Media Release 15 September 2011

On Saturday 8 and Sunday 9 October 2011 at 8pm , the 13-member orchestra from Portland, Oregon, will perform two nights at The National Concert Hall with the RTÉ Concert Orchestra and conductor Robert Ziegler.

These concerts mark the beginning of their 2011 UK Tour which also include a Royal Albert Hall performance. It also coincides with the release, of ‘Pink Martini –A Retrospective’, on 26 September 2011. The album features tracks from pop version of ‘Hey Eugene’ to a haunting version of ‘Que Sera Sera’ and a unique version of ‘Moon River’ with on vocals.

Having sold over 1 million albums in the US and over 150,000 in the UK, Pink Martini are fast becoming well-known for their inimitable interpretations of old Hollywood and French café music. Together they draw inspiration from music from all over the world, crossing genres of classical, jazz and old-fashioned pop.

Their songs may be familiar from such films as In the Cut, Nurse Betty, Josie and the Pussycats, Tortilla Soup, Shanghai Kiss and Mr. & Mrs. Smith. Their songs can also be heard on television shows such as Dead Like Me, The Sopranos and The West Wing, among others.

Band leader Thomas Lauderdale describes the band’s sound as “music of the world without being world music. If the United Nations had a house band in 1962 hopefully Pink Martini would be that band.”

Having formed in 1994, they made their European debut at the Cannes Film Festival in 1997 and their orchestral debut with the in 1998 under the direction of . Since then, the band has gone on to play with over 30 orchestras around the world, including multiple engagements with the at the Hollywood Bowl, the Boston Pops, the National Symphony at the Kennedy Centre and the BBC Concert Orchestra in London.

Four records later, with over 2 million copies sold worldwide Pink Martini have become a global household name and have appeared on BBC Two’s Later with Jools Holland and the Late Show with David Letterman

PINK MARTINI at the National Concert Hall Saturday 8 and Sunday 9 October 2011, 8pm

Thomas Lauderdale, piano , vocals* (replacing ) Robert Taylor, trombone Gavin Bondy, trumpet Brian Lavern Davis, congas, drums and percussion Derek Rieth, percussion Martin Zarzar, percussion Phil Baker, bass Timothy Nishimoto, vocals and percussion Nicholas Crosa, violin Dan Faehnle, guitar RTÉ Concert Orchestra Robert Ziegler, conductor

Tickets: €25, €35, €45 (Choir Balcony €20) 10% Concessions available. 10% groups discount available. 20% discount for Friends of the National Concert Hall. Box Office Tel: 01 417 00 00 or ONLINE (no booking fees)

ENDS For further information please contact Sinead Doyle, Marketing & PR Manager Tel: 01 417 00 57 or 087 1775334