Violinist Lara St John’s Testimony Supports New Bill for Child Abuse Survivors

The bill, allowing victims of child abuse to gain justice in court, has passed to the House and Senate in Pennsylvania, following Lara’s statement of her abuse at the Curtis Institute of Music

The award-winning Canadian violinist Lara St. John recently spoke at the Pennsylvania House Judiciary Committee on May 5, 2025, which discussed legislative changes addressing historical cases of abuse, particularly those involving minors.

She was joined on the panel by Marcy Hamilton, founder of Child USA, a nonprofit improving laws and policies to protect children’s rights. They both spoke of the need for accountability and systemic change to prevent such abuses in the future.

Lara and Hamilton addressed the Judiciary Committee in support of House Bills 462 and 464 — both bills passed the Judiciary Committee vote (15-11) the next morning on May 6.

Now, the bills must pass the House and the Senate in Pennsylvania to become law. If approved, they would change the Statute of Limitations and allow historical victims of child sex abuse to seek justice in court, explained oboist Katherine Needleman, who accompanied Lara to the hearing. 

In July 2019, Lara told the Philadelphia Inquirer that as a 14-year-old first-year student at the Curtis Institute of Music in 1985, her then 78-year-old violin teacher, Jascha Brodsky, attempted to kiss her and touch her inappropriately on multiple occasions over a six month period. The behavior then progressed to rape in his office.

Since the article was published, a public and personal acknowledgement and apology were issued by Curtis, which Lara says in testimony she has “not heard from since.”

Hundreds of women, and a few men, have contacted her to share their experiences with abuse, assault, and harassment in the classical music industry. 

Now, Lara has created a full-length documentary titled “Dear Lara,” which explores her personal experience in addition to those of other victims at music schools and orchestras around the world.

“This is what I did yesterday. I told my story in front of the House Judiciary Committee of Pennsylvania,” Lara posted on Facebook. “For anyone who does not believe in trauma and its lasting effects, let me tell you that I had trouble walking out of the building. I have played giant solo recitals, three concertos in a row, gone down and up the Grand Canyon alone in a day, and that six minute speech was the hardest thing I have done so far in my life. I’ve never been so spent.

“I was aware that I was representing thousands of child victims, some no longer with us, a towering responsibility. A little over halfway through I started to think of them, and broke slightly but managed to finish.

“When I recover a bit more, I’ll write about what I think of the split, but for now I’ll celebrate that the bill passed the Committee 15-11. The bill is to allow the victims of child abuse to have justice in court. Now it needs to pass the House and the Senate, in Pennsylvania.”

To watch the public hearing, click here.