She holds certifications in yoga, Yoga Tune Up, pilates, personal training, and is the founder of the Musicians' Health Collective, a blog aimed at musicians' health. She is additionally the cohost of the podcast Beyond the Practice Room, and a former member of the San Antonio Symphony.
Emily Kriner
Emily Kriner is a professional violinist and a certified holistic health and nutrition coach. Emily earned a Bachelor of Music degree from the Cleveland Institute of Music, with a minor in Psychology and a Master of Music degree from the San Francisco Conservatory of Music.
Emily is a co-founder of the San Francisco based unconducted orchestra, One Found Sound, now in its 8th season. She is also a devoted educator with a private teaching studio and is on faculty at Bow & Heart and at the Lucy Moses School at the Kaufman Music Center in New York City.
As a musician, she saw the deep need for prioritization of health, the mind-body connection, and self-care. She completed yoga teacher training at YogaWorks in San Francisco and then went on to study holistic health and nutrition. Emily graduated from the Institute for Integrative Nutrition where she studied innovative coaching methods, dietary theories, and practical lifestyle management techniques with some of the world’s top health and wellness experts.
Emily is the founder of Emily K. Wellness, health, nutrition, and lifestyle company where she offers personalized health and wellness coaching services to individuals, groups, companies, and organizations. Passionate about optimizing and harmonizing all aspects of wellbeing, Emily works with clients to achieve their ideal vision of total health and happiness.
More at emilykwellness.com
Matthew Lipman
American violist Matthew Lipman has been praised by the New York Times for his “rich tone and elegant phrasing,” and by the Chicago Tribune for a “splendid technique and musical sensitivity.”
Highlights of recent seasons include appearances with the Minnesota Orchestra, BBC Philharmonic, Academy of St Martin in the Fields, and Juilliard Orchestra. Named the 2019 Artist-in-Residence for the American Viola Society, Lipman has additionally been featured on WFMT Chicago’s list “30 Under 30” of the world’s top classical musicians and is a published contributor to The Strad, Strings, and BBC Music magazines.
Lipman is the recipient of a 2015 Avery Fisher Career Grant, a Kovner Fellowship, and the Jack Kent Cooke Award, and is also a major prize winner in the Primrose, Tertis, Washington, Johansen, and Stulberg International Viola Competitions. He studied at The Juilliard School with Heidi Castleman and was further mentored by Tabea Zimmermann at the Kronberg Academy. A native of Chicago and an alum of The Bowers Program (formerly CMS Two), Lipman is on the faculty of Stony Brook University.
Read more at www.matthew-lipman.com
Jaya Varma
Jaya is the founder of ArtistEMPOWERED, an active violinist, and a yoga teacher! She enjoys a freelance career performing with several orchestras and musical groups throughout the United States.
Past performances have taken her to elite concert venues including Carnegie Hall, The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, and Miami’s Arsht Center. Along with her classical music pursuits, Jaya is committed to performing in diverse styles and genres. She has played with world renowned artists including Gloria Estefan, Michael Buble, Andrea Bocelli, Michael Bolton, 2Cellos, Ben Folds, Chick Corea, Bobby McFerrin, Mark O’Connor, and Terrence Blanchard.
Jaya completed her Doctoral studies at the University of Miami and holds previous degrees from the University of Michigan and Duquesne University.
Dawson White
Dawson White is a violist whose musical career is centered around positive change, with special focus on connecting with audiences through the development of authentic sound and creative business mindsets in artists. These values have led to performances from Walt Disney Hall to Carnegie Hall and resident viola positions in the Houston Grand Opera/Ballet orchestras and the University of St. Thomas (Houston).
Entrepreneurial in spirit, Dawson has been involved in the genesis of many artistic pursuits including the formation of the Cypress Symphony, Axiom Quartet, New Art/New Music concert series, and the Houston Viola Society. He served as (co-)founder, board member, curriculum developer and obtained 501(c)3 non-profit and trademarking status in several instances. White has been invited to speak about the art of entrepreneurship at Rice, Baylor and Northwestern Universities, he contributed to the Journal of the American Viola Society and later received a nomination to serve on its’ Board of Directors.
More at dawsonwhiteviola.com.