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View donors from 2001-2002 season Verdehrs Establish a Trust to Benefit The College of Music
Clarinetist Elsa Ludewig had no idea what was in store when she joined the MSU
Woodwind faculty in 1962 for a one-year appointment while still a doctoral student at the Eastman College of Music. Little did she know she would still be on the faculty in
2004, let alone the enormous impact this path would have on the rest of her life.
About “Flip” Charitable Remainder Unitrusts
Unlike the standard unitrust that pays an annual income to the named beneficiaries, based upon a percentage of the fair market value of the assets, the “flip” charitable remainder unitrust (CRUT) defers income until a future time when the income switch “flips” on. That future time is called a triggering event and is precisely recorded in the trust document. A triggering event can be a date, an event, or the sale of a particular asset or real estate, such as a vacation home.
Until that pre-determined triggering event, the trust is not obligated to make income distributions to the named income beneficiaries. Once the triggering event occurs, the trust coverts or “flips” to a standard unitrust that pays a predetermined percentage (must be at least five percent) of the fair market of the assets to the beneficiaries beginning no later than January 1 of the year following the date when the triggering event occurred.
The CRUT is ideal to receive hard-to-value assets such as real estate. By defining the precise triggering event, such as the sale of property, the CRUT is not obligated to pay any income until the asset in the trust is sold. Once sold by the trustee, the net proceeds remain in the CRUT to generate annual income to the donors.
Features and Benefits of the “flip” CRUT
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The donor(s) are exempt from paying capital gains on the sale of the appreciated asset, such as real estate, because it was transferred to and sold by the CRUT.
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Upon the CRUT’s termination, the assets of the trust would be directed to the College of Music to be used per the donors’ wishes. The “flip” CRUT allows donors to contribute a “hard to market” asset to a CRUT that will provide them a stream of income for their lives and a generous future gift to the College of Music.
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In 1968, Elsa met Violinist Walter Verdehr, who joined the MSU String faculty in 1968. They married in 1971, and as a way to travel and perform together, established the unique Verdehr Trio in 1972.
There was a lack of music for the violin-clarinet-piano combination at the time, so the Verdehrs took matters into their own hands by commissioning works to expand repertoire for this unique instrumentation. The Verdehr Trio has since achieved international acclaim, establishing a legacy of music as part of mainstream chamber music. They have commissioned more than 170 new works from some of the world’s most prominent composers, including William Bolcom, Gian Carlo Menotti, Ned Rorem, and Joan Tower, to name a few, in addition to seven Pulitzer Prize winners. Since the early 1980s, the trio has been performing these new works on national and international annual concert tours.
As recitalists and soloists, the Verdehrs have performed with many prestigious orchestras at numerous prominent universities, festivals and venues around the world; from the Kennedy and Lincoln Centers and London’s Wigmore Hall, to the Sydney Opera House, Auditorio de Madrid, Dvorak Hall in Prague, and Leningrad (now St. Petersburg) Philharmonic Chamber Hall.
The distinguished Verdehr Trio features Walter Verdehr, violin, Elsa Ludewig-Verdehr, clarinet, and Silvia Roederer, piano. The trio’s Making of a Medium series features, to date, 19 CDs showcasing their commissioned works, and 10 half-hour videos of commissioned pieces and interviews with the composers. The series aired on PBS in 2003. The Verdehrs have truly left their mark on the world of chamber music through their lifelong dedication and devotion to each other, their creative activities, teaching and research.
Elsa, a native of Virginia, received a performer's certificate from the Oberlin Conservatory and a doctoral degree from the Eastman College of Music. Walter, born in Yugoslavia (now Slovenia), lived in Austria for seven years before moving to the United States. He was the first violinist to receive a doctorate from the Juilliard School, and he also received a diploma from the Vienna Music Academy.
Both distinguished professors, Elsa of clarinet, and Walter of violin, the Verdehrs established a “flip” charitable remainder unitrust (CRUT) to benefit the College of Music as a way of giving back to the university.
“MSU has been a wonderful place to work all these years and we wanted to express our
appreciation to the university in some tangible way,” said the Verdehrs.
By establishing a “flip” unitrust, a flexible variation of the charitable remainder unitrust, the Verdehrs were able to sell their vacation home in Jackson, Wyoming, and use it to provide a sizable future gift to the College of Music. They have designated their trust to be used either for scholarships or a chamber music rehearsal/performance space in the new music building. In appreciation for their generous future gift to the College of Music, the Verdehrs have been recognized in one of MSU’s major giving clubs, the Jonathan L. Snyder Society.
“It is especially meaningful that the Verdehrs, highly valued and long-term faculty members who have made such an impact on our programs and students, are now making a significant gift to the College of Music,” said Director of the College of Music James Forger. “We are so grateful for their investment in the school’s future.”
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