Oranj Symphonette

The Oranj Symphonette is a band formed by the members of the Tom Waits Band that used to jam in the middle of the recording sessions. They put 2 albums on the street, one of them covering versions of Henry Mancini in a jazz version. Led by cellist/bassist Matt Brubeck, the group includes Joe Gore and manic multi-instrumentalist Ralph Carney. Individually these three have played with the likes of PJ Harvey, the B-52's, Marc Ribot and more. Collectively, they met recording Tom Waits' score for the Jim Jarmusch film Night On Earth. They stayed in touch, and in 1993 began their reverent and loving deconstruction of Mancini's music. Joined by Scott Amendola, they debuted at San Francisco's Radio Valencia in 1994. Things developed infrequently until 1996 when they recruited Hammond organ/accordion virtuoso Rob Burger and began honing their explosive live chops.