Pink Martini is a 12-piece music band from Portland, Oregon. The band was formed by pianist Thomas M. Lauderdale in 1994. They blend such diverse genres of music as samba, classical, and jazz.
Originally brought together to play political functions in Portland, Oregon, Pink Martini made its European debut at the Cannes Film Festival. Leading up to 2003, they toured several countries, including France, Spain, Portugal, Belgium, Switzerland, Monaco, Greece, Turkey, Taiwan, Lebanon and the United States, performing either by themselves or accompanied by various orchestras.
Pink Martini's debut album, Sympathique, was released on Pink Martini's own label, Heinz Records (named after Lauderdale's dog) in 1997. Over 650,000 copies of the record have been sold worldwide.
In October of 2004, the band released their second album, Hang on Little Tomato. The album cover featured a man holding up a happy child on a blue background. Their CD release concert sold out so quickly that the band announced a second show night. In the transition from their first to their second album, guest-singer Pepe Raphael left to concentrate on his other band Pepe and the Bottle Blondes. Lead singer China Forbes continued to write songs with Lauderdale which helped the band go in a more original direction. Pink Martini songs appear in such films as In the Cut, Nurse Betty, Josie and the Pussycats, Tortilla Soup and Mr. & Mrs. Smith, and have been used on television shows such as Dead Like Me, The Sopranos and The West Wing, among others (Pink Martini website, see external link). The song "No Hay Problema" is included as background/setup music for Microsoft's Windows Server 2003.
On New Year's Eve, 2005, Pink Martini performed live at the Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall in Portland, Oregon. This performance was aired live on National Public Radio's Toast of the Nation, and was recorded for a live DVD and later broadcast on US public broadcasting and French television.
Because Pink Martini has a larger than average membership, the band had trouble finding places in other cities to play. With the help of their friend Norman Leyden they started performing with various Orchestras across the nation, thus building their fan-base.
Pink Martini's third album, Hey Eugene!, will be released on May 15, 2007.
