Carnegie Hall

(New York, NY, April 19, 2021)—Carnegie Hall has announced that James P. Gorman, Chairman and CEO of Morgan Stanley will receive the Carnegie Hall Medal of Excellence at a virtual gala benefit on Thursday, May 6 at 5:00 p.m.  Under his leadership, Morgan Stanley has remained steadfast in philanthropic support of the arts, culture, and the health and education of children. Morgan Stanley has supported Carnegie Hall for 45 years, maintaining a relationship that is among the longest-running corporate partnerships in the Hall’s history and helping to bring the transformative power of music around the globe.  The evening will consist of a private virtual reception and award ceremony followed by a musical performance featuring Grammy Award-winner Keith Urban.

Morgan Stanley’s longstanding relationship with Carnegie Hall began in 1976 thanks to the stewardship of Richard Debs, Chairman Emeritus and current trustee of Carnegie Hall.  Mr. Debs joined the Board of Trustees in 1970 and served as Chairman of the Board from 1975 to 1980.   Mr. Debs, an Advisory Director of Morgan Stanley, joined the firm in 1976 as the founding President of Morgan Stanley International.  Thanks to this partnership, Morgan Stanley has contributed to general operating support and concert sponsorship for 45 years.  In addition, Carnegie Hall’s Ensemble Connect and alumni from the NYO-USA program have performed at Morgan Stanley offices as well as incoming Managing Directors dinners, as well as other Morgan Stanley client events.

Carnegie Hall’s 2021 Medal of Excellence Gala leadership includes Gala Chairs Richard and Barbara Debs, Mark D. Eichorn, Andy Saperstein, and Hope and Robert F. Smith.  Gala Sponsors are Vista Equity Partners and Morgan Stanley.  Proceeds from the Medal of Excellence Gala support Carnegie Hall’s artistic, education, and community programs.

Mr. Gorman will be the 11th recipient of the Carnegie Hall Medal of Excellence. Previous recipients have included: Vartan Gregorian, Sanford I. Weill, Oscar de la Renta, Bill Cunningham, Henry T. Segerstrom, and Terry J. Lundgren. 

About the Honoree
James P. Gorman is Chairman and CEO of Morgan Stanley. He became CEO in January 2010 and Chairman in January 2012. He joined the firm in February 2006 and was named Co-President in December 2007. Before he joined Morgan Stanley, Mr. Gorman held a succession of executive positions at Merrill Lynch, and prior to this was a senior partner of McKinsey & Co. He began his career as an attorney in Melbourne, Australia.

Among his civic activities, Mr. Gorman serves as a Director of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York and the Council on Foreign Relations, and as Co-Chair of the Board of Overseers of the Columbia Business School. In addition, he is a member of the Financial Services Forum, The Business Council, and the Business Roundtable. He formerly served as President of the Federal Advisory Council to the U.S. Federal Reserve Board, Co-Chairman of the Partnership for New York City, Chairman of the Board of the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association, and Co-Chairman of the Business Committee of the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

Born in Australia, Mr. Gorman received BA and law degrees from the University of Melbourne, and an MBA degree from Columbia University.

About Carnegie Hall
Since it opened in 1891, Carnegie Hall has set the international standard for musical excellence as the aspirational destination for the world’s finest artists. From Tchaikovsky, Dvorák, Mahler, and Bartók to George Gershwin, Billie Holiday, Benny Goodman, Judy Garland, and The Beatles, music making by a long list of artists representing the best of every genre has filled Carnegie Hall over the years. The Hall’s unique history has grown out of its stunning acoustics, the beauty of its three concert halls, and its location in New York City, where it has played a central role in helping to elevate the city into one of the world’s great cultural capitals.

Carnegie Hall presents a wide range of performances each season on its three stages—the renowned Stern Auditorium / Perelman Stage, intimate Weill Recital Hall, and innovative Zankel Hall—including concert series curated by acclaimed artists and composers; citywide festivals featuring collaborations with leading NYC cultural institutions; orchestral performances, chamber music, new music concerts, and recitals; and the best in jazz, world, and popular music. Many concerts each season are heard by listeners worldwide via the Carnegie Hall Live radio and digital broadcast series, produced in partnership with WQXR, and select concerts have been webcast on medici.tv.

Complementing these performance activities, Carnegie Hall’s Weill Music Institute creates wide-reaching music education and social impact programs that annually serve more than 800,000 people in the New York City area, nationally, and internationally. These programs play a central role in delivering on Carnegie Hall’s commitment to making great music accessible to as many people as possible.

While its landmark building has been closed to the public since March 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Carnegie Hall has actively continued to serve its audiences in New York City and beyond. Beginning in April, the Hall launched new online series—including Live with Carnegie Hall and Learn with Carnegie Hall—connecting leading artists and audiences digitally with original programming that has included music, conversation, and behind-the-scenes perspectives, streamed for free via the Hall’s website and social media channels. Most of the Hall’s extensive music education and social impact programs have also pivoted to digital throughout this period, with innovative initiatives engaging with families, educators, community members, and aspiring young musicians at home.

Carnegie Hall’s online streaming programs will continue this spring with a schedule of upcoming episodes and artist line-up to be announced. Archived programs available for on-demand viewing can be found on carnegiehall.org/live and carnegiehall.org/learn.