Press
La Mer (Chandos Records, 2025)
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"Top 5 Classical Releases to Hear This Week" - June 2025
Gramophone - June 2025
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“Closing out the album is Debussy’s La Mer with an arrangement by Sally Beamish. This is one of the most performed works by orchestras. Her arrangement works on so many levels. There’s no way three instruments can accomplish everything an orchestra can, but you don’t miss the orchestra in this arrangement – particularly as played here.”
“La Mer, the album, features truly amazing musicianship at the highest level. This is an album I will be returning to for years to come.”
Craig Byrd - Cultural Attaché - June 2025
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“expansive, beguiling and unexpected”
Three French works make a disparate but rounded programme on this release from the Neave Trio. Saint-Saëns took years to write his Trio No 2, and the result was a sprawling five-movement work that gets an appropriately wide-ranging and meaty performance here. The first movement roils and surges, the players catching both the push and pull of the restless theme and the brief passage of stillness later on. The slow third movement sings with wistful nostalgia, and the fourth flows by in a waltz-like whirl pitched somewhere between Chopin and DvoÅ™ák. But the second movement, with its obsessively repeated rhythmic motif, perhaps needs a little more imagination to make it work.
The two movements of Mel Bonis’s Soir et Matin, written in 1907, are the opposite way round in atmosphere from how you might expect: Soir (Evening) is soulful, expansive and melodic; Matin (Morning) altogether more strange, impressionistic and beguiling. Finally, there’s something unexpected on a chamber music recital: Debussy’s painterly orchestral showpiece La Mer. Rendering the orchestra’s highly textured writing for a chamber group is no easy task but this version, made by the composer Sally Beamish in 2013, is imaginative and beautifully judged, emerging more like a new work in its own right than a mere arrangement.”
****
The Guardian - June 2025
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"A winning programme from the Neave Trio"​
"...a hair's width of abandon here separates it from other-worldlines [Saint-Saens]... There's a fun folksiness to the
waltz-like penultimate movement and the fugue in the finale is full of light and brilliance.
"The performance is beguiling [Mel Bonis]"
"The orchestral conception is unmistakable [Debussy arr. Beamish] yet there are many small revelations of detail, a
sharper articulation here, a newly revealed ostinato there. The playing is as idiomatic as it is beguiling."
The Strad - June 2025
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“ At the very least, a musical and instrumental tour-de-force!”
*****
Audiophile Audition - June 2025
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Rooted (Chandos Records, 2024)
***** Coup de Coeur
Fabienne Bouvet – Classica magazine – October 2024
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“… A collection well worth experiencing.”
Peter J Rabinowitz – Gramophone magazine – September 2024
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CD Release of the Week
Kevin Filipski - flipdiereviews.blogspot.com - September 2024
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Performance **** Recording *****
“… a characteristically eclectic mix that nurtures the Neaves’ well-upholstered warmth, attention to detail and compelling rapport…”
Paul Riley – BBC Music magazine – September 2024
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Recording of the Month
“…Beautifully recorded with presence and depth, this is a peach of an album.” ****½
Clive Paget – Limelight-arts.com – August 2024
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Recommended
“…The Neave Trio have delivered a truly magical disc with four of the loveliest of trios. I especially found Smetana’s work a fantastic listen. Its emotional content manifests itself most effectively. What with the crisp sound, this is a disc to savour.”
Steve Arloff – Musicwebinternational.com – August 2024
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“A typically unorthodox programme from an exploratory trio … Each player gets a chance to shine on the disc, and the engineering is first-rate.”
Edward Bhesania – The Strad – August 2024
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“…The Neave Trio radiates perfect unity, effortlessly and gracefully conveying the bohemian rhythmic and melodic elements that earned him [Smetana] the title of father of Czech music in his native Bohemia. The final movement, featuring its melancholic funeral march, captivates listeners, and this album is worth owning solely for Neave's rendition of this particular piece… A beautiful album.”
Andrew Palmer – Yorkshire Times – July 2024
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“…these four chamber works explore music of a definitive national identity … The members of the ensemble – Anna Williams, violin; Mikhail Veselov, cello; Eri Nakamura, piano – brandish their considerable skills in the service of otherwise neglected composers and scores, with astonishing brilliance in their recorded sound, courtesy of Recording Producer Jonathan Cooper…” *****
Gary Lemco – Audiophileaudition.com – June 2024
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A Room of Her Own (Chandos Records, 2024)
Nominated in Chamber Category
ICMA 2025 Nomination
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Interpretation **** Sound Quality **** Repertoire Value ***** Booklet ****
“…these piano trios performed by the Neave Trio definitely represent an enrichment of the repertoire.”
Michael Loos – Klassik.com – August 2024
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“Anthologies of female composers have crossed my desk often in the past few years, and this one is possibly the most satisfying of the lot. Each selection is a youthful composition, reflecting these artists as they reach maturity… the high-level musicianship and variety of styles makes this more than the sum of its parts.
John Dutterer – American Record Guide – July/August 2024
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Performance ****½ Sonics ****½
Jason Victor Serinus – stereophile.com – April 2024
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“…The Neave Trio is, as always, in top form and is to be commended for bringing these rarely heard gems to light is such stellar performances.”
David Olds - thewholenote.com – April 2024
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“A handful of unfailingly accomplished, virtually unknown trios, in handsome performances and ideal sound”
Richard Hanlon – Musiwebinternational.com – April 2024
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“… The Neave’s way with [the Smyth] is expansive, with an attractive warmth of tone in the interlocking string phrases of the outer movements and playing at once weighty and admirably restrained from pianist Eri Nakamura …”
Tim Ashley – Gramophone magazine – April 2024
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“…Everything here is played with unmannered expression, wit, vivacity and passionate lyricism without heavily laden extravagant gestures and the recording captures the warmth of the trio’s sound marvellously. I am delighted to get to know the Chaminade and the discover the albeit early writing of Ethel Smyth who has previously been pretty much a name in a dictionary but everything here is worthy of the attention and commitment that the Neave trio bring to the task.”
Rob Challinor – Musicwebinternational.com – March 2024
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Performance ***** Recording *****
“… the four works by Chaminade, Tailleferre, Smyth and Lili Boulanger are well chosen, both for themselves and for the way they work with and against each other… Throughout, the string tone is the most beautiful I’ve heard in a long time.”
Roger Nichols – BBC Music magazine – April 2024
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“… the case for all four composers is strengthened by these illustrious performances: the Neave Trio delivers perceptively characterised interpretations that are by turns individual and blended, supported by a pleasingly warm recording…”
Joanne Talbot – The Strad – April 2024
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"The Neave Trio chamber ensemble brings each vividly to life, but reserve the most imposing work to last. Ethel Smyth’s Piano Trio in D Minor (1880) invokes her youthful connections to Brahms in a weighty and well-argued score that foreshadows the strength of the major scores of her maturity. Taken together, these four composers make a rewarding quartet.” ****
The Financial Times – February 2024
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“… the Neave Trio is very present and committed, illuminating this composition [Smyth: Trio] with devotion…” *****
Uwe Krusch – Pizzicato.lu – February 2024
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“..a richly rewarding disc.” ****
Dan Cairns – The Sunday Times (Culture magazine) – January 2024
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“…These chamber works are still not in the mainstream. The Neave Trio … put their case eloquently.”
Fiona Maddocks – The Guardian – January 2024
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Musical Remembrances (Chandos Records, 2022)
GRAMMY Nominated
Nominated in Small Ensemble/Chamber Music Category​
GRAMMY Awards, 2023
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“...the Neave’s interplay [on Musical Remembrances] leave us with fine, passionate, and expressive playing.”
“The Neave Trio has emerged as one of the finest young ensembles of its generation[.]”
– North East Post
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[Musical Remembrances is] a well rounded trio of trios that even well seasoned chamber music enthusiasts could enjoy. Even those interested in getting acquainted with chamber music would find much to enjoy here, as each work casts a differing perspective on the genre, and the Neave Trio are excellent proponents of all three.”
– Classical Music Sentinel
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“The Neave offers a fine, intelligently paced interpretation, with many lovely touches.”
"The Neave captures the Romantic longing in the score without overdoing it, making its mark . . . by stirring musicality."
“[Musical Remembrances is] a satisfyingly meaty album.”
“[T]he expressive alchemy among the players”
– Wall Street Journal
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“The music making of [The Neave Trio] is sterling.”
“Consonant, precise, incisive, heartfelt, stylistically beyond reproach, [Neave Trio’s] take on the exoticism of Ravel, the romanticism of Rachmaninoff, and the emotive nobility of Brahms, is peerless.”
“Throughout well over an hour of exemplarily superb playing, the Neave Trio makes a memorable impression in its exploration of the nature of memory, in Musical Remembrances.”
– All About the Arts: Music for All Seasons in Cincinnati
“executed with seamless ensemble.”
“[W]hat Brahms and the Neave Trio leave us remains a combination of sun and darkness, brilliantly fashioned into a resounding work of art.”
“[T]he excursion by the Neave Trio among the contours of the Ravel universe feels unworldly.”
“sweeping gestures and poignant, dramatic periods in various colors…”
“This recording comes highly recommended”
(5 stars)
– Audiophile Audition
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Her Voice (Chandos Records, 2019)
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“What excellent performances this trio gives here of works that deserve them”
— The New York Times, featured on "The 25 Best Classical Music Tracks of 2019”
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“a splendid introduction to these three pioneering female composers.”
– Gramophone
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Feature: BBC Radio 3, Best of 2019
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Feature: BBC Radio 3, Key Recordings to Buy or Stream
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“distinctive and distinguished chamber works”
— The Guardian
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“The Neave Trio, playing superbly, offer three impressive piano trios by women.”
— The Times UK
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“sumptuously recorded” ... “a taut and vivid interpretation” [Clarke]
— Gramophone
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"Neave Trio has stirred excitement from the start" ... "Part of the reason for the group's success lies in its innovative programming" ... "Highly recommended."
— AllMusic
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“Her trio opens the disc, crackling with energy and joie de vivre, and in the capable hands of the Neave players Farrenc’s poised and elegant writing shimmers.” ... “The tone is set from its first astringent chords, and the Neave players delight in Clarke’s desolate, post-Romantic melodies, thrilling to her extremes of light and shade.” ... “The dreamy cello melody of the opening Allegro - luxuriously played by Mikhail Veselov - blooms into tender interplay between the strings. Violinist Anna Williams echoes Veselov’s delicate touch, underpinned by eminently sensitive pianism from Eri Nakamura. It’s a finely etched and persuasive performance…” [Beach]
— The Strad
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“I was spellbound by the generous and warm-hearted, utterly beguiling playing of Beach’s Trio … There is much to enjoy in this attractive recital, which opens with a trio by Farrenc … This substantial and formally ambitious work is well-served in this gutsy, energetic performance … The highlight of the recital is Clarke’s Trio. This shows enormous stylistic variety, from great pathos to playful mischievousness to exuberant virtuosity, and the Neave Trio help us enjoy every moment of it … the pleasure of this recital is its sheer breadth of inspiration.”
— BBC Music Magazine
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"The playing is spectacular, per usual for the Neave Trio, and the opportunity to familiarize yourself with some brilliant compositions by three marginalized composers is simply not to be missed."
-Classical WCRB, Boston "Out of the Box"
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“The Neave Trio combines a seamless technique, a measured tenderness, and perfect accord as an ensemble.”
— Classique HD
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"Shine is ... a fitting term for this performance, especially by pianist Eri Nakamura, who is aided by a glorious recording of her excellent Steinway D [Farrenc] ... Piano, violin, and cello are ... ideally integrated, sounding almost as one [Beach] ... This is a marvelous program, ideally planned and executed. I cannot remember a piano trio record which has given me more pleasure."
— Fanfare Magazine
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“Three 19th century obscure Romantic gems by three lesser-known yet highly gifted female composers flawlessly and feelingly played by Anna Wiliams, violin, Mikhail Veselov, cello and Eri Nakamura, piano.”
— Rafael's Music Notes
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Celebrating Piazzolla (Azica Records, 2018)
"It’s not necessary to slavishly imitate Piazzolla in order to do justice to his music, of course. The Neave Trio play José Bragato’s arrangement of the well-known Primavera porteña (the first of Piazzolla’s Four Seasons) significantly faster than Piazzolla himself, but how thrilling it is ... Verano porteño is similarly electrifying, and I like how in Otoño porteño the Neave seem to be trying to project a bigger, more symphonic sound. It’s stylistically appropriate too ..."
— Gramophone
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“A radiant, bright young trio whose repertoire risks pay off in spades … a captivating and sensitive performance that maintains a delicacy of touch without sacrificing any of the work’s passion. Another thought-provoking program from this young trio, recorded with a lovely presence and very good balance between instruments.”
— Limelight Magazine
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"This was a remarkably well-done album. The excellent sound quality, the collaboration with musicians familiar with Astor Piazzolla, and the excellent technique by all musicians involved speaks well of this young ensemble. Bravo!"
— Audiophile Audition
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"Celebrating Piazzolla, the latest offering from the Neave Trio, is every bit as spirited as I anticipated. The violin, cello, and piano format suits the composer’s beautiful and distinguished Argentinian tangos nuevos, four of which open the album in arrangements by José Bragato, a cellist and composer and onetime colleague of Astor Piazzolla’s. Presented as a suite, “Las cuatro estaciones porteños” encompass the wide emotional range the music suggests – plucky, anxious, romantic, melancholy. Together the three musicians craft the feel of a much larger band. Violinist Anna Williams and cellist Mikhail Veselov take turns evoking the bandoneón through a combination of technique and imaginative force. Pianist Eri Nakamura summons orchestral depth, by turns dark and brilliant, from the keys."
— BlogCritics
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"These works of French style are woven by the American 'Neave Trio' with relaxed elegance. The name of the trio is derived from a Gaelic name, which means 'radiant' or 'joyfully radiant'. In this way they breathe charming life into these three works, a treat for the ears. Their interaction is excellent and the recording captures the musicians' well-balanced sound that unfolds freely...In an all-French program, the American Neave trio attractively underlines the lightness and the elegance of the music. Superb performances, truly recommendable!"
— Pizzicato​
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"The Neave’s make fiery work of José Bragato’s arrangement of Piazzolla’s Las cuatro estaciones porteñas, a set of four “portraits” of Buenos Aires that correspond to each of the year’s season. “Primavera Porteña,” with its biting rhythms and slashing accents, draws torrid playing from violinist Anna Williams, in particular. The second movement, “Verano Porteño,” receives a swooning, sultry reading from the group, while cellist Mikhail Veselov makes scorching work of his solos in “Otoño Porteño.” A glowing nostalgia informs the lush finale, “Invierno Porteño."
"it should come as no surprise that the ensemble plays with character and panache. How well their approach translates to the passionate world of the Argentine tango, though, may come as a bit of a shock … as in, you might be astonished that they didn’t get their collective start in one of Astor Piazzolla’s quintets a thoroughly delightful, engaging album."
— The ArtsFuse
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"Neave Trio Does Astor Piazzolla Proud: "the music-making of the Neave Piano Trio performing arrangements of works by Astor Piazzolla is top-notch ... the energetic edginess, the snap, the rhythm of their arrangement of Las cuatro estaciones porteñas sound convincing, totally invigorating, and, for lack of a better cliché, authentic ... Carla Jablonski’s vocals enrich the next six tracks"
— Classics Today
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"Best Classical CDs of 2018: "Nearly every measure Piazzolla wrote has inviting atmospheres and sensual appeal ... Highly recommended recording, both for the compositions and the committed playing."
— Wicked Local
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"The Neave Trio is to be congratulated for their passionate fresh ideas of ensemble and instrumental performance. Their expertise in sound creation, playing and improvising create a new way to hear Piazzolla’s work."
— The WholeNote​
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Feature: "Anna Williams, Neave Trio Celebrate Piazzolla, Open Window Into Chamber Music"
—Classical Post
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Feature: "Fifteen Questions Interview with the Neave Trio"
— Fifteen Questions
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French Moments (Chandos Records, 2018)
"Following their 2016 release American Moments, featuring music of Foote, Korngold and Bernstein, the Neave Trio returns with an enchanting new disc entitled French Moments – Fauré, Debussy, Roussel...The Neave Trio is in fine form throughout, obviously thoroughly at home in this repertoire. It is easy to see why they continue to receive glowing praise wherever they perform. As part of its mission to “create new pathways for classical music and engage a wider audience,” the Neave Trio champions new works and frequently collaborates with artists of all mediums, participating in multiple award-winning productions with dance companies and filmmakers. Evidently “Neave” is a Gaelic name meaning “bright” and “radiant” – an apt moniker for this shining ensemble."
— The Whole Note
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“Passion, vibrancy and a riot of colours characterise the Neave Trio's disc for Chandos. French Moments … sees the ensemble bringing eloquent phrasing and deft control of textures to works by Fauré, Debussy and Roussel.”
— The Strad​
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"The performances balance passion with sensitivity and grace."
— BBC Music Magazine
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"[Fauré's Piano Trio] is scrupulously played and emotionally reined in . . . Debussy is all sparking elegance and wit . . .the slow movement [of Roussel's Piano Trio], with its closely woven string counterpoint over insistent piano chords, has a dark intensity and is most beautifully done."
— Gramophone
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"What they’ve got here, on their second Chandos album, is wonderful ... Debussy’s G-major Trio is the disc’s centerpiece and is played with a delicate touch ... they freely dig into [Roussel's] lyrical extremes, making vivid work of the stirring opening movement and delivering a haunting, introspective reading of the second ... there’s plenty of drama to be found in the Neave’s performance ... a fresh, enticingly-played release, highly recommended."
— The ArtsFuse
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"The Best New Recordings of 2018 (So Far) . . . The up-and-coming Neave Trio makes a compelling case for these lesser-known piano trios by Roussel, Debussy and Fauré, coloring them with exquisite phrasing and delicate touch."
— WQXR Radio, New York
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"the players find what's important and stirring in the music . . . The Debussy Piano Trio No. 1 in G major . . . is given an entirely appropriate brisk, slightly brash performance . . . this album will satisfyingly fill many an empty space in collections of French music."
— AllMusic
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“RECORDING OF THE MONTH . . . All three of these very gifted players have such manifest commitment to, and love of, the music they perform . . This is a superb disc."
— MusicWeb International
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“The three piano trios offered by the Neave Trio . . . provide perfect vehicles to justify the etymology of the ensemble’s chosen title, since ‘Neave’ derives from the Gaelic designation for ‘bright’ and ‘radiant’ . . . The Neave Trio has imbued this rare chamber work with a sonic luster elegant and refined."
— Audiophile Audition
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“These are such talented musicians, and they've put together another fascinating CD program . . . This is powerful, moving music, played with great sentiment but also grace and finesse.”
— Music for Several Instruments
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Feature: "Violinist Anna Marie Williams of the Neave Trio on Roussel’s Piano Trio"
—Strings Magazine
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American Moments (Chandos Records, 2016)
"The Neave Trio does a fine job with this music. The playing is precise and the trio is clearly committed . . . I enjoyed my time listening to this disk, and all of the music was refreshingly new"
— Audiophile Audition
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"a delight . . . persuasive and well recorded"
– MusicWeb International
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“Passion, vibrancy and a riot of colours”
– The Strad
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"The performances balance passion with sensitivity and grace."
— BBC Music Magazine
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"NEAVE is actually a Gaelic name meaning ‘bright’ and ‘radiant,’ both of which certainly apply to this trio’s music making.”
— WQXR Radio, NYC
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“A radiant, bright young trio whose repertoire risks pay off in spades.”
– Limelight Magazine
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“Neave Trio gave a beautifully shaped performance of Astor Piazzolla’s Four Seasons of Buenos Aires as arranged by José Bragato, the cellist in Piazzolla’s tango quintet, for which it was written.”
— The Wall Street Journal
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“Their unanimity, communication, variety of touch, and expressive sensibility rate first tier.”
– The Boston Musical Intelligencer
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“I was spellbound by the generous and warm-hearted, utterly beguiling playing..."
— BBC Music Magazine
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"A piano trio of maturity, subtlety and substance . . . bright and radiant and, indeed, lively and entertaining."
— Planet Hugill
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"Electric energy and easy virtuosity . . . With persistent flair, the musicians brought out the complex textures, jazzy rhythms, and moody drama of all three works on the program. Their name may be Gaelic, but they are young masters of both the classic and the modern 'American' modes … An assured performance replete with snappy rhythms and tasteful dynamics . . . a very pleasing listen, and an enlightening introduction to some seldom-heard but very worthwhile music by composers born in, or who made a strong mark in, the United States."
—Blogcritics
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"The title of the ensemble comes from a Gaelic name and translates to 'bright' or 'radiant.' The certainly lived up that description in their vigorous performance ... featuring high energy works by Faure, Foote and Piazzolla."
— Hardwick Gazette
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"Neave performance brought their heightened, characteristic expressiveness .... The Trio played with intimate unity."
— The Millbrook Independent
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"My introduction to the Neave Trio was a revelation."
— SDNews
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"the ensemble’s balance was on point through the entire concert ... polished and energetic"
– Palm Beach Arts Paper
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"The ensemble displayed beautiful tone, precise synchronization and remarkable balance ... A consummate ensemble."
– Palm Beach Daily News
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Backstage Pass with the Neave Trio
WXXI Classical 91.5
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