2013
03/18/2013 - The Perlman Music Program Cocktails, Dinner and a Chamber Music Concert in Palm Beach
03/15/2013 - Asia Week New York Kick-off Reception at the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum,
03/12/2013 - Third Annual Fountain House Associates Spring Breakfast: “Between The Sheets”
03/05/2013 - NYU LANGONE MEDICAL CENTER’S FACES GALA HONORING LEON CHARNEY RAISED $4.5 MILLION
02/23/2013 - "I Have A Voice" fundraiser for Gigi's PLAYHOUSE
02/23/2013 - Eleventh Annual “Thanksgiving in February” Feeds over 500 of New York’s Needy
02/21/2013 - The French Heritage Society's Annual Palm Beach Gala Dinner
02/21/2013 - 24th Annual Gala of Heart & Soul Charitable Fund Auction at Christie’s
02/21/2013 - Eva Longoria Hosts Benefit for “Food Chains” Documentary - Exposes Exploitation in Am’s Farm Labor
02/13/2013 - Verdura hosts a fundraiser for“The Michael Feinstein American Songbook Initiative”
02/13/2013 - Lost and Found: The Pinajian Discovery, a benefit preview for the Fund for Armenian Relief
02/08/2013 - 56th Annual Red Cross Ball in Palm Beach
02/07/2013 - Lost and Found: The Pinajian Discovery benefit preview for the Fund for Armenian Relief
02/06/2013 - All Star Orchestra’s Preview Screening of their New Classical Music and On-line Education Television
01/29/2013 - Urban Greenwalk
01/23/2013 - The Perlman Music Program Fourth Charity Wine Auction
01/20/2013 - Budapest Festival Orchestra
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ORCHESTRA OF ST. LUKE’S 2009 “GIFT OF MUSIC” GALA
05/04/2009 - By The Plaza

ORCHESTRA OF ST. LUKE’S 2009 “GIFT OF MUSIC” GALA

ORCHESTRA OF ST. LUKE’S 2009 “GIFT OF MUSIC” GALA HONORS BENEFACTORS OF THE DIMENNA CENTER FOR CLASSICAL MUSIC: THE MARY FLAGLER CARY CHARITABLE TRUST CHARLES GROSSMAN (IN MEMORIAM) M&T BANK BEN NEEDELL & SKADDEN, ARPS, SLATE, MEAGHER & FLOM LLP

The Orchestra of St. Luke’s (OSL) presented its annual “Gift of Music” award at a gala event on Monday, May 4, 2009, at The Plaza. Each year the OSL presents this award to an artist or leader in philanthropy or business who has made a significant contribution to the world of classical music. This year, the “Gift of Music” award was given to four recipients, all of whom have been instrumental in the development and support of The DiMenna Center for Classical Music, the rehearsal, recording, and education center to open in 2011. They are: The Mary Flagler Cary Charitable Trust, the late Charles Grossman in memoriam, M&T Bank, and Ben Needell and his firm of Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP.

“The ‘Gift of Music’ honorees this year have each been absolutely essential to the realization of the long-held dream of St. Luke’s: to provide a state-of-the-art rehearsal and education center for New York’s musical community, and to have a home of its own.” said OSL President and Executive Director Marianne Lockwood. “It is in great part thanks to them that New York will have The DiMenna Center for Classical Music, which will give the city’s classical musicians the resources they desperately need.”

Three hundred guests attended the event, which, OSL board chairman Norman Benzaquen announced, raised $600,000 to support St. Luke’s chamber music, education, and orchestral programs as well as The DiMenna Center for Classical Music. Accepting the “Gift of Music” awards were Gayle Morgan on behalf of The Mary Flagler Cary Charitable Trust; Carol B. Grossman on behalf of her late husband Charles Grossman; Ben Needell of Skadden, Arps, Meagher, Slate and Flom LLP; and John F. Cook on behalf of M&T Bank. New York City Department of Cultural Affairs Commissioner Kate Levin spoke as well, saluting the OSL for creating The DiMenna Center, calling it a vital resource to the City’s cultural community.

The violinist Joshua Bell, the event’s special guest artist, performed “Summer” from Vivaldi’s The Four Seasons with the Orchestra of St. Luke’s, and Damon Gupton conducted the Orchestra in selections from Stravinsky’s Pulcinella Suite and waltzes by Strauss. Mezzo-soprano Susan Graham, the guest artist at last year’s “Gift of Music” gala, co-hosted the event with Marianne Lockwood. The black-tie evening began at 6:30 PM with a cocktail reception in the Grand Ballroom Foyer of The Plaza, followed by dinner, the award presentation, performance, and waltzing in the Grand Ballroom.

Kenneth Bialkin and Joseph Flom from Skadden, Arps; John F. Cook of M& T Bank; Victor Elmaleh and Judi Flom, OSL trustees; and Carol B. Grossman were the gala chairmen. The event’s vice-chairmen were M. Bernard Aidinoff, Robert and Helen Appel, Mikhail Baryshnikov, The Bay and Paul Foundations, Norman S. Benzaquen, Joan K. Davidson, Emme and Jonathan Deland, Joe and Diana DiMenna, Georgia and Ronald Frasch, Richard Gilder and Lois Chiles, Roger and Susan Hertog, Andrea and David Holbrook, Helen D. Lally, Susan and Steven Leifer, David E. Monn, Kenneth and Josie Natori, Saks Fifth Avenue, Janet and Charles Seidler, Jr., Maria and Robert A. Skirnick, Mr. and Mrs. A.J.C. Smith, Leila and Mickey Straus, John S. Tamagni, Teresa Liszka and Martin Weinstein, and Ruth S. Widder.

David Monn, one of New York’s most prominent event designers and a member of the OSL board of directors, donated his services and vision to the event, creating stunning décor for the Plaza’s Grand Ballroom.

Tickets ranged in price from $750 to $2,500, with tables for ten people priced from $5,000 to $50,000.

The DiMenna Center for Classical Music
In the 2010-2011 season, the Orchestra of St. Luke’s will open The DiMenna Center for Classical Music, a state-of-the-art rehearsal and recording facility for New York’s musical community. The new resource center, named in recognition of a $5 million gift from Joseph and Diana DiMenna, will form an anchor for classical music on Manhattan’s west side as well as provide administrative offices for St. Luke’s. The center will occupy half of a six-story building, located at 450 West 37th Street – which is also occupied by the Baryshnikov Arts Center – and will provide a creative home for all St. Luke's activities, as well as those of other New York music organizations.

The search for a home for the Orchestra of St. Luke’s and for a much-needed rehearsal space for all classical musicians in New York City was led by late board member Charles Grossman, after whom the musician’s café and lounge will be named. The Mary Flagler Cary Charitable Trust, a long-time champion of this project, has donated $3 million to The DiMenna Center and will name the large rehearsal hall. The Cary Trust has also donated an additional $1 million to support the operations of the Center. Ben Needell and a dedicated legal team from Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom provided vital pro-bono legal counsel to St. Luke’s throughout the negotiation and purchase of the space, and M&T Bank provided the necessary financing, allowing St. Luke’s to make the purchase and begin its renovation.

Orchestra of St. Luke’s
The 2008-2009 season marks the 34th anniversary of America’s foremost chamber orchestra, the Orchestra of St. Luke’s. This unique musical organization began as a chamber ensemble in the Church of St. Luke in the Fields in New York’s Greenwich Village and comprises the Orchestra of St. Luke’s, the St. Luke’s Chamber Ensemble, and the St. Luke’s Arts Education Program. St. Luke’s currently performs approximately 100 orchestral, chamber, and educational concerts throughout New York each year, all showcasing the hallmark collaborative spirit that has garnered critical acclaim for vibrant music-making of the highest order.

In addition to being presented by Carnegie Hall in an annual series that has featured artists such as Renée Fleming, Joshua Bell, Peter Serkin, and Midori, the Orchestra of St. Luke’s continues a 20-year collaborative relationship with Carnegie Hall that currently includes participation in the Choral Workshop, Family Concerts, and concert presentations of musical theater. The Orchestra is also engaged throughout the year in a number of artistic collaborations with other New York City cultural organizations, and serves each summer as the orchestra-in-residence at the Caramoor Festival.

The Orchestra has released two critically-acclaimed recordings on its own label, St. Luke’s Collection: Mozart’s Symphonies 39 and 41 under the direction of Donald Runnicles, and Bach’s Brandenburg Concertos, performed by the St. Luke’s Chamber Ensemble, and an educational DVD of Vivaldi's The Four Seasons with animated children's artwork. These are the most recent additions to an already stellar and extensive discography, numbering more than 70 recordings, that includes four Grammy Award-winning discs.

For St. Luke's calendar of events, tickets, and more information, visit: www.OSLmusic.org.

96.3 FM WQXR is the radio partner of the Orchestra of St. Luke’s.

Photos: Eric Weiss and Patrick McMullan


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