CIM Reveals Details Of 2025 Luminaries Scholarship Benefit
This year, the event will be held Friday, May 16.
CIM anticipated has revealed the 2025 edition of its popular scholarship fundraiser, which takes place each spring the evening before Commencement.
This year, the event will be held Friday, May 16. It will begin with a welcome reception at 5:30pm and include a concert and dinner at 6:30pm and 7:30pm, respectively.
“We are so proud of the way the 2025 event has taken shape,” said Mark Litzler, CIM's Chief Development Officer. “We look forward to welcoming our guests to a memorable and successful evening in support of our students.”
Along with the date of Luminaries, CIM also revealed the names of the night's honorees, co-hosts, and special guests.
Firstly, the night's honoree will be KeyBank and Chris Gorman, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. KeyBank is CIM's most generous corporate sponsor. A passionate advocate for both business and community, Gorman is also Chairman of the Ohio Business Roundtable, an Executive Committee member of the Greater Cleveland Partnership, and a former Trustee of CIM.
“Chris is a staunch advocate for CIM and for the arts in Cleveland,” Litzler said. “It is fitting that he and KeyBank be honored at Luminaries for all the work they have done on behalf of our school and our city.”
In addition to the night's honorees, three members of the CIM community will serve as co-chairs for the gala. They are Trustee Dan Brown, Governing Member Hank Doll, and Mary Schiller, Head of Voice and Opera at CIM.
Along with dinner and dessert, Luminaries patrons also will enjoy student performances. Throughout the evening, CIM students will regale guests with a wide variety of music modeling their talents and exemplifying the impact of scholarship support.
That's not all. Luminaries guests also can look forward to interacting with the recipient of CIM's 2025 Honorary Doctor of Musical Arts and the winners of CIM's 2025 Alumni Awards, the school's highest honors for graduates.
This year, Luminaries guests will meet Joseph Conyers, principal bass of The Philadelphia Orchestra and CIM's 2025 HDMA recipient, as well as violinist and conductor John McLaughlin Williams (BM '97, MM '97), recipient of the 2025 Distinguished Alumni Award; and Alumni Achievement Award winner, violist Jennifer Arnold (BM '03, PS '05), a CIM Career Advisor and Director of Artistic Planning and Orchestral Operations at the Richmond Symphony.
“Our musical guests at Luminaries this year are living proof of where a CIM education can take you,” Litzler said. “Their presence at this event will be the perfect centerpiece of an evening in support of scholarships.”
Benefit Ticket: $250
Includes admission to Luminaries concert and dinner.
VIP Supporter: $500
Includes admission to Luminaries concert and dinner, with VIP seating, and acknowledgement as a concert supporter.
Luminaries Table Supporter: $3,500
Includes admission to Luminaries concert and VIP dinner seating for up to eight guests, and recognition as a Table Sponsor.
Spotlight Sponsor: $7,500
Includes admission to Luminaries concert and VIP dinner seating for up to 10 guests, acknowledgement as sponsor of a musical performance, and an additional private pre-concert reception.
About the Honoree
Chris Gorman is the Chairman and CEO of KeyCorp. In this role, he has been instrumental in guiding KeyBank's growth, contributing to the largest acquisition in the company's nearly 200-year history. A passionate advocate for both business and community, Gorman is Chairman of the Ohio Business Roundtable, a Trustee of the Cleveland Museum of Art, and a board member of University Hospitals Health System. He also serves on the Executive Committee of the Greater Cleveland Partnership. Through its sponsorship of CIM, KeyBank has supported vital work in nurturing the next generation of world-class musicians. This collaboration underscores KeyBank's commitment to the arts and ensuring Cleveland's status as a cultural hub.
About Joseph Conyers
Joseph Conyers has been principal bass of The Philadelphia Orchestra since 2023 and a member of that orchestra since 2010. He is also music director of Philadelphia's All-City Orchestra and a regular guest of the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center. Off stage, he is a sought-after teacher at The Juilliard School, with former students playing in orchestras all over the U.S. and Europe. He also founded Project 440, a nonprofit using music to teach life skills, and serves as artistic director of the Dubhe Ensemble, a chamber music collective fostering authentic community connections. He holds a Medal of Excellence from the Sphinx Organization and the C. Hartman Kuhn Award, the highest honor from The Philadelphia Orchestra. He also has been one of Musical America's 30 Top Professionals and was the inaugural winner of the Young Alumni Award from the Curtis Institute of Music, where he studied with Harold Robinson and Edgar Meyer.
About John McLaughlin Williams
Grammy Award-winning conductor John McLaughlin Williams has been critically acclaimed for his outstanding interpretive abilities and engaging podium presence. Equally at home in the standard literature and the masterworks of American composers, it was with the release of his critically praised recordings on the Naxos label that his conducting first attracted international attention. Williams has guest conducted the Dallas Symphony Orchestra, Detroit Symphony Orchestra, Chicago Sinfonietta, Cleveland Chamber Symphony, and Colorado Symphony, among many others. Williams is also an acclaimed violinist, pianist, and chamber musician. He has appeared as soloist with several U.S. orchestras, served as concertmaster of the Virginia Symphony Orchestra, and was a member of the Houston Symphony. As guest concertmaster he has appeared with the Bolshoi Ballet, Kirov Ballet, and American Ballet Theatre, as well as the Boston Symphony Orchestra and Boston Pops Orchestra.
About Jennifer Arnold
Jennifer Arnold joined the Richmond Symphony as Director of Artistic Planning and Orchestral Operations in 2019. Prior to that, she spent 15 seasons as a section violist with the Oregon Symphony and served as Director of Artistic Operations for 45th Parallel in Portland. In addition to her work in Richmond, Arnold is a faculty member of the Sphinx Performance Academy, performs with and serves on the programming committee of the Gateways Music Festival, and shares the stage with Portland-based string quartet Mousai REMIX. At CIM, Arnold serves as a Career Advisor, Program Director of Summer Programs, and on the general education faculty in the Conservatory.
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