Scandal at Curtis

Collection of breaking news and reactions to The Curtis Institue of Music's handling of Sexual Assault Allegations

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Curtis’s Feeble Attempt at Self-Accountability

In the days following the exposé in The Philadelphia Inquirer of the sexual abuse of former student Lara St. John, the Curtis Institute offered two lackluster apologies to its alumni for mishandling the situation.

The first proclaimed, “We sincerely regret not properly conveying today the weight of our commitment to these values,” followed by a list of bare minimums met by the current sexual-harassment policy, including “Orientation, constituent handbooks, and our annual Security and Fire Safety Report.” The second, written by Curtis president Roberto Diaz, included a promise that “we will do whatever is needed to make this right” and a pledge to establish an anonymous reporting hotline.

All its alumni, that is, except Lara St. John herself. She stated in a follow-up piece by Peter Dobrin at The Philadelphia Inquirer that “[It] seems like they are apologizing to everybody but me. I find their statements really hollow... It’s disappointing at best. I think the Curtis management would have contacted me if they were serious about their intent to handle this properly.”

Supporters of St. John expressed similar views on the attempts the Curtis Institute made to hold itself and its staff accountable for how St. John was treated after reporting the assault committed against her by her former teacher, the late Jascha Brodsky.

Megan DeJarnett, a composer, trumpet player, and advocate for sexual assault survivors, published a post on her blog last week about her thoughts on how the Curtis Institute mishandled the situation. She also offered solutions as to what Curtis could do to rectify the matter and to protect its students in the future.

Unless the hotline and its administrators are held to stringent ethical standards, Curtis could use the information they receive to not only understand how many assaults they’ve covered up (which is useful) but use linguistics, phone numbers, and other available data to determine the likelihood of being held accountable in court by someone who’s still able to bring a suit against them (which defeats the purpose of an anonymous hotline). They could cross-reference the allegations they receive with communication records and justify a continued dismissal of a case with a simple “we already looked into this, remember?”

If this hotline is going to have a truly positive effect on the student body and alumni network, Curtis needs to be ultra-transparent as they set it up. We need to know who is administering the hotline (spoiler: it should be a third party consultant with a comprehensive understanding of the ways in which music education can leave students particularly vulnerable to sexual abuse). We need to know how this hotline will interface with Title IX guidelines while maintaining the anonymity they’re promising. We need to know who at Curtis will have access to what amount of data from the hotline and how they’re going to use that information. We need to know that no part of using the hotline will be construed as tacit consent to an NDA or any other agreement that would limit an individual’s ability to speak publicly on the matter should they wish to. We need to know whether or not any of the data received could be mandatory-reported without a victim’s knowledge...

Similar opinions were voiced by Bronwyn Banerdt, a cellist in the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra and a 2008 graduate of the Curtis Institute of Music.

While handbooks and hotlines are certainly good starting points, these are not sufficient indications of an institution on the leading edge of creating a culture of safety, transparency, and honest dialogue around these painful issues. The values of excellence and leadership are fundamental to the Curtis philosophy, and these are sorely missing from its response to this crisis.

The antidote to this plague is to speak freely and to be heard. No organization is immune to the cultural poison of assault and abuse, but the answer is never to sweep the dirt under the rug. Curtis should indeed reach out to alumni and students — but instead of asking for their silence and then doling out apologies, it should ask for the truth. If the giants of the classical music world who trained generations of the world’s finest artists committed unthinkable acts, then that uncomfortable truth must coexist alongside their musical legacies.

It is unclear how the Curtis Institute will proceed from here, but one can only hope that its staff recognizes the severity of their errors and rectify them in a way that provides support for the victims who were subject to sexual assault within the Institute’s walls.

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Dean Robert Fitzpatrick’s Betrayal of Trust Article Brought In To Cynical New Light

It’s easy to imagine that when Curtis Institute of Music Dean Robert Fitzpatrick published his article “A betrayal of trust” he had long forgotten about how he failed Lara St John. His stated purpose for the article was “to offer a checklist for others especially those who are administrators and teachers at troubled schools around the world.” In light of the recent Philadelphia Inquirer article highlighting sexual assault accusations against long time Curtis Institute teacher Jascha Brodsky.

According to the Philadelphia Inquirer, Lara St John brought the accusation to Fitzpatrick in 1986, he reportedly exclaimed:  “‘Oh, for God’s sake, who do you think they’re going to believe? Some 15-year-old kid or someone who has been here for decades?’” In fact, by his own admission Robert Fitzpatrick says that he spoke to Brodsky and asked him to be more mindful with female students. Then Fitzpatrick admits to never following up on the matter again.

Interestingly not following up is not a best practice on Fitzpatrick’s lengthy checklist. On that checklist Fitzpatrick identifies the faculty as the lynchpin to successfully protecting students from just the sort of sexual accusations in the Lara St John case. 

It is no small irony to read Fitzpatrick’s own words: “Like the Catholic Church, music schools tended to sweep their dirty little secrets under the rug.” 

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Roberto Diaz, President Of The Curtis Institute of Music Issues An Apology Of Sorts

Yesterday, Roberto Diaz, President and CEO of The Curtis Institute of Music, issued an apology via email. The apology came as Curtis scrambled to deal with the public backlash sparked by a letter from Patricia K. Johnson Senior Director of Communications and Marketing Curtis Institute of Music. The letter sought to dissuade alumni, parents, and students of the institute from talking about sexual allegations with journalists or on social media. 

Below is the text of Roberto Diaz’s apology:  To the entire Curtis community: Yesterday we communicated with all of you in a way that was not consistent with our values.We have understandably lost your trust and for that I am profoundly sorry. I promise you we will do whatever is needed to make this right. As a first step toward this promise, Curtis will establish an anonymous reporting hotline. We will reach out again with more information about this service in the coming days. Sincerely,

Roberto Díaz President and CEO

While the establishment of anonymous reporting hotline is a long-awaited and welcome first step by the institute, it is still very unclear how Curtis will address claims brought in by the hotline. Nor does the apology address ongoing investigation into sexual abuse claims against revered Curtis instructor Jascha Brodsky.

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After Sexual Assault Allegations The Curtis Institute of Music Publicly Responded on Twitter

The Curtis Institute of Music posted on Twitter a boilerplate comment on how it takes sexual assault and sexual misconduct seriously and how it adheres to its TItle IX obligations. The post on Twitter was in response to sexual assault allegations brought forth by renowned violinist Lara St John against her deified teacher Jascha Brodsky. Here is the tweet from the Curtis Institute of Music: 

This tweet by The Curtis Institute of Music was posted shortly after Patricia K. Johnson Senior Director of Communications and Marketing for the Institute sent out a letter to alumni, parents, and students, encouraging them not to talk to journalists or about the matter on social media. 

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Social Media Responses to Recent Allegations Against The Curtis Institute of Music

The Philadelphia Inquirer recently published several bombshell articles (1,2,3) focusing on sexual assault allegations against long-time violinist and Curtis teacher Jascha Brodsky.  Social Media has responded strongly to the incident. Here are some of those responses.

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Philadelphia Inquirer Claims to Have Found Four More Women Abused Jascha Brodsky

The Philadelphia Inquirer announced that it found four women who all claim to be have been victims of sexual assault by Jascha Brodsky. All four women attended The Curtis Institute for Music during the 1980s.   One of the women the Philadelphia Inquirer talked to even says she was coerced into a multi-year sexual relationship with Jascha Brodsky: 

A third woman said that when she was 20 and studying with another teacher, Brodsky initiated a friendship that developed into a two-year sexual relationship. She described herself as painfully shy and vulnerable when Brodsky first invited her to dinner. She said she looks back on the relationship with regret and believes she was taken advantage of.

Despite the seriousness of these accusations The Curtis Institute of Music has still failed to encourage possible victims from coming forward. Recently Patricia Patricia K. Johnson, Senior Director of Communications and Marketing at The Curtis Institute of Music, sent out a letter attempting to keep alumni and student families from talking about the incident to press or even on social media. 

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Curtis Institute of Music Fails #metoo Opportunity to Listen

In 1986, when she Robert Fitzpatrick, who was at that time the dean of The Curtis Institute of Music, that she had been abused, he mocked her, she recalls.

“ ‘Oh, for God’s sake, who do you think they’re going to believe? Some 15-year-old kid or someone who has been here for decades?’ ” St. John, 48, remembers him saying. “And I agreed with him totally. They wouldn’t believe me.”

33 years later and The Curtis Institute of Music is still unwilling to listen to Lara’s accusations that renowned violinist and Curtis teacher Jascha Brodsky sexually assaulted her when she was his student. Whether the institute is attempting to safeguard Brodsky’s reputation or the institute’s own, is unclear.  If a school of such prestige can hide behind the power of its name and donors, with out a full investigation then what chance does truth have? If a bestselling renowned artist with a Juno Award and a national media platform can be simply shutdown, what chance does anyone have at justice? What message does this tell to survivors of sexual violence? Especially since the school is making a calculated attempt to discourage alumni and student families from talking to journalists or about the subject on social media.

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Curtis Institute of Music Requires Social Media Silence from Alumni, Parents, and Students in Response to Sexual Misconduct Claims

Here is a copy of the chilling letter that Particia K. Johnson, Senior Director of Communications and Marketing for The Curtis Institute of Music, sent out to alumni, parents, and students as reported by the Philadelphia Inquirer here:

From: "Johnson, Patricia" Date: July 25, 2019 at 6:23:06 AM EDT   To: Undisclosed recipients. Subject: Philadelphia Inquirer Article Dear Curtis Alumni, Earlier today, The Philadelphia Inquirer published an article online about an incident that was alleged to have occurred at Curtis in the 19805. This article will also appear in print this Sunday July 28. We assure you that Curtis is committed to the safety, security, and well- being of our students, staff, faculty, and audiences. We do not tolerate assault or harassment of any kind and are proactive in efforts to create a safe and healthy campus environment. Copies of current Curtis policies, handbooks, and other safety documentation is available upon request. If you are contacted by journalists for comment on this story, please refer them to me. 

If you have any alumni-related questions, please don't hesitate to contact. Additionally, out of respect for all those involved, we request that you refrain from discussing this matter publicly, online, or on social media. 

Sincerely, Patricia

Patricia K. Johnson, Senior Director of Communications and Marketing, Curtis Institute of Music 

Instead of encouraging possible victims and witnesses from coming forward, this letter has a chilling affect. Donors, sponsors, and the board of directors at The Curtis Institute of Music should all be concerned about what picture this draws of the schools ethics.