Time for Three: A Performance and Demonstration

PHOTO BY JOURNEY GROUP

Bassist Ranaan composes most of the trio’s original music, but all three members help to arrange pieces for performance, adapting musical works and incorporating their diverse interests and influences, which accounts for the group’s eclectic style. n

Since its inception, Tf3 has performed more than a thousand engagements, including concerts at Carnegie Hall, jazz clubs, European music festivals, NFL games, the Indy 500, and alongside symphony orchestras worldwide. In addition, the trio is committed to reaching younger audiences and participates in numerous educational residencies and outreach programs each year. n

The group is also active in the fight against bullying. In 2011, they released “Stronger,” a powerful anti-bullying music video set to their own arrangement of music by Daft Punk and Kanye West.

Darrell M. Ayers Vice President, Education

A PERFORMANCE AND DEMONSTRATION

NSO Performance/Demonstrations are made possible in part by the generous support of The Clark Charitable Foundation; Kaplan, Inc.; Mr. James V. Kimsey; The Morris and Gwendolyn Cafritz Foundation; Park Foundation, Inc.; U.S. Department of Education; and The Volgenau Foundation.

Major support for educational programs at the Kennedy Center is provided by David and Alice Rubenstein through the Rubenstein Arts Access Program.

Education and related artistic programs are made possible through the generosity of the National Committee for the Performing Arts and the President’s Advisory Committee on the Arts.

www.artsedge.kennedy-center.org Cuesheets are produced by ArtsEdge, an education program of the Kennedy Center.

n

Listen Up! Learn more about classical, popular, and other musical genres on ArtsEdge www.artsedge.kennedy-center.org/ students/kc-connections

Learn more about education at the Kennedy Center at

www.kennedy-center.org/education The contents of this Cuesheet have been developed under a grant from the U.S. Department of Education but do not necessarily represent the policy of the U.S. Department of Education. You should not assume endorsement by the Federal Government. © 2015 The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts

COVER PHOTO BY VANESSA BRICEÑO-SCHERZER

David and Alice Rubenstein are the Presenting Underwriters of the NSO.

PERFORMANCE GUIDE

Time for Three, or Tf3 for short, includes violinists Zach DePue and Nick Kendall, and double bassist Ranaan Meyer. n

Deborah F. Rutter President

TIME FOR THREE

Cuesheet

MEET THE MUSICIANS

David M. Rubenstein Chairman

About the Performance Meet Time for Three, one of the country’s most exciting string ensembles. Known for their high-energy performances and versatile style, this young trio is anything but traditional.

Get to know them and their unique sound as they perform a wide range of musical styles, including classical, jazz, folk, bluegrass, country-western, funk, pop, rock, and hip-hop. You’ll also have the opportunity to hear and learn about improvisatory music, or music that is created spontaneously—a technique that requires great musical skill and creativity.

THE CONCERT PROGRAM

THE STRING FAMILY

Time for Three knows no musical boundaries. They play everything, from classical composers including Bach and Brahms to their own arrangements of more contemporary artists such as The Beatles, Katy Perry, and Justin Timberlake. And remember, they also love fiddling to country-western and bluegrass music and improvising to their favorite jazz tunes, not to mention capturing the expressiveness of the gypsy violin, or the slaps and pops of a funk bass.

Time for Three members play instruments from the orchestral “String Family,” specifically the violin and double bass. Though they vary greatly in size and pitch, they are grouped together for their commonalities. Both are made of wood, share a similar shape, and have (you guessed it!) strings! And each creates sound when a musician uses a bow or finger to make these strings vibrate.

So how do you sum up or define their musical style? Easy, it’s “eclecticism”— an artistic style that combines elements of many other styles, often in unexpected ways. In music, eclecticism is sometimes called “crossover” music.

During the performance, listen closely to see if you can identify the different styles of music and their combinations.

PHOTO BY LEANN MUELLER

From left to right: Meyer, Kendall, and De Pue

The trio met and began playing together for fun while students at the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Look for…the obvious difference in instrument sizes and how they are played. The violin is the smallest member of the string family. The black chinrest tells you it’s held under the player’s chin. The double bass on the other hand, is the largest and is played upright with the musician standing behind it. Sometimes, the instrument is taller than the player.

Listen for…Time for Three’s nontraditional playing techniques, such as tapping the instruments with their hands and scraping the strings, which create a variety of sounds not commonly heard from string instruments.

About the Performance Meet Time for Three, one of the country’s most exciting string ensembles. Known for their high-energy performances and versatile style, this young trio is anything but traditional.

Get to know them and their unique sound as they perform a wide range of musical styles, including classical, jazz, folk, bluegrass, country-western, funk, pop, rock, and hip-hop. You’ll also have the opportunity to hear and learn about improvisatory music, or music that is created spontaneously—a technique that requires great musical skill and creativity.

THE CONCERT PROGRAM

THE STRING FAMILY

Time for Three knows no musical boundaries. They play everything, from classical composers including Bach and Brahms to their own arrangements of more contemporary artists such as The Beatles, Katy Perry, and Justin Timberlake. And remember, they also love fiddling to country-western and bluegrass music and improvising to their favorite jazz tunes, not to mention capturing the expressiveness of the gypsy violin, or the slaps and pops of a funk bass.

Time for Three members play instruments from the orchestral “String Family,” specifically the violin and double bass. Though they vary greatly in size and pitch, they are grouped together for their commonalities. Both are made of wood, share a similar shape, and have (you guessed it!) strings! And each creates sound when a musician uses a bow or finger to make these strings vibrate.

So how do you sum up or define their musical style? Easy, it’s “eclecticism”— an artistic style that combines elements of many other styles, often in unexpected ways. In music, eclecticism is sometimes called “crossover” music.

During the performance, listen closely to see if you can identify the different styles of music and their combinations.

PHOTO BY LEANN MUELLER

From left to right: Meyer, Kendall, and De Pue

The trio met and began playing together for fun while students at the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Look for…the obvious difference in instrument sizes and how they are played. The violin is the smallest member of the string family. The black chinrest tells you it’s held under the player’s chin. The double bass on the other hand, is the largest and is played upright with the musician standing behind it. Sometimes, the instrument is taller than the player.

Listen for…Time for Three’s nontraditional playing techniques, such as tapping the instruments with their hands and scraping the strings, which create a variety of sounds not commonly heard from string instruments.

PHOTO BY JOURNEY GROUP

Bassist Ranaan composes most of the trio’s original music, but all three members help to arrange pieces for performance, adapting musical works and incorporating their diverse interests and influences, which accounts for the group’s eclectic style. n

Since its inception, Tf3 has performed more than a thousand engagements, including concerts at Carnegie Hall, jazz clubs, European music festivals, NFL games, the Indy 500, and alongside symphony orchestras worldwide. In addition, the trio is committed to reaching younger audiences and participates in numerous educational residencies and outreach programs each year. n

The group is also active in the fight against bullying. In 2011, they released “Stronger,” a powerful anti-bullying music video set to their own arrangement of music by Daft Punk and Kanye West.

Darrell M. Ayers Vice President, Education

A PERFORMANCE AND DEMONSTRATION

NSO Performance/Demonstrations are made possible in part by the generous support of The Clark Charitable Foundation; Kaplan, Inc.; Mr. James V. Kimsey; The Morris and Gwendolyn Cafritz Foundation; Park Foundation, Inc.; U.S. Department of Education; and The Volgenau Foundation.

Major support for educational programs at the Kennedy Center is provided by David and Alice Rubenstein through the Rubenstein Arts Access Program.

Education and related artistic programs are made possible through the generosity of the National Committee for the Performing Arts and the President’s Advisory Committee on the Arts.

www.artsedge.kennedy-center.org Cuesheets are produced by ArtsEdge, an education program of the Kennedy Center.

n

Listen Up! Learn more about classical, popular, and other musical genres on ArtsEdge www.artsedge.kennedy-center.org/ students/kc-connections

Learn more about education at the Kennedy Center at

www.kennedy-center.org/education The contents of this Cuesheet have been developed under a grant from the U.S. Department of Education but do not necessarily represent the policy of the U.S. Department of Education. You should not assume endorsement by the Federal Government. © 2015 The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts

COVER PHOTO BY VANESSA BRICEÑO-SCHERZER

David and Alice Rubenstein are the Presenting Underwriters of the NSO.

PERFORMANCE GUIDE

Time for Three, or Tf3 for short, includes violinists Zach DePue and Nick Kendall, and double bassist Ranaan Meyer. n

Deborah F. Rutter President

TIME FOR THREE

Cuesheet

MEET THE MUSICIANS

David M. Rubenstein Chairman