In the fall of 2013, a 15-year-old violinist named Eli Wrankle gave a small recital at his family home in Toquerville, Utah. It was just a fundraiser for his high school orchestra, but veteran musicians and neighbors Greg Istock and Hal Cannon stayed after and asked if he wanted to jam. Wrankle had never played music that way before, but he agreed. When the night ended, his only words were: “I want more of that.”
That was the night 3hattrio was born. From the beginning, the group agreed to set aside their generational and stylistic differences to create something entirely new. Inspired by the power of the Zion country surrounding them, they coined the term “American Desert Music” for their unique sound.
Over the next decade, the trio built a remarkable body of work including seven albums of original music, four European tours, and performances at major festivals across the globe. Their travels took them to the Gothenburg Culture Festival in Sweden, Celtic Connections in Glasgow, and the National Cowboy Poetry Gathering in Elko, Nevada. They also composed the full score for the feature documentary The Tomb of Joseph and collaborated with the Repertory Dance Theatre.
When the pandemic scattered the members to Las Vegas, Portland, and rural Utah, the trio paused, though they never stopped making music individually. In 2025, they released Come Morning, their seventh and most intimate album, which was entirely instrumental and inspired by early mornings on the mesas high above Zion.
Now, after years apart, Eli Wrankle, Greg Istock, and Hal Cannon are reuniting in September 2026 for a series of retrospective concerts. These performances serve as a celebration of everything this unlikely trio has made together and offer a hint of what may still be ahead. After the performance, the musicians will hold a Q&A for audience members to learn more about them and their music.
The concerts are sponsored by Z-Arts, the Zion Canyon Arts and Humanities Council. The mission of Z-Arts is to support and promote access to the arts and humanities while cultivating a climate of creativity, dialogue, and the exchange of ideas for the communities of Zion Canyon and beyond.
Tickets are available for $15 per person at zarts.org. Performances will be held at the Bumbleberry Theatre, located at 897 Zion Park Blvd. in Springdale. For more information, contact Z-Arts at 435-319-0744 or email [email protected].
