Hello friends!

Back from their triumphant United Kingdom tour, the von Trapps — Sofi, Melanie, Amanda and August, the great-grandchildren of Maria & Georg von Trapp — are blossoming in Portland!

On Thursday night (June 26) at 8pm at Mississippi Studios (3939 North Mississippi) the von Trapps will unveil their brand-new Portland-based band and will be performing songs from “Dream a Little Dream”, their recent collaborative album with Pink Martini.

Pioneering a new sound and look, they will be debuting brand-new compositions of August von Trapp, as well as smart fashions from the legendary Paige Powell Style Council.

Tickets for this performance are ridiculously reasonable : only $20 — that’s only $5 per von Trapp! — and you’ll get the bonus of their new bandmates Simon Lucas (drums), Will Gibbs (upright bass) and Esther Shim (piano).  Inevitably there will be surprise guest appearances and many hilarious moments.  Mostly, however, this is a great opportunity to show support for Portland’s newest neighbors the von Trapps!  They are irresistible … and they make great schnitzel!

http://www.ticketfly.com/purchase/event/541033

You can purchase advance tickets at www.mississippistudios.com Read More...

We were honored to share the stage with Kristin Chenoweth and the Go-Go’s at the 15th Annual Hollywood Bowl Hall of Fame and Opening Night Concert this Saturday. In addition to being a fantastic evening of wonderful music and Hollywood glamour, the concert also raised over $1 million for the Youth Orchestra LA! Read More...

It is with a very heavy heart that we say goodbye to jazz legend Jimmy Scott. Jimmy was a good friend to Pink Martini. He collaborated with us on “Tea for Two” on Hey Eugene and performed with us live on a number of occasions, including Carnegie Hall and, most recently, the 2011 New Year’s Eve show at Disney Hall. Read More...

We are thrilled to announce that in just a few weeks, Pink Martini will be inducted into the Hollywood Bowl Hall of Fame! We will be performing at the 15th annual Hall of Fame concert on June 21st at Opening Night at the Bowl, along with other inductees Kristin Chenoweth and The Go-Go’s. The performances will also feature the Hollywood Bowl Orchestra and conductor Thomas Wilkins.

Past inductees include legends such as Stevie Wonder, George Harrison, Liza Minnelli, and Frank Sinatra, so this is quite an honor. We last performed at the Hollywood Bowl in July 2013, and can’t wait to be back! You can pick up tickets to the event here. Read More...

We were looking through the archives of Thomas’ Polaroid photos and came across this forgotten gem of our percussionist Brian Davis (with the ponytail behind the drums) and Ringo Starr, and naturally thought it would make a great Throwback Thursday photo! Read More...

Dear Friends,

During this tour I have been reading a most incredible book just published by Steve McQuiddy called Here on the Edge: How a Small Group of World War II Conscientious Objectors Took Art and Peace from the Margins to the Mainstream.

I grew up in Indiana, where my father Kerby Lauderdale was a Church of the Brethren minister.  The first songs I ever played on the piano were hymns.  The Church of the Brethren is one of three peace denominations — the Quakers and the Mennonites are the other two — and during World War II, those who refused to go to war were sent to Civilian Public Service camps all around the United States, building roads, planting trees, fighting forest fires.  These camps were run by these three peace churches. Read More...