From the first minutes of our June 8 benefit concert, I think everyone in that sold-out concert hall suspected they were in for a musical adventure like none other. Some three hours later, the audience knew that to be true, having heard an amazing array of music performed by some of the most brilliant artists in the world. I don’t know how to really do justice to what took place, so let me just start by saying thanks to everyone who played a role on stage: our leader Branford Marsalis and his stupefyingly talented pianist Joey Calderazzo, Joe Newberry and his incomparable string band Big Medicine, our NCS string quartet of Rebekah Binford, Karen Strittmatter Galvin, David Marschall and Bonnie Thron that played so beautifully, the unstoppable Phil Wiggins on harmonica, Tina Morris-Anderson and her heart-stopping vocals, our new best friend Scott Ainslie, and of course our own Grant Llewellyn: emcee, host, pianist (!), and guest vocalist.

It’s truly impossible to cite just a few moments as the highlights of what took place on stage at Meymandi Concert Hall, except to possibly say that the moment that Branford’s new recording with Joey comes out sometime next year you must obtain a copy the first day it is available, simple as that. I’m not sure I ever quite recovered from their first four tunes that set the stage for all that came afterward. The evening was a spell-binding musical journey and made for a remarkable tribute to an orchestra – the North Carolina Symphony – that these artists all share as a common passion.

I also want to acknowledge the off-stage efforts of the staff that worked tirelessly to make last night so perfect, as it took the whole team to raise the money, sell the tickets, and make countless moving pieces on stage work together. In particular I want to thank Scott Freck who was at the epicenter of planning everything that took place on stage. Scott, what you accomplished last night makes us all proud to know you and to work with you, and what you gave the audience last night was a true gift. You and your artistic operations team are as good as they get.

As I did last night from the stage, let me also again thank the corporate and community leadership for putting its support behind this concert. From Highwoods’ presenting sponsorship and Greg Hatem’s gorgeous reception at Sitti for the corporate sponsors right down to that very last $20 ticket that was sold behind the stage in Choir Loft 3, together this community raised more than $140,000 for the benefit of the orchestra. Pretty great for a single night’s effort that was, of course, an entire year in the making.

Branford, my hat is off to you. None of this would have happened without your generous offer, at the height of our financial distress one year ago, to play a benefit concert to help raise some money for our orchestra. It turned into so much more than that and something for which we will be forever grateful. You played beautifully all night long and gave everyone there something we’ll remember for a long time to come. On behalf of all of us, thank you.