New Haven Register (Sunday) (New Haven, CT)
‘Choosing to embrace change’
New Haven Symphony Orchestra holds virtual gala
Lights, camera, action. It’s the New Haven Symphony Orchestra. As the NHSO prepares to celebrate its 127th year with its annual gala on Feb. 6, symphony leaders find themselves trying entirely new things.
“In a lot of ways, we’re producing our first TV special,” said Elaine Carroll, the NHSO’s chief executive officer.
The symphony’s Rise Gala will take place live at the Woodwinds banquet hall in Branford, but the event will be streamed virtually to patrons.
The night’s entertainment includes the premiere of “RISE,” an arrangement written by NHSO Young Composer Program graduate Anton Kot with live choreography, plus music written by Wilbur Cross
High School students performed by the NHSO’s Harmony Quartet, a silent auction and a virtual red carpet cocktail hour made available as an exclusive benefit with the purchase of tickets above the “patron” level.
Carroll said cocktail hour mingling is often one of patrons’ highlights of NHSO events.
“I know I personally miss that a lot. You get to find out the terrific things that are going on around town,” she said. “You don’t have those moments to bump into people and see what they’ve been up to anymore.”
The gala is online, so there will not be live catering, but attendees have the option of reserving a Woodwinds meal for pickup or delivery.
The gala is “our largest fundraising effort for the New Haven Symphony Orchestra annually,” said Shari Smith, symphony board director, gala committee co-chairwoman and the night’s emcee.
“With all the economic, social, political and racial inequality we’re seeing throughout the United States and in our community in New Haven, the symphony is serving a greater purpose,” Smith said. “It’s giving a greater opportunity to us to say that we’re all in a bad spot, but at least let’s get a little reprieve to enjoy some music for a couple of hours.”
One of the ways the NHSO plans to provide that reprieve, Smith said, is through recognizing
and honoring community leaders. The NHSO offers four awards, one for each of its foundational values — artistry, education, history and innovation — to figures of importance to the city or to music.
This year’s honorees are soprano Harolyn Blackwell, New Haven librarians Diane Brown and Xia Feng, the Yale University School of Public Health, and musician Helen Eugenia Hagan.
Smith said she believes the
posthumous honoring of Hagan is of particular importance. The late composer and pianist was among the first Black women to attend the Yale School of Music but was not properly recognized for her work or contributions during her life, she said.
“She really was not given the right credit she deserves,” Smith said.
Smith said the Yale School of Public Health merits recognition for its work and innovation
during the COVID-19 pandemic.
NHSO Board Director Burton Alter will be recognized with the Wattles Award, the NHSO’s highest honor, for his involvement in local nonprofit organizations such as the Community Soup Kitchen and the Neighborhood Music School.
Carroll said an unexpected upside of holding a virtual gala is the increased access it offers to patrons.
“I think there’s a certain issue with galas in that they have at times been restrictive in who the audience is, but because we’re trying something new you can now bring people in from all over the country, really,” she said.
“We have a large group of first-time gala-goers who we wouldn’t have seen.”
Carroll said the virtual gala creates more opportunities for people across the nation to be present as they honor Hagan’s legacy than expecting them to fly into the city for two days and book a hotel room.
Carroll said NHSO leadership made a decision about 10 years ago to be more mindful of running an organization that belongs to its community.
“In an orchestra, you need a force of people, and the more you add the more magnificent it becomes,” she said.
The same applies to a city’s involvement in the arts, she said. “If, during a pandemic we can’t play, we can be better listeners.”
Carroll said commissioning Kot’s “RISE” is an example of how the NHSO is working synchronously with the city of New Haven.
“Our mantra is to embrace change, because we don’t have a choice. But we are choosing to embrace change,” she said.
Gala tickets start at $30 and can be purchased at NewHavenSymphony.org/Gala, by email at Development@NewHavenSymphony.org, or by calling 203-865-0831, ext. 18.