Pink Martini has been a frequent and honored guest with the North Carolina Symphony, visiting most recently in May, 2019.
Drawing inspiration from music from all over the world—crossing genres of classical, jazz, and old-fashioned pop— Thomas Lauderdale founded the “little orchestra” Pink Martini in 1994 in his hometown of Portland, Oregon. One year later, Lauderdale called China Forbes, a Harvard classmate living in New York City, and asked her to join. They began to write songs together. Their first, “Sympathique,” was an overnight sensation in France and nominated for Song of the Year at the Victoires de la Musique Awards.
Pink Martini has sold well over 3 million albums worldwide. Its ninth studio album, Je dis oui!, features vocals from China Forbes, Storm Large, Ari Shapiro, fashion guru Ikram Goldman, civil rights activist Kathleen Saadat, and Rufus Wainwright. Released in 2016. the album’s 15 tracks span eight languages (French, Farsi, Armenian, Portuguese, Arabic, Turkish, Xhosa, and English), and affirm the band’s history of global inclusivity and collaborative spirit. In 2019, Pink Martini collaborated on a new release with the international singing sensation Meow Meow, entitled Hotel Amour, and also released two five-song collections: Besame Mucho, featuring regular guest singer Edna Vazquez, and Tomorrow, featuring regular guest singer Jimmie Herrod, a finalist on 2021’s season of NBC’s America’s Got Talent. In 2020, the band released two new digital singles written by Thomas Lauderdale, China Forbes, and producer Jim Bianco, “Let’s Be Friends,” and “The Lemonade Song,” which has over 10 million streams on Spotify alone.
Featuring more than a dozen musicians, Pink Martini performs its multilingual repertoire throughout the world. The band made its European debut at the Cannes Film Festival in 1997 and its orchestral debut with the Oregon Symphony the following year. Since then, Pink Martini has played with more than 50 orchestras internationally, including the Los Angeles Philharmonic, Boston Pops, National Symphony Orchestra, San Francisco Symphony, The Cleveland Orchestra, and the BBC Concert Orchestra. Other appearances include four sold-out concerts at Carnegie Hall, the opening party of the remodeled Museum of Modern Art in New York, multiple sellouts and a festival opening at Montreal Jazz Festival, and multiple appearances at the Hollywood Bowl and at Walt Disney Concert Hall in downtown Los Angeles. In its 20th year, Pink Martini was inducted into the Hollywood Bowl Hall of Fame and the Oregon Music Hall of Fame. In 2024, the band celebrates its 30th year of performing and is working on a new album.
