Our journey from classical to pop | Simply Three | TEDxLaSierraUniversity

Simply Three is leading a movement to bring strings to the front of the stage, and once you see their inspiring talk mixed with live performance, you'll want to join them too!

Blending innovative arrangements of classical music with today's popular songs, Simply Three offers a fresh approach and an entertaining experience for all ages. Comprised of violinist Alex Weill, cellist Zack Clark and bassist Nicholas Villalobos, Simply Three came together in 2010. They released their first self-published album in 2011 and have earned critical and popular acclaim across the US. They've been hailed by the Boston Philharmonic: "They've got what it takes." Simply Three is creating a renewed excitement for instrumental music. Their programming includes a variety of invigorating arrangements of popular songs by Adele, Coldplay, Gotye, to name a few, as well as operatic favorites, virtuoso fiddle music and original compositions. Each member of the trio is personally dedicated to enhancing the classical music experience and educating the next generation of musicians.

This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at http://ted.com/tedx.

Hit it!

(Music: Adele "Rolling in the Deep")

Yeah.

(Music ends)

(Applause and cheers)

Zack Clark: Hello. You guys are so great.

Well, as you can probably already tell,

we're not your standard
classical string trio.

That was Adele's "Rolling in the Deep,"

a very famous, beautiful pop song

of recent years,

and we arranged that ourselves
for the cello, the bass and the violin.

In fact, our arrangement of it
has developed over time

to, you know, going
from classical sounding

to having more of a pop feel,

and that's something we try to work on -

is establishing and incorporating
pop elements into our arrangements.

But this is just a recent change.

In fact, most of our lives,

we have all been trained classically
on these instruments.

Nicholas Villalobos: That's right.
Zack and I, we're from Arizona,

just the next-door neighbor to you guys,

and we both went
to Arizona State University

and we got performance degrees -

he got one in cello and I got one in bass.

And when you play a string instrument

and you decide to get
a performance degree,

you're kind of put into a box;

there's this standardized box,

and what that box is

is you go to school,

you learn how to play your instrument,

and you learn how to make it
into a symphony orchestra.

So they teach you what to play,
how to play it,

and then, after you graduate,

you go and you do auditions
all across the country,

sometimes even the world,

trying to get a spot
in the symphony orchestra.

And once you get that spot?

Hallelujah.

You've got a job and that's awesome.

But then, you are pretty much required
to stay in that orchestra

the rest of your life.

A lot of these people
that make it into orchestras,

that's their job.

And you know, that's great,
that's awesome.

I have a bunch of friends

that are in some of the major
symphonies of the world,

including the New York Philharmonic.

But as we went through this process,

we kind of felt that we didn't want
to be in that box.

We love classical music,

and we're so grateful that we
were trained in the classical style

because it really teaches us
to master these instruments.

But we were talking, and we said,

"You know, we love all kinds of music.

We love classical, we love jazz,

we love pop music,

we love funk.

Why can't we play this music
on our instruments?

Just because they're classical instruments

doesn't mean that we can't perform
other types of music."

So we were put into
a pretty harsh situation.

It was either we go with the norm

and stay on this pathway
that led to a symphony orchestra

or we could, you know, bury our passions

of wanting to play
different kinds of music.

So we decided that we
were going to break the norm

and we were going to try
and create something,

a new career for ourselves,

playing these string instruments.

Alex Weill: My name is Alex,
and I'm from New York City.

And just like these guys,
I too was classically trained.

I started playing the violin
at the age of three,

and I was fortunate enough,
with an incredibly supportive family,

to study at music conservatories
such as Juilliard Pre-College,

the Yale School of Music,
Vanderbilt University

and the Manhattan School of Music.

All of this training was classical.

And this classical training
was very necessary,

this classical foundation was necessary
to be the musicians that we are today.

But I wanted to play
pop music for a living.

I loved listening to artists

such as Britney Spears,
Mariah Carey and the Backstreet Boys.

Z: Hit me, baby.

A: Yeah.

And I even dreamed about performing
on stage with them one day.

In recent years, I've actually
been living that dream,

performing as a background
violinist in New York City

for great artists such as Jay-Z,
Alicia Keys, Justin Timberlake, Farrell

and many more.

It's incredible, working
with these talented artists,

playing background music.

However, keyword - "background."

Strings today, in mainstream music,

are used to set a tone, a mood,
and play a supporting role.

Until I met Nick and Zack,

it had never crossed my mind

that a group purely made of strings
could headline a rock show.

I was deeply, deeply influenced
by their creativity, talent and passion

in bringing strings to the forefront
of the pop industry.

Z: Thank you, Alex.

N: Yeah. Thanks a lot.

Z: I mean, what a compliment, really.

We are just so, so happy
to have Alex with us;

she actually joined the group
just this past October.

Isn't she amazing. Give it up for Alex.

(Applause)

So as you can see,

Nick and I in Arizona
and Alex in New York City,

we were in the same predicament.

We were kind of herded into a pathway
that is a great pathway,

but it kind of wasn't for us.

We didn't feel that we fit
into a symphony orchestra.

We had a lot of ambition and passion
to create other things

and to play other kinds of music,

and Alex was living her dream
that she had when she was younger -

she's performing with these pop artists,
but she's still kind of the background.

So, you know, it was -

I don't think it happened in one moment,

but there was a decision that we made,

and that decision was,
like Nick had just said,

to break from the norm.

Our decision was, "You know what?

This path is great, but it's not for us.

Let's go over here to another path
and play this other kind of music."

And as we looked around,

we realized there wasn't
hardly anything out there

teaching the way to do this.

There isn't a degree program,
at least from where we were.

There's a couple
in the whole United States,

but there's, essentially,
nothing out there

that teaches classical instruments
how to become a pop band.

It's kind of a new idea.

But it's an exciting one that we thought,

"Let's just start chugging along,
let's start trekking along,

and cutting those large,
tall pieces of grass

and make a new pathway
for classical musicians,

for people that perhaps love
the cello or the bass or the violin

but want to play, perhaps,
a different kind of music."

So we set out to break
every classical stereotype.

We wanted our recordings to sound
not classical but like a pop song,

we wanted our music videos

to be competitive with the music videos
that are the top of the pop industry,

and we wanted our arrangements

to have pop elements
incorporated with them

so that they are perhaps revolutionary

and, perhaps, that we could perform
unique sounds on these instruments

that, maybe, aren't always used.

And here we are,
right now in front of you,

and we're going to do a demonstration

on how we came to do that.

N: That's right.

We're going to play a very popular song
that I'm sure all of you will know.

It's one of the very first songs
that we arranged.

It's called "Viva la Vida," by Coldplay.

Sure you all know it;
it's a great song, beautiful song.

And we're going to show you

kind of how we began to -
oh, what's happening here -

kind of how we began
to arrange this music -

how it sounded at first -

and then how it evolved
from classical to pop.

(Music: Coldplay, "Viva la Vida")

(Music ends)

Z: Well, that sounds nice.
You recognize the song?

(Audience) Yeah.

Yeah, you can hear the song,

you have the little motif going on,

you hear the melody.

It sounds pleasant -
there's nothing wrong with it,

but we wanted something more edgy,

so we thought to ourselves,
"I think it's kind of missing something."

And maybe we would say
something like this in rehearsal.

What do you think is missing, Nick?

N: Well, I mean,
it sounds nice. You're right.

It's not that it doesn't have that edge.

You know, I think something
that pop stars and pop bands have,

they have that drum set, right?

Z: Yeah, drums.

N: We're missing drums, that backbeat.

Z: So do we get a drummer?

N: I mean, we can, but I really want
to do it on strings.

Z: Yeah, let's try to keep ...

A: Yeah, let's try it out.

N: I could try hitting it.

(Laughter)

Like I'll put my bow down,
and I can, you know,

(Percussion sound)

Z: You're going to hit your bass?
N: Sounds pretty good.

Z: Is it going to break?

N: Maybe.

(Laughter)

But I think, let's see.

Z: See what you can do.

Let's try it again,
and we'll add drums this time.

Three.

(Music: Coldplay, "Viva la Vida")

(Music ends)

Z: Yeah, that was good.

You guys feeling the beat
a little bit heavier?

(Applause)

Yeah, alright.

A: Alright. I still feel
like it's still missing a few things.

What about on that low end,
what about those bass notes?

N: It's kind of hard to play
the bass notes and do this -

you know, do the drums at the same time.

A: Yeah, you wouldn't be able to.

N: I think, maybe,
can you cover it, maybe?

Play a little lower?

N: I'm only playing one note,

so I guess I could try
to do some of the low notes,

kind of be like a bass.

N: Yeah. I'm doing the drums.
You do the bass.

Z: I'll try. Now we'll add some chords
and maybe get that low end.

Let's see how that influences it.

Two-three.

(Music: Coldplay, "Viva la Vida")

(Music ends)

Z: Yeah. Sounds pretty good.

N: Yeah, I like that.

Z: Did you guys feel the difference there?

Did you hear that low end better?

Let some chords there.

We love harmony,
got to have some harmony,

so maybe that added something good.

I think that was good.

A: There's still something missing,
like a few things missing.

Z: It's still a little nice.
A: At the core of it.

N: Maybe you're kind of playing it
a little still too classical.

Put a little edge into it.

A: So I'll put a little more attitude,

a little more grunge.

Z: Attitude. Yeah, alright.

A: How about I add
some improv on that too.

Z: You want to improvise? Sweet.

Okay, maybe that's
the finishing polish it needs.

N: Let's try it one more time.
Z: Let's try it again, two-three.

((Music: Coldplay, "Viva la Vida")

(Music ends)

(Applause)

Z: That was better.

Thank you. Right.

Hello.

So, what did you think?

(Cheers)

Thanks.

You know we started off
with an arrangement that was great,

but then we kind of ended up
with an arrangement

that had a lot more pop quality to it.

Not to say that classical music
is boring or lacks passion,

but certainly adding drums
and chords on here like a guitar

and adding improvisation

really gives it a kind of pop feel

that you really can't get
by doing it any other way.

And so, this has been our journey
over the past several years,

and in recent months especially.

How do we continue
to create this pop sound

on these string instruments?

And we're happy to say
that we're doing it.

We're still in the middle
of unfolding a lot of great projects,

but our recordings
do sound like a pop track.

Our music videos have, indeed,
been shared and recognized

by the Huffington Post, Rolling Stone,

and in fact, the band
One Republic, themselves,

said they loved our version
of "Counting Stars."

And as you can see,

our arrangements have more of a flair
that we were going after.

So this is just so exciting for us,

and we're glad that you could witness
that evolution from classical to pop.

A: But really, our journey
has only just begun,

and we still have so much to work to do

to bring strings
to the front of the stage.

We hope that you'll join us in our cause

in leading this classical
crossover movement.

N: And the best way you can support us

is by liking us on Facebook,
subscribing to our YouTube channel

and sharing this music with,
you know, your friends and family

because, you know, we put
a lot of work into this

and we just want to show people
exactly what Alex said:

we want to bring strings
from the back of the stage to the front.

And we thank you so much.

We'd like to leave you
with one of our newest arrangements.

This is "Wake Me Up" by Avicii.

(Music: Avicii, "Wake Me Up")

Z: Let's get a clap going, everybody.

(Clapping)

(Music ends)

(Cheers and applause)

Z, A, N: Thank you.