The Cleveland Orchestra receives grant from the George Gund Foundation

George Gund Foundation supports The Cleveland Orchestra’s Sound for the Centennial Campaign with $3,000,000 grant

Gund Foundation gift honors the legacy of philanthropist George Gund III

At its February board meeting, The George Gund Foundation awarded a $3 million grant in support of The Cleveland Orchestra’s Sound for the Centennial campaign.

The grant, which is pledged over the next six years, honors the late George Gund III who served as a trustee of the Musical Arts Association which is the non-profit organization that operates The Cleveland Orchestra, Severance Hall and The Blossom Music Festival.

The commitment of this grant from the foundation will permanently endow a new Fund for Artistic Excellence in George Gund’s name and will provide immediate support for the orchestra’s central artistic programming for the community.

“This commitment to the Campaign not only celebrates George Gund’s legacy and leadership at the Orchestra,” said David Abbott, the Foundation’s executive director. “It also ensures that one of our community’s most valuable assets can continue to serve Northeast Ohio at the highest levels of artistic excellence.”

After being elected as an international trustee in 1994, George Gund III served on the board of the Musical Arts Association for nineteen years. During his tenure he was a champion of philanthropic investments from the Foundation ranging from endowment support for the Cleveland Orchestra Youth Orchestra in 1994 to special fundraising support of the Cleveland Orchestra starting in 1998.

Not only is this grant the largest gift made by the Foundation to the Cleveland Orchestra, it also ranks as the largest institutional leadership commitment to the Sound for the Centennial Campaign thus far. It is also the largest commitment of the Foundation to a cultural organization in Northeast Ohio.

The Sound for the Centennial Campaign of which this grant supports will run through the Orchestra’s centennial year of 2018 and will ensure that the Cleveland Orchestra can continue to thrive now and in the future by the building of a significant endowment which will provide immediate support for artistic excellence, diverse community programs and community education programs.

Sound for the Centennial Campaign chairman Richard J. Bogomolny said: “We are grateful for the extraordinary generosity of the Gund Foundation. The Foundation’s ongoing support will help ensure that the Orchestra can continue to serve this community with the quality musical experiences it expects and demands. The Foundation’s creation of the Fund for Artistic Excellence is a fitting tribute to George Gund, who was a friend of and champion for this Orchestra. We are honored to remember him through this gift.”

THE GEORGE GUND FOUNDATION

The George Gund Foundation was established in 1952 as a private, nonprofit institution with the sole purpose of contributing to human well-being and the progress of society. Over the years, program objectives and emphases have been modified to meet the changing opportunities and problems of our society, but the Foundation’s basic goal of advancing human welfare remains constant. The Foundation has made grants totaling more than $616 million since its inception.

THE CLEVELAND ORCHESTRA

The Cleveland Orchestra under the leadership of Music Director Franz Welser-Möst has become Ohio’s most visible ambassador and one of the most sought-after performing ensembles in the world. The Orchestra participates in unprecedented residencies in the United States and Europe, including residencies in Miami and at the Musikverein concert hall in Vienna, as well as its newest residency at New York’s Lincoln Center Festival. It performs at home in two of the world’s finest concert venues: Severance Hall and Blossom Music Center. Broadening its artistic scope, the Orchestra incorporates opera, ballet, jazz, world music, film, and popular music into its innovative programs.