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Time for Three began with three classical music students at Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia who needed a break.

“We were the misfits of the classical world,” said vocalist and double bassist Ranaan Meyer. “We loved the rich tradition, but we needed to find a room in this mansion — that’s what it was (two decades ago) — where we could let our hair down and unleash and play fiddle tunes and improvise. We were kind of flying by the seat of our pants.”

When the faculty caught wind of the trio, they hired them for their first gig.

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“We thought it would be our last gig, but we had a response to our energy and our music making,” he said.

While soundtracks like “O Brother, Where Art Thou?” and musicians like Edgar Meyer, Sam Bush and Bela Fleck acted as predecessors for hybrids of sophisticated genres, after years of searching, Time for Three has not been able to find any music composed solely for two violins and a bass.

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“It’s just a brand-new ensemble — because why would you do that? The reason is because of the energy that came from the core (musicians) that made it happened,” Meyer said, explaining that basses are tuned in 4ths, while violins are tuned in 5ths. “The bass holds down the rhythm, so we had to find that rhythmic energy to make it all work. The challenge lends itself to a beautiful sound.”

The trio originally began with Meyer and violinists Nicolas Kendall and Zachary DePue, the latter of whom played in the quartet while being concertmaster of the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra. In 2015, DePue decided to focus completely on being a concertmaster, so the two remaining musicians found another violinist. But after being offered a concertmaster position within nine months of performing with Time for Three, he left. And, so, the first question the duo asked when considering a potential violinist to fill the open position was: Do you have an ambition to be a concertmaster? If so, that was the end of the interview.

They discovered Charles Yang about 10 years ago when he performed “Bohemian Rhapsody” online. Though he was in middle school when he had originally listened to the trio, he not only fit in with the ensemble, but also upleveled them.

“It was love at first sight,” Meyer said about Yang’s abilities. “He brought incredible vocals to the theory and improvisation.”

His vocals became a game-changer for the trio, which pushes boundaries by merging classical, Americana and singer-songwriter genres while also collaborating with renowned composers and artists. In addition to composing their own songs, they’ve classically arranged hits by the likes of Calvin Harris and Kanye West and paired works by such bands as Guns N’ Roses and composer Gustav Mahler. 

Last year, they won a Grammy for Best Classical Instrumental Solo with “Letters for the Future.” Their next project celebrates the poems of Emily Dickinson, paired with music composed by Kevin Puts.

Last summer, they performed with Puts and The Philadelphia Orchestra at Gerald Ford Amphitheater as part of Bravo! Vail.

“We usually tell people that haven’t heard of us before that we’re a classically trained garage band,” Meyer said, especially these days, as they incorporate keyboard and guitar into their innovative fusion.

“Guitars lend themselves so well to writing songs, and if we write on the piano, it translates to violin and bass,” he said, adding that the two instruments support the bass and violins, bringing variety and texture to the two-hour show, which, this holiday season, includes tunes like “Little Drummer Boy,” “Christmas Time Is Here,” “Let It Snow,” “Do You Want to Build a Snowman” and more, as well as originals.

“Something about the mountains and Time for Three is synonymous. Mountain towns become like second homes for us. Nature and our music and the way we can chop up our songs — you can hear the wood,” he said. “Usually, people who like the mountains — skiing and the outdoors — we’re gonna get along just fine.”