Summer Concert Review - Pink Martini at the Arvada Center of the Arts

Pink Martini Concert Review

by Addie Callahan

The Arvada Center for the Arts left nothing to be desired from their concert headlining Pink Martini on Sunday, July 7th. The concert was part of an ongoing outdoor summer concert series at the Center. Thus, the concert-goers came out with their picnic baskets, blankets and fold up chairs for a wonderful evening of instrumental music.

Pink Martini w/ Storm Large

This orchestral group started off with a Spanish/Latin vibe playing music that transported you to the sunny beaches of Latin America. After a few songs of this style, the head of the ensemble introduced the vocalist Storm Large, who had only recently debuted at Carnegie Hall. She kicked things up a notch when she started to improvise dance moves along with the music.

This group works together like a well oiled machine, playing off of each other’s energy and remaining constantly on point and in time with the music. One of the most surprising treats of Pink Martini’s performance is that almost all of the musicians are as equally vocally talented as they are instrumentally. I found this to be a refreshing surprise after seeing many orchestral groups who only have one or two vocalists in their group. 

Before each song, Pink Martini would elaborate on how the next part of the set came to be created. The band explained how some songs were inspired by a famous musician of the past, and other songs pulled inspiration from an old ‘Life’ magazine advertisement for Hunts Ketchup. Having background information on how the songs were devised really added a unique level of connect between the audience and the music itself. 

Pink Martini

Pink Martini also has a wide variety of languages in which it’s songs were composed: Spanish, Japanese and Creole to name only a few. Having a diverse number of languages kept the set list brimming with variety and surprises that captivated the audience. It was clear to the audience, if not simply by the way musicians introduced each other, that the members of Pink Martini weren't just band-mates, but also dear and long time friends. They applauded their colleagues after their respective solos and some songs featured specific band members.

Above all, Pink Martini was personable and loved to interact with the audience. During two songs they invited the crowd to join them on stage and dance along to the numbers. In addition, they also did a meet and greet after the show, at which point you could talk to the musicians as well as get a piece of their work signed.

This was one of the best organized and executed concerts that I have ever attended. I have tremendous appreciation for the Arvada Center for the Arts, who kept a very clean and beautiful venue. The venue staff which consisted primarily of volunteers was welcoming, helpful and courteous. I would highly recommend attending one of their remaining concerts in this series.

Click here to visit the Arvada Center of the Arts website for ticketing and event information.