“Pink Martini is a rollicking around-the-world musical adventure…If the United Nations had a house band in 1962, hopefully we’d be that band.” – Thomas Lauderdale, bandleader/pianist

Drawing inspiration from music from all over the world – crossing genres of classical, jazz and old-fashioned pop – Thomas Lauderdale founded 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.

One year later, Lauderdale called China Forbes, a Harvard classmate who was living in New York City, and asked her to join Pink Martini. She has since written many of the band’s most beloved songs with Lauderdale, including “Sympathique,” “Lilly,” “Clementine,” “Let’s Never Stop Falling in Love,” and “Over the Valley” to name a few.

Thirty years later, Pink Martini still tours the world, singing in 22 languages at opera houses, concert halls, film festivals, museums and fashion shows. In 2014, Pink Martini was inducted into both the Hollywood Bowl Hall of Fame and the Oregon Music Hall of Fame.

About Thomas Lauderdale Meets the Pilgrims

27 years in the making: Pink Martini’s bandleader and musical director Thomas Lauderdale brings his exquisite musical taste to an epic collaboration with a legendary surf rock band! In 1996 in Portland, Oregon, Lauderdale was working on two musical projects; one became his globe-trotting “little orchestra” Pink Martini’s monumental debut album Sympathique and the other was Thomas Lauderdale Meets the Pilgrims, which is finally being released by Pink Martini’s Heinz Records label in May 2023!

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