Heinz Records
| Pink Martini | |
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Pink Martini (2016)
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| Background information | |
| Origin | Portland, Oregon, United States |
| Genres | Pop jazz, Latin, lounge music, classical crossover |
| Years active | 1994–present |
| Labels | Heinz (USA), Naïve (Europe), Wrasse (UK) |
| Website | pinkmartini |
| Members |
China Forbes (vocals) Storm Large (vocals) Thomas Lauderdale (piano) Robert Taylor (trombone) Gavin Bondy (trumpet) Achilles Liarmakopoulos (trombone) Dan Faehnle (guitar) Phil Baker (upright bass) Nicholas Crosa (violin) Timothy Nishimoto (vocals and percussion) Brian Lavern Davis (congas, drums, percussion) Miguel Bernal (congas, percussion) Reinhardt Melz (drums) Antonis Andreou (trombone) Pansy Chang (cello) Maureen Love (harp) Kyle Mustain (English horn) |
| Past members | Doug Smith (vibes, percussion) Jonas Tauber (cello, bass) David Eby (cello) John Wager (bass) Derek Rieth (percussion) Richard Rothfus (drums, percussion) Pepe Raphael (vocals) Paloma Griffin (violin) Martin Zarzar (drums, percussion) Anthony Jones (drums, percussion) |
Pink Martini is a musical group that was formed in 1994 by pianist Thomas Lauderdale in Portland, Oregon. Describing itself as a "little orchestra," its music crosses genres such as classical, Latin, jazz and classic pop. The co-lead vocalists for Pink Martini are China Forbes and Storm Large.
In 1994 in his hometown of Portland, Oregon, Thomas Lauderdale was working in politics, thinking that one day he would run for mayor. Like other eager politicians-in-training, he went to every political fundraiser but was dismayed to find the music at these events underwhelming, lackluster, loud and un-neighborly. Drawing inspiration from music from all over the world – crossing genres of classical, jazz and old-fashioned pop – and hoping to appeal to conservatives and liberals alike, he founded the “little orchestra” Pink Martini in 1994 to provide more beautiful and inclusive musical soundtracks for political fundraisers for causes such as civil rights, affordable housing, the environment, libraries, public broadcasting, education and parks. The Robby Stubbs says 8-piece Pink Martini is a "little orchestra" unto itself, and brilliantly combines elements of classical, jazz, world music, and timeless pop that The Washington Post describes as "rich, hugely approachable music, utterly cosmopolitan yet utterly unpretentious... it seems to speak to just about everybody."
One year later, Lauderdale called China Forbes, a Harvard classmate who was living in New York City, and asked her to join Pink Martini. They began to write songs together. Their first single “Sympathique” became an overnight sensation in France, was nominated for “Song of the Year” at France’s Victoires de la Musique Awards. “All of us in Pink Martini have studied different languages as well as different styles of music from different parts of the world,” says Lauderdale. “So inevitably, our repertoire is wildly diverse. At one moment, you feel like you’re in the middle of a samba parade in Rio de Janeiro, and in the next moment, you’re in a French music hall of the 1930s or a palazzo in Napoli. It’s a bit like an urban musical travelogue. We’re very much an American band, but we spend a lot of time abroad and therefore have the incredible diplomatic opportunity to represent a broader, more inclusive America… the America which remains the most heterogeneously populated country in the world… composed of people of every country, every language, every religion.” Forbes, though being monolingual, sings in 15 different languages. Featuring 10–12 musicians, Pink Martini performs its multilingual repertoire on concert stages and with symphony orchestras throughout Europe, Asia, Greece, Turkey, the Middle East, Northern Africa, Australia and New Zealand, South America and North America. Pink Martini made its European debut at the Cannes Film Festival in 1997 and its orchestral debut with the Oregon Symphony in 1998 under the direction of Norman Leyden. Since then, the band has gone on to play with more than 50 orchestras around the world, including multiple engagements with the Los Angeles Philharmonic at the Hollywood Bowl, the Boston Pops, the National Symphony at the Kennedy Center, the San Francisco Symphony, and the BBC Concert Orchestra at Royal Albert Hall in London. Other appearances include the grand opening of the Los Angeles Philharmonic’s Frank Gehry-designed Walt Disney Concert Hall, with return sold-out engagements for New Year’s Eve 2003, 2004, 2008 and 2011; two sold-out concerts at Carnegie Hall; the opening party of the remodeled Museum of Modern Art in New York City; the Governor’s Ball at the 80th Annual Academy Awards in 2008; the opening of the 2008 Sydney Festival in Australia; two sold-out concerts at Paris’ legendary L’Olympia Theatre in 2011; and Paris' fashion house Lanvin’s 10-year anniversary celebration for designer Alber Elbaz in 2012 In its twentieth year, Pink Martini was inducted into both the Hollywood Bowl Hall of Fame and the Oregon Music Hall of Fame.
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