Port Washington native Solomon Hoffman and his ensemble, The Songwriter’s Orchestra, will present Chain’s Don’t Rattle Themselves: A Concert for Youth Justice at Landmark on Main Street on Sunday, March 12th at 4 p.m.
The concert is presented in collaboration with Herstory Writers Workshop, a Long Island-based organization that helps incarcerated people write down their stories.
New York is one of only two states in the country that prosecutes 16- and 17-year-olds as adults.
The Raise the Age campaign, begun in 2012, has been advocating for an end to this procedure and a new law that would provide teenagers with rehabilitative alternatives to adult prisons, reducing their likelihood of facing abuse and returning to prison later in life.
With strong momentum around the cause and support from Gov. Andrew Cuomo and the state assembly, 2017 may be a tipping point for this vital criminal justice reform campaign.
The concert will feature raw autobiographical stories shared by writers whose lives have been directly affected by this issue, as well as original songs adapted from their stories.
A poignant, but empowering event, Chains Don’t Rattle Themselves seeks to break through barriers of judgement and mobilize audiences to take direct action supporting the Raise the Age campaign for youth criminal justice reform in New York State.
Songwriters and performers participating include rapper Latasha Alcindor (a.k.a, L.A)., Brinae Ali (“Shuffle Along”), Olivia Harris, Zhailon Levingston (i LLA), John-Michael Lyles (Barrow Street’s “Sweeney Todd”), Taylor Simone (“Jazze Belle”), Britton Smith (“Shuffle Along”), and Allison Strong (“Mamma Mia”).
The title of the album is derived from Dathonie Pinto’s forthcoming book, Chains Don’t Rattle Themselves.
The event will feature stories developed by Herstory Writers Workshop, read by Pinto, Anjelique Wadlington, and more.
The project was conceived by Alex Hare and Hoffman, with direction by Hare, arrangements by Hoffman and co-produced by Harris.
Hoffman graduated from Schreiber High School in 2010 and went on to get a B.A. from Columbia University.
He has remained active in the Port Washington community by serving as conductor of the Port Summer Show from 2007-2015, founding and curating the Café Music series at Dolphin Bookshop, which will celebrate it’s fifth anniversary in June, as well as presenting concerts at Sands Point Preserve.
He currently works as an educator and musical director at the Reconstructionist Synagogue of the North Shore and freelances as an orchestrator and composer in New York City.
The Songwriter’s Orchestra is a one-of-a-kind ensemble of twelve musicians that collaborates with singers and songwriters of diverse musical backgrounds to present arrangements of original songs.
The group has performed its unique concerts at Feinstein’s 54 Below, Le Poisson Rouge, the Laurie Beechman Theatre, Miller Theatre and the Dolphin Café.
Its members have trained at top music schools, including the Juilliard School, Manhattan School of Music, the New School for Jazz and Contemporary Music, and the Eastman School of Music.
Herstory Writers Workshop brings unheard voices into the public arena, transforming lived experiences into written memoirs powerful enough to change hearts, minds and policy.
For over two decades, in English and Spanish, in the jails, in schools and in the community, Herstory writers have been writing to be heard.
Empowered by the techniques that turn their private experiences into gripping narratives meant to waken a stranger into caring, with each word, with each scene they create there is an intensity and passion that startles visitors to their public presentations and events.
The concert is co-sponsored by the New York Chapter of Bend the Arc: A Jewish Partnership for Justice.
Bend the Arc has been engaged on increasing public awareness and action on Raise the Age campaign as part of their broader mission to achieve meaningful criminal justice reform at the local and state level.
The concert may not be suitable for children under the age of 10.
Tickets can be purchased at thesongwritersorchestra.com.
