AVA Trio

"In a neo-primitive vein, the Netherlands’ Ava Trio took a slinky Mediterranean tour, using bagpipes in a creative, unclichéd manner" Downbeat Magazine 

"A wise look, full of tenderness and sensitivity, into the musical wilderness of the Mediterranean; a story that combines traditional instruments with contemporary ones, expressed in the language of modern improvisation, with respect, vision and freshness." JazzKultura - Radio Warsaw

“Wondrously the listeners were able to experience two sets in which rhythm became noise, noise became melody and melody became rhythm. The tonal possibilities of the instruments were meticulously researched. ” Wiesenbacher Woche Magazine 

"While a folkloric influence initially dominated the music, which was otherwise heavily influenced by improvisation, this increasingly gave way to a freer interpretation and a vibrant, rousing sound. While Doronzo let his heavy instrument utter angry screams, the bass of the Dutchman of Turkish origin began to sing longingly in the high register, danced around by magical Mediterranean-style rhythms. You have to remember the trio." Mittelbayerische Zeitung

"Their Saturday night concert has become one of the most entertaining events of the year. At the end of the concert, everyone stood up dizzy. How could we have prepared for a two-hour Mediterranean cruise? It exceeded all expectations." JazzMa Magazine, HU 

The AVA Trio is an extraordinary musical phenomenon conceptually rooted in the Mediterranean basin, exploring its sonic heritage through both historical and contemporary perspectives. The trio consists of Giuseppe Doronzo (baritone sax, bagpipes, flutes), Esat Ekincioğlu (double bass, percussion), and Pino Basile (frame drum, tambourine, cupaphon), whose wild arrangements weave together diverse geographies and forgotten pasts. With a vast range of expertise, their musical practice could be described as an archaeological-musicological exploration, blending ethno-music, folklore, and free experimentation with the logic of jazz. Landscapes, valleys, historic town squares, bazaars, and urban panoramas of imagined or surreal places all become part of an enchanting narrative where the sounds of the past blend with timeless sensitivities of the past, the present, and the future.

With 5 critically acclaimed albums and over 180 shows in 20 countries, AVA Trio celebrated their 10th anniversary in 2025.

AVA Trio’s successful debut release Music from an Imaginary Land in 2017 has placed the band on “Best Debut Album” picks for National Public Radio (NPR), All About Jazz and El Intruso International Jazz Critic Pool. The band has toured extensively across Europe and China, taking part in Jazzahead, Varna Jazz Festival, Ankara Jazz Festival, ZomerJazzFietsTour, Barletta Jazz Festival, OCT-Loft Shenzhen Jazz Festival, XiHu Blooms Music Festival, Shanghai World Music Festival, Todo Mundo Fest Belgrade, to name a few.

Giuseppe Doronzo - baritone saxophone

Esat Ekincioglu - double bass

Pino Basile - percussions

The Great Green (Tora Records) - 2024

AVA Trio takes you back to Ancient Greece; a time where the colour ‘blue’ did not exist. Were the Greeks not able to see blue? Every day, our nameless hero, a simple fisherman, looks at 'The Great Green’, as they used to call the Mediterranean Sea. Surely, its colour is not the same as the verdant hues of the trees and leaves, or is it? Employing all five senses, he begins his quest for the truth.

"This work preserves the original spirit of jazz, but at the same time it represents a refined example of musical archeology that makes you breathe the air of a buried past - it will certainly leave its mark on the evolution of Mediterranean-style world music" BlogFoolk, IT

"With every listen you discover something new. The album is compelling as a mesmerizing adventure, told in many scents and colors, which you can enjoy (literally) without limits. Grand!" Subjectivisten.nl

"This quest takes us into a journey of sounds and melodies and rhythms that move and meander offering to the listeners unexpected glimpses of musical brilliance. A meaningful record." Freejazzblog

"AVA Trio combines traditional musical craftsmanship with the free spirit of modernity." KrautNick Magazine, DE

"The Great Green is full of uplifting energy and the trio ornaments the exotic stories with passionate spirit and intoxicating, dance-like rhythmic patterns. AVA Trio respects the musical traditions of the Mediterranean but on its quest of archeo-musicology has a great sense of liberating and playful freedom." Salt Peanuts, NO

Click here to order the Vinyl and Cd on Tora Records

Ash (Tora Records) - 2023

AVA Trio embarks on an archeo-musicological quest  to the ancient cities of Pompeii and Knossos - buried under volcanic ash.  We witness the moments before the volcanic explosion through the perspective of Master Scourus - a prosperous garum-maker in Pompeii and a mysterious priestess of the forgotten Minoan Empire.

“Over two eventful tracks totaling 20 minutes, the trio create magical, evocative sounds that mix ancient and modern.” The Wire - Andy Hamilton

"It's like listening to an audiobook without text."  Kraut Nick Magazine (DE)

"Special EP by this international trio. Immediately the extraordinary group sound jumps into the ear. It's not only fascinating, it also hides a deep emotionality" Trouw (NL)

"The listener quite quickly falls into jaktations, in constant bending of the body, as happens with the Sufis in their rituals." Jazzhalo (BE)

"These musical archaeologists really bring out the best in music history, under which you like to let yourself be buried. Timeless splendor!" Subjectivisten.nl

"Radical and saturated with some kind of mystical atmosphere" JazzQuad (RU)

“a remote pulse evolving between legend and reality, research and contemporary cultural awareness” Percorsi Musicali, IT

"... Their outstanding performance is overwhelmingly thrilling. Actively based in the Netherlands, where innovative performers gather, Ava Trio can be said to be the most fascinating jazz trio that deserves attention." Musica Terra (2023, Japan)

"an extraordinary experience for even the most demanding jazz or progressive lover...the listener is hit with hope." his VOICE Magazine (CZ)

"Like the Mediterranean region itself, “Digging the Sand” is an array of ethnic sounds, full of dichotomies; melancholy and intensity, exotic yet grounded in fundamentals of Western and non-Western music. It is immersed in dreams, mystery, and melancholy but with moments of intensity that suggest whirling dervishes."   All About Jazz 4/5* -(Karl Ackerman)

"The flowing, modally sprung and atmospherically rich Digging The Sand can only enhance the reputations of three improvisers of refreshingly literate cross-genre experience" Jazz Journal, UK 4/5*

“Between dream and melancholy, mystery and light, with varying intensity, the members of the trio install an eminently personal aesthetic... Full of finesse and melodic ideas, this album awakens the senses and is a real listening pleasure.” Culturejazz.fr

“Whether you call this jazz, Balkan or Middle Eastern music – it’s really all of the above – it’s one of the most delightful albums of recent months.” New York Music Daily, USA

"Digging The Sand explores a variety of moods, features close interplay between the three players, and is both subtle and colorful. The accessible yet explorative music is well worth hearing several times." Scott Yanow, USA

"...world jazz genre and ancient folk, giving it a slightly avant-garde sense... incantatory Eastern spells throughout, brought by ritualistic rhythms and the intervallic exoticism of specific scales" Jazztrail, USA