If there's any silver lining to be had during a year in which Hancher lost its usual performance spaces to flooding, it's that we've had a chance to see artists who ordinarily play large halls in more intimate venues. Everyone in City High's auditorium could see the frayed strands of hair from violinist Zach De Pue's bow whipping around him as the trio worked their way through their varied repertoire. Everyone got a close up of double-bassist Ranaan Meyer's omnipresent (if not eerily intense) smile. "Shenandoah", Cohen's "Hallelujah" and Ungar's "Ashokan Farewell" (trust me, you've heard them even if you don't recognize the names) showcased the trio's sentimental side and probably gave them a chance to get their pulse back under control after some speedy and impressive fiddling on tunes like "Orange Blossom Special" and "Thunderstomp" (the latter composed by Mr. Meyer).
Time for Three left me with two impressions: 1.) I've rarely seen three people getting paid to play together enjoy it so much, and, 2.) If they were any less talented they'd be accused of just screwing around. They have the classical pedigree but seem to have decided mixing different styles of bluegrass and jazz improv sounded like more fun. As if to confirm my suspicions, De Pue related a story about how he and fellow violinist Nick Kendall first began playing one of their tunes while fooling around before performing at Carnegie Hall. Enough said. If you ever need to win a bet with a friend who insists that an ensemble of two violins and a double bass can't be entertaining, find out where Time for Three is performing next.
— Peter Likarish
Note: Regular blogger Molly enlisted her friend Peter Likarish to guest blog. Peter is a working on his PhD in Computer Science, has a masters in creative writing from the University of Edinburgh, and listens to musics while he works.
