Photo provided by Symphony Center

What began as a band to simply provide the soundtrack to fundraisers and galas for progressive causes has since become a world-renowned recording and touring troupe through venues as vast as Carnegie Hall, Royal Albert Hall, Hollywood Bowl, Sydney Opera House, and when it comes to Chicago, the equally esteemed Symphony Center.

That act is naturally Portland’s Pink Martini, who for well over two hours, mixed a full capacity crowd a compelling cocktail of jazz and world flavors inside the ornate and acoustically pristine Orchestra Hall.

Led by pianist Thomas M. Lauderdale and featuring singer China Forbes, along with nine other elite musicians, the “little orchestra,” as they’re affectionately called, quickly got to working around such sonic adventures as “Amado Mio” and “Sympathique,” both of which came from 1997’s groundbreaking debut album of the latter name.

It was a project Pink Martini would address on numerous occasions, much to the delight of the international audience, plus there were eight other ambitious studio albums to intermingle up to “Je dis oui!,” spanning material in at least 25 languages.

“Destino” was one of the many delights, which took advantage of guest Edna Vazquez’s vast vocal talents, along with “Exodus,” led by the incomparable Jimmie Herrod, who “America’s Got Talent” host Howie Mandel said was the show’s best singer ever.

Forbes was just as much a force to be reckoned with as she and Herrod took turns during “Bitty Boppy Betty,” followed by her stunning abilities to effortlessly tear through over 500 words of “Tanti Auguri,” a newly added piece to the repertoire that’s bound to become a regular.

After an intermission, Pink Martini returned to a lengthy list of requests, such as signatures “Donde Estas, Yolanda?,” “Let’s Never Stop Falling In Love,” “Hang On Little Tomato” and “Splendor In The Grass,” alongside the standard “Moon River.”

In addition to everyone’s A-list musicianship, the segment demonstrated how much impact and inspiration the players have on their fans as they knock on the door of three decades together, and if the collective reaction at the Symphony Center was any indication, chances are such connectivity will keep getting passed down for many more generations to come.

For additional information on Pink Martini, visit PinkMartini.com.

Upcoming concert highlights at the Symphony Center include Kodo (Mar. 5); Civitas Ensemble (Mar. 7); Blomstedt Conducts Dvořák 8 (Mar. 9-12); Maria Schneider Orchestra: Data Lords (Mar. 10); Civic Orchestra Brass & Percussion (Mar. 13); Carmina Burana (Mar. 16-18); Windy City Choral Festival (Mar. 18); Hilary Hahn (Mar. 19); Civic Orchestra Open Rehearsal (Mar. 19); Coleridge-Taylor, Copland & Dvořák 9 (Mar. 23-26); John Williams (Mar. 24); Percy Grainger Wind Band Festival (Mar. 25); Chicago Youth In Music Festival (Mar. 27); Chicago International Music Festival (Mar. 28); Boccherini, Vivaldi & Mozart 40 (Mar. 30-Apr. 4) and Danilo Pérez’s Global Messengers & Children Of The Light (Mar. 31). For additional details, visit CSO.org.

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