Orpheus Chamber Orchestra Honors Alberto Mihelcic Bazzana & Francesco Clark At NYC Annual Gala

Thursday, June 11 - Last night, the conductorless GRAMMY®-Award winning Orpheus Chamber Orchestra ("edge-of-the-seat intensity" -The New York Times) honored Global Infrastructure Partners' Alberto Mihelcic Bazzana and Clark'sBotanicals' Francesco Clark during the 2026 Annual Gala at Guastavino's in New York City, raising $600,000 for life-changing lessons in musical democracy & collaborative leadership. Alberto Mihelcic Bazzana also joined the orchestra on cello for a special performance.

Emmy-winning composer Jeff Beal (House of Cards, Blackfish) , former United States District Judge in the Southern District of New York Shira A. Scheindlin and otherGala guests gathered alongside Orpheus Chamber Orchestra's Executive DirectorAlexander Scheirle and orchestra members for cocktails, dinner, and a silent auction featuring 5 Days in Sorrento, Italy, An Evening with Bach with Orpheus Cellist James Wilson and Exclusive Access to a Carnegie Hall Dress Rehearsal. The orchestra also recently announced its 2026/2027 season .

Alberto E. Mihelcic Bazzana is a Managing Director in Equity Underwriting at Global Infrastructure Partners (GIP), a division of BlackRock, where he leads equity underwriting for infrastructure investments across the Americas and Australia. Prior to joining GIP, he held senior roles at MUFG and GE, leading and closing more than $5 billion of debt transactions across the power, renewables, and natural resources sectors and managing over $1 billion in non-U.S. equity investments. He holds an MBA from The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, a Master's in Econometrics, and a Bachelor's in Economics from LUISS Guido Carli University in Rome, as well as a Bachelor of Arts from the F.A. Bonporti Conservatory. A former professional cellist, Alberto performed competitively across Europe as a child and appeared as a soloist until age 18 - an experience that continues to shape his lifelong connection to music.

Francesco Clark is the Founder & CEO of Clark's Botanicals, the skincare brand he built into one of beauty's most admired independent names. After a spinal cord injury at twenty-four, he began developing formulas for his own compromised skin with his late father, transforming a family medical practice into a company now carried by Saks Fifth Avenue, Bluemercury, Credo, and Goop. Clark's Botanicals has earned sixAllure Best of Beauty Awards and three Women's Wear Daily distinctions among the world's top 100 beauty brands. Clark built the company, sold it to Warburg Pincus, and later repurchased it, returning the brand to independent ownership. A Johns Hopkins Leadership Fellow, he also serves on the board of the New York Stem Cell Foundationand is aNational Ambassador for the Christopher Reeve Foundation. His memoir, Walking Papers, received the Washington Irving Award.

Alberto and Francesco have been partners foreight years and are also the proud parents of twins. Together, they have built a family life grounded in creativity, resilience, and an appreciation for the small moments that shape daily life - read more via People .

A pioneering New York-based ensemble since 1972, Orpheus Chamber Orchestra grew from a radical experiment in musical democracy. The ensemble's unique conductorless design continues to provide Orpheus members with equal opportunities to honor classical music's traditions and explore fresh perspectives of its norms - valuing its members' musical, intellectual, and personal contributions to the ensemble.

At home in New York's Carnegie Hall and in many concert halls around the world, Orpheus commits to enriching and reflecting the surrounding community. Orpheus for All ensures that every New Yorker can experience the thrill of a full-scale orchestral concert for free at Carnegie Hall. Orpheus Reflections brings the healing power of music to those living with dementia and their caregivers. Access Orpheus shares the orchestra's collaborative process with 1,500 New York City Public School students, annually. Orpheus Leadership Institute connects musicians with global organizations and businesses to impart positive lessons of leadership and democracy.

Always evolving as artists and leaders, the Orpheus musicians carry their legacy forward, counting on their shared artistry and mutual respect to make music and effect change.

About Orpheus Chamber Orchestra

Orpheus Chamber Orchestra is a radical experiment in musical democracy, proving for over fifty years what happens when exceptional artists gather with total trust in each other and faith in the creative process. Orpheus began in 1972 when cellist Julian Fiferassembled a group of New York freelancers in their early twenties to play orchestral repertoire as if it were chamber music. In that age of co-ops and communes, the idealistic Orpheans snubbed the "corporate" path of symphony orchestras and learned how to play, plan, and promote concerts as a true collective, with leadership roles rotating from the very first performance. The sound of Orpheus is defined by relationships, and guest artists have always been crucial partners in the process. Having proven the power of direct communication and open-mindedness within the ensemble, the only relationship Orpheus has never had any use for is one with a conductor.

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