Atlas Trio

Programme TBC:

Márton Illés

- In Nomine VI.

Cyril Scott

- Trio for Clarinet, Cello, and Piano

Atlas Trio

Instagram: atlas.trio

Established in 2025, the Atlas Trio is a clarinet trio formed by clarinettist Connor Hargreaves, cellist Nok Him Chan, and pianist Sophia Lim in London. The trio came together through a shared advocacy for new music, dedicated to performing music that bridges early classical traditions up to the present.

The ensemble takes its name from the idea of an "atlas," reflecting its ambition to explore and connect musical traditions from around the world through the unique sound of the clarinet trio. This global perspective informs their programming, while bringing new attention to repertoireunder the radar.

Rooted in London's vibrant new-music scene, the trio brings fresh, diverse, and adventurous repertoire to audiences across the UK and beyond. Through concerts, collaborations, they continue to promote the clarinet trio, contributing to the evolution of chamber music while reconnecting audiences with its rich heritage.

Connor Hargreaves (clarinet)

British clarinettist and bass clarinettist Connor Hargreaves recently graduated with a first class in his Bachelor of Music with Honours degree from the Royal College of Music (RCM), where he is now studying for his Master of Performance degree, studying with Tim Lines, Richard Hosford, Marie Lloyd, and Peter Sparks.

A Headley Trust Scholar and supported by the Friends of East Suffolk Foundation, Connor previously studied at Sir John Leman High School and Sixth Form, and was a member of Aldeburgh Young Musicians and the Suffolk Youth Orchestra.

Connor has performed with ensembles including the Covent Garden Sinfonia, English National Opera, Albion Orchestra, and the RCM Symphony and Philharmonic Orchestras, and is principal clarinettist of the Young Musicians Symphony Orchestra. He has worked with esteemed conductors such as Vasily Petrenko, Martyn Brabbins, and Joana Carneiro, and for the 2024/25 year, he won a place on the English National Opera Evolve Scheme.

An advocate for contemporary music, Connor has performed works by Thomas Adès, Harrison Birtwistle, George Lewis, and Georg Friedrich Haas to name a few. Highlights include the London premiere of Gerardo Gozzi’s The Underwater Life of a Bass Clarinet in 2023, and performances of Lewis’ Assemblage and Hexis during the composer’s RCM residency in 2025. Connor made his concerto debut in 2022 with Rietz’s Clarinet Concerto and enjoys a varied career as a soloist, chamber musician, and orchestral performer. Alongside his performing, he manages the Albion Orchestra, promoting British music, and is active in teaching and community music-making.

Nok Him Chan (cello)

Nok Him Chan is currently pursuing a Master's in Performance at the Royal College of Music, and was a graduate of the Royal College of Music Bachelor’s in Music with first class honours, studying joint-principles cello and composition. Chan frequently appears as a principal of orchestras and participated in the Lucerne Festival Academy 2024.

He was invited to perform at 11 Downing Street in 2024. Chan frequently performs recitals and has appeared as a soloist several times with the Hong Kong Children’s Symphony Orchestra, which he has toured in the United States, Malaysia, and Taiwan. He founded the New Light Duo with harpist Ian Lim and was a semi-finalist in Belgium's Big Little Music Competition.

Chan was highly commended in the Royal College of Music Cello Competition 2024, a Noel-Croucher Scholar and an RCM Scholar, and an awardee of the Hong Kong Scholarship for Excellence Scheme. Chan also studies composition with Mark-Anthony Turnage and conducting with Toby Purser.

Sophia Lim (piano)

Sophia Lim is a Malaysian pianist from Sabah, North Borneo. She graduated from the Royal College of Music under the tutelage of Danny Driver, following her earlier training with Krzysztof Slomiak in Kota Kinabalu. Her experiences learning the erhu and growing up in Sabah enriched her musical insight and versatility through the influence of diverse cultures.

Currently based in the UK, She has made several appearances including at the Pallant House Gallery as part of the Pallant Proms Concert Series, as well as performing at the Mátyás Seiber 120th celebratory concert at the Liszt Institute in London. Together with her longtime collaborator flautist Tilly Coulton, she performed at the opening concert of the Topsham Music Festival in April, and will be appearing together at the 2026 Bloomsbury Festival.

A keen advocate for new music, Sophia has premiered several new solo and chamber works and collaborative projects in the UK, including the Rude Health Festival of New Music at Trinity Laban, frequently collaborating with composer Nien Chin Chai, and Collaborative Voiceworks at Milton Court Concert Hall. She gave her debut performance of the complete Java Suite by Leopold Godowsky in 2025 and was Ambassador of the Benedetti Foundation for the 2024 cohort.