Levansa Trio

Uncompromising music, terrifically played.

This album encompasses four of the Eastern European musical masterpieces for Piano Trio that emerged from the maelstrom of the 20th century.

It begins with a work by a Czech exiled in America, desperately missing his homeland. Then we have the young student of Shostakovich, caught in the siege of Leningrad, writing a trio masterpiece that has only recently become known in the West. Thirdly, we have the inventor of a completely new style of music, toiling away in obscurity in Estonia until the fall of the Berlin Wall. And finally, the most eminent Russian compser of the late twentieth century, who fell in love with Vienna and fled Moscow as soon as he could.

Lev Sivkov has won numerous awards, most notably in 2015 when he won the prestigious Naumburg International Cello Competition, described by the New York Times as "the most prestigious of them all."

He played his debut recital in the Weill Music Room, Carnegie Hall, in 2016. Since then he has been in demand as a recitalist and soloist and has also been appointed as Principal Cellist of the Zürich Opera.

Violinist Andrew Beer has come to New Zealand from L'Orchestre Symphonique de Montréal. His recent recital and chamber music appearances include Edinburgh Festival, Aspen Festival and Weill Recital Hall, Carnegie Hall.

Sarah Watkins, well known as a member of NZTrio, has been described as a 'national treasure'. She has enjoyed an impressive career as chamber musician, collaborative partner and recording artist.