Khaledi Prize Announces 2024 Winner

The American trio Time for Three has won the award alongside a $10,000 cash prize

Created in 2017, the annual Darioush and Shahpar Khaledi Prize for Excellence and Innovation in Classical Music recognizes outstanding artistry, creativity, and leadership in an artist or ensemble. 

Its 2024 winner is the American trio Time for Three (TF3), which comprises Nicolas Kendall (violin/vocals), Ranaan Meyer (double bass/vocals), and VC Artist Charles Yang (violin/vocals). 

Alongside a $10,000 cash award, the group will have performance opportunities during Festival Napa Valley’s summer season, including performing at the Symphonic Finale with Festival Orchestra Napa on July 21, 2024.

Named for Festival Napa Valley’s founding board chairman Darioush Khaledi and his wife Shahpar, the prize will also include a commemoration on a trophy designed by celebrated sculptor Adam Wiedmann and Nimbus Arts, on permanent display at Darioush Winery.

Representing the intersection of classical music, Americana, and singer-songwriter, the dynamic TF3 performs across various eras, styles, and traditions of Western music. 

The group’s recent projects have included “Time For Three In Concert” produced by PBS, which garnered an Emmy Award; partnering with composer Ben Sollee for the soundtrack to the film Land, starring and directed by Robin Wright; and with GRAMMY-winning artists Liz Rose and Femke Weidema for new recordings on Warner Music. 

TF3 has collaborated and shared the stage with artists such as Chaka Khan, Ronan Keating, Ben Folds, Branford Marsalis, Joshua Bell, Aoife O’Donovan, Natasha Bedingfield, and Arlo Guthrie. 

Additionally, the group regularly works with contemporary classical composers, such as Chris Brubeck and Pulitzer Prize winners William Bolcom, Jennifer Higdon, and Kevin Puts. The trio’s most recent commission, Contact by Puts, premiered with the San Francisco Symphony and The Philadelphia Orchestra in the summer of 2022. 

Contact is included on the trio’s latest album, “Letters for the Future,” which was recorded with The Philadelphia Orchestra and conducted by Xian Zhang. The album won a GRAMMY Award in the Best Classical Instrumental Solo category, and featured on Billboard’s Top 10 Classical Recordings charts. 

Past winners of the Khaledi Prize include Sheku Kanneh-Mason, Nia Imani Franklin, and VC Artists Tessa Lark and Francisco Fullana,