By Rebecca Goodman
The Cincinnati Enquirer

Albert Neman's character may best be illustrated by his determination to master the violin.

Although he readily admitted that he had no aptitude for the instrument he adored, he studied and played it (to the chagrin of his family) for some 30 years.

It was that same sense of commitment and love of learning that rendered him successful in other endeavors.

Mr. Neman, a real-estate and probate litigator, served as Democratic chairman of Hamilton County's Seventh Ward and was a member of the steering committee of the county's Democratic Party. He died Monday at Vitas Hospice at Deaconess Hospital. The Bond Hill resident was 73.

He once remarked that one of his happiest recollections was a summer course in English literature at Oxford College in England in the early 1970s.

A partner with Wood & Lamping, he reduced his workload a couple of years ago and indulged his love of learning by enrolling in university classes in history, economics and music.

Mr. Neman graduated from the University of Cincinnati College of Law in 1953. While in law school, he served on the board of editors of the Cincinnati Law Review and published articles on real property and municipal law issues.

He practiced in Cleveland with Ulmer & Berne before returning to Cincinnati in 1955. He was a member of the Cincinnati Charter Committee and a 1965 Democratic candidate for Hamilton County Municipal Court judge.

Mr. Neman was chairman of the Cincinnati chapter of the American Jewish Committee and was an officer of the Jewish Community Relations Council of Cincinnati.

He served three terms on the board of trustees of Thomas More College and was involved with several neighborhood and architectural preservation organizations.

A member of the Cincinnati Bar Association, he was on the legal ethics and real property law committees and chaired the committee on preservation of historical documents. He led the oral history project of the association.

Mr. Neman was also a member of the Ohio State and American bar associations, the Hamilton County Good Government League, the Cincinnati School Foundation and was on the board of Camp Livingston.

He was an accomplished photographer and enjoyed making portraits of his friends.

Survivors include his wife, Beth; two sons, David of Blue Ash and Daniel of Richmond, Va.; and a grandson.

A memorial service is 4 p.m. today at Weil Funeral Home, 8350 Cornell Road in Symmes Township. Mr. Neman's remains were cremated.

Memorials: Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, 1229 Elm St., Cincinnati 45202.

E-mail rgoodman@enquirer.com