Time for Three
What started as a trio of musicians who jammed together backstage while students at Philadelphia’s Curtis Institute for Music evolved into Time for Three — a charismatic ensemble with a reputation for limitless enthusiasm and no musical boundaries.
The members — Zach De Pue, violin; Nick Kendall, violin; and Ranaan Meyer, double bass — carry a passion for improvisation, composing and arranging, all prime elements of the ensemble’s playing. Zach De Pue and Nick Kendall first discovered their mutual love of fiddling in the country western and bluegrass styles. Bassist Ranaan Meyer then introduced them to his deep roots in jazz and improvisation. After considerable experimentation, the three officially formed Tf3. The ensemble gained instant attention in July 2003 during a lightning-induced power failure at Philadelphia’s Mann Music Center. While technicians attempted to restore onstage lighting, Ranaan and Zach, who were both performing with The Philadelphia Orchestra, obliged with an impromptu jam session that included works as far afield from the originally scheduled symphony as “Jerusalem’s Ridge,” “Ragtime Annie,” and “Orange Blossom Special.” The crowd went wild.
Tf3 sets itself apart not only with its varied repertoire performed with astonishing technical acuity, but also through its approach. Its high-energy performances are free of conventional practices, drawing instead from the members’ differing musical backgrounds. The trio also performs its own arrangements of traditional repertoire and Ranaan Meyer provides original compositions to complement the trio’s offerings. Tf3 has performed on many of the nation’s important stages, including the Mann Music Center, the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., and Joe’s Pub in New York. In 2009-10, the trio made its Carnegie Hall debut on the Family Concert Series. In addition to their albums, they have been seen and heard frequently on various television and radio broadcasts throughout the country, including numerous times on Public Television and NPR, and were featured in a documentary film about Philadelphia’s Rittenhouse Square directed by Robert Downey, Sr. The group also recorded the soundtrack to the History Channel’s production, The Spanish-American War.
The ensemble has begun a major commissioning program to expand its unique repertoire for both symphony orchestras and concert series. One of these projects has involved a new work written by celebrated composer Jennifer Higdon, premiered in six performances by Tf3 with The Philadelphia Orchestra and Christoph Eschenbach in January 2008. In 2011, Tf3 premiered Travels in Time for Three, composed for the group by Chris Brubeck. The group will premiere a newly-commissioned piece by great American composer William Bolcom in the fall of 2012.
In addition to its demanding performance schedule, the trio is committed to reaching younger audiences and has participated in a number of educational residencies and outreach concerts including Paul Newman’s Hole In The Wall Gang Camp (for which they have helped raise over $8 million along with Whoopi Goldberg, Alec Baldwin, Mikhail Baryshnikov and Joanne Woodward); The Fox Channel’s “Good Morning Philadelphia” telecast from the Kimmel Center; the Liberty Awards Ceremony honoring Colin Powell; and the Philadelphia Chamber of Commerce’s morning debate banquet for gubernatorial candidates Edward Rendell and Mike Fisher. Tf3 was also featured in the Pennsylvania Society’s televised annual gala from New York’s Waldorf-Astoria. As the resident ensemble of the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra, the group has worked with students at two local high schools, teaching them music, inspiring them and performing in concert with the schools’ chamber groups.
The remainder of the 2010-11 season finds Time for Three continuing a rigorous North American performance schedule. Highlights include a performance with the Anchorage Symphony Orchestra, appearances in Madison, Wis., and Birmingham, Ala., and throughout Indiana. They will also be performing with the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra at another Stella Artois Happy Hour event this season.
In January 2010, Tf3 released its third album, 3 Fervent Travelers, in stores and on iTunes.
