Max Raabe & Palast Orchester Recreate 1920s Cabaret at the Kimmel Center November 3
October 18, 2007
"They don’t just travel through time with their music. Be it Moscow, London or China — Max Raabe and his Palast Orchester are at home on the stages of the world." (Berliner Zeitung, August 2006)
"A Bygone Era Evoked" (The New York Times, December 2, 2005)
Max Raabe & the Palast Orchester recreate the Berlin cabaret hits of the 20s and early 30s with amusing nostalgia at the Kimmel Center’s Perelman Theater on Saturday, November 3, 2007 at 7:30pm. The 12-piece ensemble’s singular artistic performances have charmed and entertained audiences for over 20 years throughout Europe, Asia and the United States. "A singing gentleman" on stage, Max Raabe stylizes himself - hair slicked back, faultlessly fitting tuxedo, ironically raised eyebrow - and refashions the timeless ironic lyrics behind eighty-year-old songs for modern times. Cuban rumbas, cheerful foxtrots and elegant tangos; the avant-garde cultural art forms of Germany’s ending Weimar Republic are interpreted on stage. The program includes the music from the Golden Age of dance and film music, such as classic hits like "Dream a Little Dream" and "Singin' in the Rain" as well as German hits like "Mein kleiner grüner Kaktus," "Am Amazonas" and "Dein ist mein ganzes Herz."
"I love clichés, the intact world of the early talkies. Even if it never really existed in reality. And it’s like that with our music. We tell the people something and that’s not nostalgia. But rather sweet frolic." —Max Raabe on the founding of the Palast Orchester.
This concert is the fourth concert in the World & Pop Series scheduled for the Kimmel Center Presents 2007/2008 season. The next concert in the series will be Salzburg Marionettes: The Magic Flute, The Sound of Music from Thursday - Saturday, November 8 - 10, 2007 at 7:30pm; and Saturday, November 10, 2007 at 2:30pm.
Tickets for Max Raabe & Palast Orchester are $34 and $44, and can be purchased by calling 215-893-1999, online at www.kimmelcenter.org, or at the Kimmel Center box office open daily from 10am to 6pm and later on performance evenings. (Additional fees may apply). For group sales call 215-790-5883.
A limited number of $10 tickets are available for every Kimmel Center Presents performance at the Kimmel Center. Tickets go on sale the day of the event and can be purchased at the Kimmel Center box office beginning 2.5 hours prior to curtain time and 11:30am for matinees. Limit one ticket per person.
Keeping true to their mission of musical authenticity, Max Raabe & The Palast Orchester prides itself in performing original arrangements of classic standards in a setting true to turn-of-the-century Berlin cabaret. The ensemble’s repertoire includes more than 400 songs from the golden era and several cabaret-style covers of songs by Prince, Queen and Britney Spears. Appealing to music lovers of all generations, the timeless German group has sold out venues all over Europe and has become an instant sensation in the United States.
The Palast Orchester was founded by Raabe and several students in 1986. After lauded success, the Orchester went on to record more than 20 albums and currently performs over 160 shows annually throughout Europe and the United States.
Max Raabe has been entertaining audiences for more than 15 years as a solo artist, actor and voice of the Palast Orchester. He received his formal music education as a classical baritone from the Academy of Fine Arts in Berlin. Although recognized most for his work with the Orchester, Raabe has also made several appearances on TV and in film including the 1992 Berlin cult production, Im Weesen Rossi. In June 2005, he was awarded the Paul-Linkie Ring of the city of Goslar for his "great contribution to the German entertainment industry."
"Max Raabe or silence." (Neue Züricher Zeitung, September 24, 2006)
Kimmel Center Presents 2007/2008 season is sponsored by Citi. Support for the Mellon Jazz Series comes from The Bank of New York Mellon. The Great Orchestra Series is supported by ARC Wheeler. Additional support is provided by the University of Pennsylvania Health System and American Express. American Airlines is the Official Airline of Kimmel Center Presents. Toyota is the Official Vehicle of Kimmel Center Presents Mellon Jazz, Mellon Jazz Up Close and World & Pop.
The Kimmel Center also receives support from the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, Pennsylvania Council on the Arts, The William Penn Foundation, The Wachovia Foundation, Verizon Foundation, PNC Foundation, The Philadelphia Chapter of the American Guild of Organists, and the Philadelphia Music Project and Dance Advance, Initiatives of The Pew Charitable Trust administered by The University of the Arts. In-kind support is generously provided by Deloitte. NBC-10 is a Media Partner for Kimmel Center Presents, and additional media sponsors include WDAS, WRTI, WJJZ, Afro-Pop, WXPN and WXPN's Kids Corner 20th Anniversary.
Free in the Plaza programming and subsidized tickets offered to the community and social service groups for $10 are made possible through the Wachovia Gateway to the Arts Community Access Program, supported by a generous grant from Wachovia Foundation.
KIMMEL CENTER PRESENTS SPONSORED BY CITI
Saturday, November 3, 2007 | 7:30pm
Perelman Theater
World & Pop Series
Max Raabe & Palast Orchester
Max Raabe (Vocals)
Cecilia Crisafulli (Violine)
Vincent Riewe (Drums, Percussion)
Ian Wekwerth (Piano)
Ulrich Hoffmeier (Guitar, Banjo, Violin)
Bernd Hugo Dieterich (Bass, Sousaphone)
Thomas Huder (Trumpet, Vocals)
Michael Enders (Trumpet, Vocals)
Bernd Frank (Tenorsax, Clarinet)
Sven Bährens (Altosax, Clarinet)
Johannes Ernst (Altosax, Clarinet)
Rainer Fox (Baritonsax, Bass Sax, Clarinet, Vocals)
Jörn Ranke (Trombone, Viola, Vocals)
Musical Director: Bernd Frank
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