Herb and Lani Alpert Give $2.5 Million for USC Hall

A gift of $2.5 million from trumpeter Herb Alpert and his wife, Lani, will provide initial funding for a new concert hall at USC, the university announced Tuesday.

To be called the Herb Alpert Concert Hall, the 700-seat facility will anchor a proposed three-story, 40,000-square-foot building that will contain practice rooms, classrooms and teaching studios.

Set to cost $11 million, the building will be near other USC facilities dedicated to the performing arts--among them the Bing Theater of Drama, the Eileen Norris Theatre of Cinema and the George Lucas Instructional Building and (Johnny) Carson Television Center.

Construction could begin within two years, according to Paul Blodgett, USC associate vice president for development, “as soon as funding is secured and the design phase completed. Clearly, the building is top-priority, not only for the university community, but especially for the School of Music.”

USC claims Alpert’s gift is the largest single contribution ever received by the School of Music.

In a prepared statement, Larry Livingston, dean of the school, said, “The concert hall will be an enduring monument to the musical brilliance and personal integrity that have made Herb Alpert one of the world’s most popular performers.”

Alpert, a 53-year-old Los Angeles native, attended Fairfax High School and USC. After serving in the Army as a trumpeter and bugler, Alpert became an independent record producer in 1959. Three years later, in association with Jerry Moss, he formed his own company, A&M; Records, launching it with the hit “The Lonely Bull.” A&M; Records became the largest privately owned record company in the industry.