Saturday was a long, long day. I attended the Women’s March on LA and carried their official banner. I’m not a spring chicken and was still beat on Sunday, so I didn’t really want to go to the concert. How fortunate that I did! Instead of being something I tiredly sat through, it was just the tonic my sore body and soul needed. What a remarkable event!

The evening opened with the U.S. premiere of Weill’s “Song-Suite for Violin and Orchestra”, performed without interval and beautifully arranged by Paul Bateman. The exuberance and enthusiasm of the Orchestra, with Daniel Hope as violin soloist, lifted my spirits and created a feeling of light hearted well-being in the house.

Jeff Kahane is a superhero. Before leading the West Coast premiere of Bruce Adolphe’s Violin Concerto “I Will Not Remain Silent”, he pulled a copy of the US Constitution from his pocket and said, “We must not, cannot and will not remain silent.” Standing ovation. Kahane has developed such a sense of intimacy in his relationship with the audience over the years that we know how personal this is for him. His passion and conviction are inspiring. This performance was compelling, conveying the fear and constant weight of living in Nazi-occupied Berlin in the first movement while and bringing us to America during the struggle for civil rights with all its upheaval and turbulence in the second. Daniel Hope’s violin, a little rough and very rich, became the individual voices, striving to be heard.

After the intermission—and a moment to calm ourselves—we were treated to Pink Martini’s Storm Large with Hudson Shad, the vocal quartet, as her chorus. Singing the dual Annas in Weill’s The Seven Deadly Sins, Large showed her mastery of both the innocence and licentiousness of her character’s splintered personality. In keeping with the sentiment of the night, she donned the symbol of the Women’s March, a pink, pussy-eared knit cap for a small portion of the “Wrath” section.  It was Powerful. Yes, with a capital P. And if there was anyone who wasn’t teary-eyed and feeling very patriotic by that point, she came back with an encore of her own creation, “Stand Up for Me”, a moving love song that took on an even deeper meaning for us all. Not a dry eye in the house. But what an inspired and inspiring night!

Thank you very much for that, LACO. I will not remain silent.