Institutional Investor's Alpha Magazine - December 2008 / January 2009 - (Page 18)

The Good Guys Beneficent Chord The DiMenna Foundation digs deep to help a renowned orchestra build a more suitable home in New York. BY DANIELLE BEURTEAUX J oseph DiMenna remembers how Sister Luigi, the Catholic nun who was his piano teacher for six long years in his now-distant youth, used to rap his knuckles with a ruler whenever he missed a note. Fortunately, his love of music survived, and today DiMenna is helping the Orchestra of St. Luke’s build a new home in New York. He and his wife, Diana, rave about the orchestra’s musicianship and its members’ obvious delight in performing. “I think what we both responded to so purely in the beginning was the enjoyment that they get from playing and how clearly that translates to the audience,” says Diana. Her husband agrees. “We still feel it,” he says. DiMenna, 50, managing partner of the roughly $3 billion New York–based hedge fund ﬁrm Zweig-DiMenna Joseph and Diana DiMenna share a deep commitment to music. Associates, is a board member of the group, a 90-musician ensemble that is one of the most critically acclaimed orchestras in the country, known for its recordings and its annual performances at Carnegie Hall and Lincoln Center. To help further the orchestra’s goal of purchasing and renovating a building in Hell’s Kitchen for its new home, the DiMenna Foundation donated $5 million toward the $35 million project. The facility, to be named the DiMenna Center for Classical Music, is due to open in 2010 and will have rehearsal rooms, recording studios, a library and ofﬁces to help serve the New York musical community. DiMenna knows the difﬁculties many musicians face in New York, where space is scarce and expensive, and he believes that replacing St. Luke’s outdated location will be a milestone for performing artists. “It’s critical for the Orchestra of St. Luke’s, but it’s also critical for music in general in New York City,” he says. “Hopefully, there will be a lot of collaboration.” When the orchestra sought support for bigger and better digs than its current 42nd Street headquarters, it had no doubt it would ﬁnd champions in the DiMenna household. “The DiMennas are extraordinarily invested in what we do,” says Katy Clark, the orchestra vice president and managing director who is leading the project. “They are unbelievably generous. This was a catalytic gift for us.” DiMenna was impressed with the long-term vision of the orchestra. “They had a solid, detailed plan of what they wanted to do and how,” he notes, “so I felt conﬁdent that the money would be used well.” The DiMennas say the focus of their broader philanthropic mission is arts education, and the orchestra helps meet that objective. St. Luke’s runs a lauded artseducation program, established in 1976, that introduces nearly 20,000 children every year to opera, dance and chamber music through free live performances as well as school partnerships (the original chamber ensemble was formed in 1974). The couple fervently believes in the connection between music education and childhood development. Providing funding for other nonproﬁt organizations is also a priority for them, especially given the weak economy. The DiMennas consider giving to be part of being New Yorkers. Joseph grew up in Connecticut and Diana in upstate New York, but they have lived in the city their entire adult lives and are benefactors of the American Museum of Natural History, the Central Park Conservancy, the New-York Historical Society and the Harlem Children’s Zone. “A few people can make a huge difference, and it’s not always a monetary difference,” says Joseph. “Some of it’s energy and passion.” “The tragedy,” adds his wife, “is doing nothing at all.” For more information, visit www.oslmusic.org. Photograph by Christopher Lane 18 • INSTITUTIONAL INVESTOR’S ALPHA • DECEMBER 2008/JANUARY 2009 http://www.oslmusic.org

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Institutional Investor's Alpha Magazine - December 2008

Institutional Investor's Alpha Magazine - December 2008 Contents Letter from the Editor Longs & Shorts Inside the Trade Pension Corner The Good Guys Interview: Stanley Fink Cover Story: The New Regulatory Reality United States: The Usual Suspects Europe: Flirting with Unity Asia-Pacific: What Asian Contagion? In Theory In Focus Strategies Research Center Alpha Bytes Unhedged Commentary

Institutional Investor's Alpha Magazine - December 2008

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