Helena Burns
About
Violist
Helena Burns is a Brisbane-born violist and will undertake her second year at the Australian National Academy of Music (ANAM) in 2025 under the tutelage of Caroline Henbest. She also had the privilege and joy of studying with the wonderful Professor Patricia Pollett in both her Bachelor of Music (Honours) and Master of Philosophy degrees at the University of Queensland (UQ).
Helena is an avid orchestral musician who frequently performs in her hometown of Brisbane and throughout Australia. Helena performed with Camerata – Queensland’s Chamber Orchestra on several occasions throughout 2023 as an Upbeat Artist. As part of this program, she performed in several subscription series concerts at QPAC and Toowoomba’s Armitage Theatre, the Orange Chamber Music Festival, alongside the Queensland Ballet and features on Camerata’s studio recording of Tchaikovsky’s Serenade for Strings. In 2024, she also performed alongside the West Australian Symphony Orchestra (WASO) and the Auckland Philharmonia (APO) as part of the ANAM side-by-side programs.
In addition to orchestral performance, Helena enjoys performing as a chamber musician. Helena is a founding member of the Amiti String Quartet, an ensemble that has been increasingly active on the Australian music scene in recent years. Amiti recently took part in the 2024 AYO Chamber Players program, where they received tutoring from the Orava String Quartet and also recorded new works by emerging Australian composers. These include “The Colour of Time” by Abigail Lui as part of ABC Classic’s 2024 composing commissioning fund and Ollie Muller’s “Kinetic,” with both works set to be released in 2025.
Helena has also been a member of AYO since 2019, with highlights including the 2022 National Tour under the baton of Sir Mark Elder and Ngapa William Cooper with Nigel Westlake, Lior and Dr Lou Bennet in 2023. She is excited to continue her AYO journey in 2025 by taking part in the Summer Season and International Tour.
Photography: Pia Johnson