Zany Denyer, violinist Magdalena Riedl, and cellist Seth Collin

The Havisham Trio – part of this year’s Chamber Music Concert Series , proved Kettle’s Yard concerts to be always unique and intimate. If you get there a bit early you can bag front row seats only 4 feet from the musicians. It’s easy to be completely absorbed when you are so close you can see a bow string snap - or be inspired by the sheer effort and passion of the musicians.

This Trio did not disappoint. They are an award-winning ensemble comprising pianist Zany Denyer, violinist Magdalena Riedl, and cellist Seth Collin. They won the Musicians’ Company Award at Wigmore Hall (2023) and are now part of the Worshipful Company of Musicians’ five-year Young Artist Program. The Kirckman Concert Society chose them as Kirckman Artists for the 2024/25 season, -after the Tunnell Trust picked them for the roster of artists in 2023/24 – among other accolades.

The group also achieved success in numerous international competitions received numerous opportunities for masterclasses and had coaching with esteemed musicians over the past few years, including Petr Prause (Talich Quartet), So-Ock Kim, Takács Quartet, Robert Levin, and the peerless David Waterman (ex-Endellion Quartet) to name a few.

A particular passion of the Havisham lies in the exploration of the rarely performed trios of Bohuslav Martinů. Who he? I hear you ask. Martinu (December 8, 1890 – August 28, 1959) was a Czech Master of Modern classical music. He was a prolific composer who wrote almost 400 pieces - 6 symphonies, 15 operas, 14 ballet scores, and a large body of orchestral, chamber, vocal, and instrumental works. How come he is so little known in Britain ? He was an eccentric with an extraordinary mind who experimented in many styles often incorporating jazz and folk melodies. Owing to the extraordinary volume of Martinů's oeuvre, some critics who never knew the man claimed he composed too much, too fast - and therefore must have been careless in quality. However, to musicians and critics who did know him, he is strongly defended. He was born 193 steps up in the tower of the St. Jakub Church in Polička, a town in Bohemia. His father, Ferdinand, a shoemaker, also worked as the church sexton and town fire watchman.

It was great to be exposed to his work through this young trio. In 2023, Trio Havisham recorded his 1st Piano Trio, Cinq Pièces Brèves, for the Abbey Road Institute. The music is hard to describe, both neo classic but with expressive experimental moments . I thoroughly enjoyed hearing it all and watched the sways and smiles of the players who clearly loved this introduction to their work , during the entire first half of the evening.

After the interval we were treated to Beethoven’s Piano Trio No. 2 in G major, and they finished with more Czech music - Antonin Dvorak Piano Trio No. 3 in F minor. This emotionally charged piece was written shortly after the death of his mother. The Paco is the work’s soulful core – it opens with a lament a duet between the violin and cello suggestive of a final goodbye. It is both powerful and meltingly lovely with its delightful lilting cello.

The Finale - pacey and charged – was an exuberant flourish this evening.

An intriguing footnote: a recent book ‘Art Cure’ by Daisy Fancourt subtitled ‘The Science of how the arts transform our health’ extolls the health benefits of the arts. She reveals how both the creation - and experience of the arts can improve our health, make us happier and even give us longer lives.

What a wonderful way to spend an evening, feeling energized and alive!

Reviewer Eve Waldron