Max Raabe & Palast Orchester Make Venue Debut at Walt Disney Concert Hall, 4/10

Max Raabe & Palast Orchester make their Walt Disney Concert Hall debut on Wednesday, April 10, 2013 at 8:00 PM performing songs from and in the style of the 1920s and 1930s.

With debonair charm and wit, Raabe and his orchestra unveil their brand new program I Won't Dance, which includes classics from the Great American Songbook that Raabe uncovered during a recent trip to Chicago, as well as original arrangements of hits, dance hall songs, and chansons, alongside new songs penned by Raabe himself. The program will also include popular German songs; the original dance-band arrangement of Kurt Weill's "Mack the Knife;" traditional arrangements of songs by the Comedian Harmonists; popular songs from Cole Porter and Irving Berlin; and the band's signature mix of Cuban rumbas, happy foxtrots, and stylish tangos. As the Boston Globe recently wrote, Max Raabe and Palast Orchester go "beyond mere surface; this is serious music making. The 12-piece band is vibrant, versatile, exquisitely balanced, and tight as a bow tie."

Founded in 1986 by the charismatic baritone Max Raabe, Max Raabe & Palast Orchester embodies the high style and musical glory of the '20s and '30s and has been heard by adoring audiences worldwide, performing over 100 concerts a year. A singer of incredible range, Raabe has the ability to capture the cunning rasp of the cabaret singer, the confident belcanto hero, the oily melodiousness of the revue beau, the carefree timbre of early jazz, as well as the falsetto of ragtime, all backed by his stellar 12-member band, many of whom have been with him from the beginning.

Raabe's passion for music was first roused by a record he found in his parents' cupboard - a humorous instrumental called I'm Crazy About Hilda. Before long he was collecting 78s in flea markets and junk shops. By the age of 16 he was an expert on the songs and styles of the turbulent Weimar era, his enthusiasm fuelled by black-and-white films featuring music, dance and comedy. He then discovered the Lieder maestro Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau, who remains his musical idol. Still in his teens, he plucked up the courage to dress up in his father's top hat and tails at the height of the disco era to sing old-fashioned favorites at parties for friends.

In his early '20s Max moved to Berlin to study opera, dreaming of becoming a baritone, moonlighting with a friend to perform the songs he loved so much at bars and student parties. After graduating, he made a handful of appearances in Carmina Burana at the Berlin Philharmonie, but quickly realized his true love remained the music of the '20s and '30s. Surprised to find that there was no ensemble performing such songs, he formed Palast Orchester with fellow students.

For a complete artist biography, please visit: http://www.laphil.com

WHO: MAX RAABE & PALAST ORCHESTER

WHEN: Wednesday, April 10, 2013, at 8:00 PM

WHERE: Walt Disney CONCERT HALL
111 S. Grand Avenue
Los Angeles, CA 90012

TICKETS: Tickets are now on sale at LAPhil.com, the Walt Disney Concert Hall Box Office, via credit card phone order at 323.850.2000, or by calling Ticketmaster at 800.745.3000. Tickets can also be purchased at all Ticketmaster outlets. For more information, please call 323.850.2000.