Time For Three with Mendelssohn, Bartok, and more

Time For Three, a Philadelphia-originated string trio, blends classical, Americana, rock, and jazz with vocals. Members Nicolas Kendall, Charles Yang, and Ranaan Meyer are known for their virtuosic, genre-defying performances. They earned a 2023 Grammy for "Letters for the Future" and an Emmy for their PBS special. Collaborations include composers Kevin Puts and Jennifer Higdon, and artists like Branford Marsalis.

Felix Mendelssohn was a celebrated German composer, pianist, musical conductor, and teacher of the early Romantic period. Born into a prominent family in Hamburg in 1809, he was recognized as an extraordinary musical prodigy from childhood, composing masterpieces like the Overture to A Midsummer Night's Dream by age seventeen. He played a central role in reviving interest in the music of Johann Sebastian Bach, famously conducting the St. Matthew Passion in 1829, and went on to serve as the Music Director of the Gewandhaus Orchestra in Leipzig and founder of the Leipzig Conservatory. His acclaimed compositions, including the Italian and Scottish Symphonies, the Violin Concerto, and the oratorio Elijah, famously blend Classical structure with Romantic expression.

Béla Bartók was a Hungarian composer, pianist, and ethnomusicologist, widely regarded as one of the most important composers of the 20th century. Alongside Zoltán Kodály, he pioneered the study of folk music, capturing indigenous Central European melodies and integrating them into his modernist classical compositions. His notable works include his six string quartets, the opera Bluebeard's Castle, and the Concerto for Orchestra. Faced with the rise of fascism in Europe, he immigrated to the United States in 1940, where he continued to compose until his death from leukemia in 1945.

The New Jersey Symphony, founded in 1922 by Philip James, is the state orchestra of New Jersey. Renowned for its classical music performances, it has earned Emmy and Grammy Awards. The Symphony is celebrated for its collaborations and for appointing Henry Lewis as the first African-American music director of a major US orchestra.