Valerie Coleman interviewed for two NY1 features on Carnegie Hall’s Opening Night

Valerie Coleman speaks with NY1 ahead of her work performed for Carnegie Hall’s Opening Night Concert (Photo credit: The Philadelphia Orchestra)

Carnegie Hall will reopen tonight to music inspired by the 7 p.m. cheer
By Stephanie Simon
NY1 Spectrum News
October 6, 2021

NEW YORK — When Carnegie Hall reopens Wednesday night, after more than 18 months in the dark, it will be filled with music by New York composer Valerie Coleman whose work was inspired by the the times; specifically the nightly ritual that became music to the ears of so many essential workers at the height of the pandemic — the 7 p.m. cheer.

It inspired Coleman, an acclaimed New York flutist and composer Valerie. She wrote Seven O’clock Shout for The Philadelphia Orchestra for a virtual performance last year.

“Because my heart was clanging those pots and pans with everyone so it hit the core of who I am," said Coleman.

And now Seven O’clock Shout will be the very first music heard inside Carnegie Hall since it closed abruptly in March 2020 because of the pandemic. The work will be performed by The Philadelphia Orchestra.

Coleman says the music reflects both the isolation of quarantine and that nightly outburst of support.

NY1 caught up with Coleman inside Carnegie Hall’s archive, where archivist Kathleen Sabogal was asking Coleman for a quote about the work, saying it was important to gather that kind of information from living composers.

“It means so much. It tells me this piece has a place in the canon,” said Coleman. “It tells me the message for the piece of solidarity, that we can survive this pandemic, and this message of humanity is something that aligns with Carnegie Hall and Philadelphia orchestra. I think when that happens from a musical standpoint it moves mountains. It’s magical.”

Coleman had left New York City for a teaching position in Miami but has recently returned with her husband and daughter. She’s now teaching at Mannes School of Music at The New School, working on a commission for the Met Opera and making history at Carnegie Hall. And Seven O’clock Shout was supposed to just be the working title.

“And I was about to name it ‘Anthem For Unity’ because I really wanted to make sure people got it right from the beginning,” said Coleman. '“But one of the artistic directors at The Philadelphia Orchestra said, ‘No, no, no, keep Seven O’clock Shout, that’s the title we want to have’ and I think that does actually resonate because there’s a visceral reaction to the word shout, so it works.”

You can watch the concert live at carnegiehall.org at 7 p.m. It’s one more chance to bang your pots and pans and cheer along with our fellow New Yorkers.

To read the full feature, click here.

Music returns to Carnegie Hall after 572 days in the dark
By Stephanie Simon
NY1 Spectrum News
October 6, 2021

Music has returned to Carnegie Hall.

Carnegie Hall’s opening night featured the Philadelphia Orchestra performing works by Shostakovich, Leonard Bernstein, Beethoven, and New York City composer Valerie Coleman. Her work Seven O’Clock Shout opened the concert. It’s inspired by the pandemic ritual of applauding essential workers at 7 p.m. and includes it’s own musical cheer.

“This is awesome. If you look around, you see people who are eager and happy to listen to music live at this epicenter that is Carnegie Hall,” said Coleman before the show.

The night was filled with applause and excitement. This was Lieutenant Governor Brian Benjamin’s first time being in Carnegie Hall.

“This is my first and one of the reasons why I’m here on this night is because it’s so important coming back after COVID. Eighteen months they’ve been closed. Getting reopened is phenomenal and it’s part of the signal that New York is back, New York City is back,” said Benjamin.

Two world renowned opera stars were also enraptured by the music and the importance of the night.

“It’s designed to touch our hearts and make us feel things. It’s cathartic and we all need that after this very challenging period,” said the incomparable Renée Fleming.

“It’s a huge piece of our New York culture and we wouldn’t be New York without Carrnegie Hall,” said star soprano Isabel Leonard.

Before COVID, the longest Carnegie Hall was closed was 10 days after Super Storm Sandy. Now after 572 days it’s had an incredibly reopening night.

“I’m just feeling exhilaration because the arts and particularly music is why New York is New York. The arts are at the core what makes a great city a great city and this city is a magnet for talent in every way. And without the arts it loses its soul,” said Clive Gillinson, an executive and artistic director at Carnegie Hall.

The musicians and concert goers applauded Coleman and her work at the end of the performance —but she says she doesn’t think of it as her music. She thinks of it as an anthem of solidarity for the city and because of that, it belongs to all.

To read the full feature, click here.