As a professional singer in front of a 12-piece orchestra, one might think that Max Raabe finds performing the best part of his job. Although he enjoys singing to appreciative audiences, it ranks second to the satisfaction that Raabe finds off stage.

"I find the rehearsals the most fascinating." Raabe said. "To discover a new song, to possibly have found it at a flea market or in an archive, to arrange it for the orchestra, to meticulously work on the piece and then rehearse it together, that is the most exciting part of our work."

Max Raabe & The Palast Orchester from Germany will perform at 8 p.m. Saturday at the Paramount Theatre in its Chicago-area premiere.

"We play the hits, dance-hall songs and chansons (cabaret songs) of the '20s and early '30s in their original arrangements," Raabe said. "We play music from the composers and lyricists such as Friedrich Hollaender, Kurt Weill, Mischa Spoliansky, Walter Jurmann and Fritz Kreisler. But we also have quite a few American standards in our program such as Singin' in the Rain or Cheek to Cheek. These are presented in the original arrangements from when they were composed."

It is the songs that the orchestra performs that most people find appealing, according to Raabe.

"The music and lyrics speak for themselves," he said. "The bizarre, archaic humor; the smug irony; the melancholy of these superficially carefree songs have found a large and also very young audience who have discovered this music for themselves. The pieces are timelessly modern. In their short three minutes they speak of love, jealousy and separation. From the first kiss to the last kiss. Or also about potted plants. Last, but not least, the audience feels the musical seriousness with which we perform the pieces on stage in their original arrangements. We treat the pieces no differently than we would songs from Schubert."

A singer of incredible range, Raabe has the ability to capture the cunning rasp of the cabaret singer, the carefree timbre of early jazz and the falsetto of ragtime. Max Raabe & Palast Orchester are slick and nostalgic and unmistakably modern through Raabe's skewed humor. Also impressive is that the orchestra performs without a conductor.

"We have a music director who is also one of the musicians in the orchestra," Raabe said. "During the concert all of the musicians pay attention to one another. Using internal signals and agreements we are even able to change tempos radically without a conductor."

It is the interaction among the band members that brings great satisfaction to its leader.

"The concerts with the Palast Orchester are a great delight," said Raabe about his role as singer and leader of the group. "We've known each other so well now for years; we can blindly rely upon one another. We all know how each one of us reacts on stage and the orchestra knows exactly when I breathe or make a pause. That, in itself, is the greatest thing."

Max Raabe & The Palast Orchester will perform at 8 p.m. Saturday, at the Paramount Theatre. Tickets are $65.50, $45.50, $35.50 and $25.50 and can be purchased at the Paramount Theatre box office, by phone at (630) 896-6666 or at any TicketMaster ticket outlet. An Oktoberfest celebration will take place from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. in the Grand Gallery at the Paramount Theatre. This performance of Max Raabe & The Palast Orchester is sponsored by 90.9 FM WDCB.

-- by Randall G. Mielke