Brant Taylor, a cellist in the CSO and a member of the music faculty at DePaul, played a Cal cello and said he could think of few other new instruments that could match its sound, at any price.

Culture Leonardo da Vinci piano hybrid heard after 500 years The viola organista combines keyboard and cello in a unique string sound dreamed up by the Renaissance genius.

This double bassist realised that with the right bow, the Bach Cello Suites could sound beautifully natural on the double bass.

My eldest brother is a very good viola player and his string quartet used to rehearse at our house. I was drawn to the sound of the cello. Do you play any other instruments?

Add an additional viola and cello to the standard line-up of a string quartet and the textures are given extra depth and that golden warmth that suffuses so much of his music.