Founded in Switzerland, Trio Archai are rapidly building momentum in their home cities of Basel and London. With extensive chamber music experience between them, Mar Valor (piano), Ayla Sahin (violin) and Finn Mannion (cello) met at the Musik-Akademie Basel and were quick to recognise their distinctive bond as a trio.

As prizewinners of the Orpheus Swiss Chamber Music Competition 2023 and winners of the 72nd Royal Over-Seas League Competition 2024, they made their Wigmore Hall debut in June of the same year. Awarded the Philip and Dorothy Green Young Artist Award (PDGYA) by MakingMusic and winners of Tunnell Trust’s Awards Scheme 2025/2026, they look forward to concerts at festivals and music societies throughout the UK. As an ensemble, the trio dedicate themselves to a broad and diverse repertoire and, in collaboration with the Swiss Arts Council ProHelvetia, were given the opportunity to premiere a commissioned work by composer Dominic Röthlisberger at the Swiss Chamber Music Festival 2024. They look forward to a chamber residency at Sophia Rahman’s Whittington International Festival in May 2025, where they will give the world-premiere of a new composition for piano trio by Jeremy Sans, amongst standard repertoire.

Since 2023, Trio Archai has been studying under Claudio Martínez Mehner at the Musik-Akademie Basel and has worked with esteemed artists such as Patricia Kopatchinskaja, Alexander Lonquich, Robert Levin, Zoltán Fejérvári, Danjulo Ishizaka, and Rainer Schmidt. They are members of ChamberStudio UK, where they are mentored in London by cellist John Myerscough. 

Named after the Spirits of Personality, Archai (pronounced ‘Ark-eye’) is also the plural of the word ‘Arche’, meaning the beginning or the first principle of the world in ancient Greek philosophy. The name was chosen to signify their origins, principles and desires to evolve and make music together. With their roots spread across all corners of Europe, Trio Archai is a miniature melting pot of culture from Scotland, Turkey, Spain, Ireland and Germany. Using this to their advantage, the trio strives to expand their knowledge beyond the standard repertoire and challenge audiences in future performances.