Chuva are a Manchester based folk/classical trio that was founded in 2018 by performers Rafael Onyett (guitar) and Borna Kuca (guitar/mandolin), whilst studying at the Royal Northern College of Music with the renowned guitarist Craig ogden. In 2022, Chuva expanded with the addition of double bassist George Burrage. The trio quickly developed a strong musical chemistry and have since performed frequently across the UK.
Such venues include Preston Museum, Wakefield Cathedral, Whitworth Art Gallery, Bury Parish Church, Instituto Cervantes and Bridgewater Hall as part of Craig Ogden’s ‘Big Guitar Weekend.’ Recently, Chuva also performed at the Royal Overseas Clubhouse in London after reaching the semi-finals of their prestigious annual music competition.
Although a Manchester-based ensemble, Borna originally hails from Croatia, George from England and Rafael is of Latin American heritage. The result is an interesting amalgamation of varied musical experiences and cultures, and an overall desire to explore music from different parts of the world. This is reflected in a diverse mixture of classical and folk repertoire and even the exploration of different folk instruments, such as the mandolin.
Along with performance, the trio also take an active role in outreach work and pedagogy. Most recently, Chuva won a coveted place on the Live Music Now artist platform 2022, and look forward to working closely with the organisation to deliver interactive music workshops across the country.
Borna Kuca was born in 1995 in Varazdin, Croatia. Inspired by his father, he started playing classical guitar at the age of nine at the Varazdin School of Music with Moreno Vinceković. He subsequently gained considerable experience as a soloist and chamber musician after participating in a number of
music competitions in Croatia, Slovenia, Italy and Serbia where he won first and second prizes, both as a soloist and as a part of the guitar duo. He took masterclasses with many renowned classical guitarists such as
Martin Mysliveček, Istvar Roemer, Ante Čagalj, Boris Tešić, Maroje Brčić, Darko Karajić, Xhevdet Sahatxhij. In 2013 Borna performed "Tango en Skai" by Roland Dyens as a classical guitar soloist with Varazdin Chamber Orchestra. In 2019, Borna graduated from the Royal Northern College of Music under the tutelage of Craig Ogden. As well as a soloist, Borna is a committed chamber musician. Throughout his studies he performed across the UK and Croatia as part of the Zorya Guitar Duo and since 2018 a member of Duo Chuva. The duo have performed regularly across the UK, including notable performances at Preston Museum, Cervantes Institute and Southport Christ Church. Recently, the duo reached the semi-finals of the prestigious Royal Overseas League annual music competition.
Rafael Onyett started playing the guitar at the age of 8 in his hometown of Leeds, Yorkshire. His initial studies were on the electric guitar and by the age of the 13 Rafael had performed with a variety of bands in some of Leeds’ most famous venues including The Cockpit, and the 02 Academy. At 13 a change of teacher introduced Rafael to the classical guitar and he spent the next five years honing his skills across a wide range of musical styles on both instruments. At 17 Rafael was a member of the Leeds Youth Jazz & Rock Orchestra. By the age of 18 Rafael had committed himself to the classical guitar having become captivated by its repertoire and the challenges of the instrument. In 2015 Rafael won a coveted place at the prestigious Royal Northern College of Music (RNCM) - Manchester studying with renowned performer and teacher Craig Ogden. Since studying at RNCM Rafael has performed in a variety of masterclasses with world-class guitarists including Zoran Dukic, Jacob Heringman and Stephen Goss. Rafael is a highly sought after performer in RNCM’s External Concerts and has given many solo performances throughout the UK.
