Award-winning Thai saxophonist and composer Pathorn Srikaranonda has performed in over thirty countries around the world, in classical orchestral concerts, festivals and intimate jazz clubs. He is regarded as the musical cantor of His Majesty King Bhumibol of Thailand, and was a leading member of the late King's Au-Sau Friday Band for over three decades.
His notable performances include The Royal Jazz Celebration, a year-long program celebrating King Bhumibol's 84th birthday, with HRH Princess Sirindhorn and the Preservation Hall Jazz Band of New Orleans (2010); the Royal Command performance for HRH Prince Henrik of Denmark in Copenhagen, presenting his jazz suite An Elephantine Ballad (2012); the Royal Festival at the Royal Palace in Stockholm, Sweden (2013); the Lyra International Music Festival in Budapest, Hungary, with his composition Portrait of Siam (1999); the Concert Royal with the Orchestre National de Lille at the Opéra Comique in Paris, France (1999); the Manrat Jazz Quintet at the Hôtel de Ville in Paris, France (1999); the 70th anniversary concert of the Dutch Swing College Band in The Hague, Netherlands (2015); the French Quarter Festival in New Orleans, Louisiana (2017); the Royal Memorial Concert with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra in London, UK, with his composition In Memoriam for the late King Bhumibol (2017).
During the 2022-23 season, he will perform at the following venues: a month-long "Ministry of Jazz" concert tour in the Netherlands with the Dutch Swing College Band; the Fai Bei Souni festival at the Saxophone Museum in Fiumicino, Italy, with his Italian quartet; the 125th anniversary celebration of the friendship between Thailand and Russia in Moscow, Russia; the Floriade exhibition in Almere, the Netherlands, with the Amsterdam Jazz Trio ; his fifth appearance at the Snake City Jazz Festival in Slangerup, Denmark, with his New Orleans jazz band Kitasewi; the Royal Command's performance for HM King Norodom Sihamoni and HM Queen Mother of Cambodia at the Royal Palace in Phnom Penh; the Chiang Mai Street Jazz Festival in Chiang Mai, Thailand and the Triumph Jazz Festival in Moscow and St Petersburg, Russia.
Srikaranonda has received numerous awards, such as the Best Jazz Improvisation Award from the Collegiate Jazz Festival in South Bend, Indiana, the Best Jazz Performance Award from the Tri-C JazzFest in Cleveland, Ohio, and the Lyra Award from the Hungarian Foundation for Performance Art. He received certificates of recognition from the City of Los Angeles in 2003, from the Prime Minister of Thailand in 2005 and 2007, and from the Thai Senate Chamber in 2011. He was appointed Commander of the Order of Merit by the President of Portugal in 2011, Companion of the Order of the White Elephant in 2012 and Commander of the Order of the Crown of Thailand in 2020.
Srikaranonda is associate professor of saxophone and composition at Kasetsart University and founding president of the Saxophone Association (Thailand).
Photo credit: Christopher Wadsworth
