“Music and addresses.”

“The Orpheon Society’s Free Choral Schools held their opening exercises at Steinway Hall last evening before a large and intelligent audience, which crowded that hall. The exercises consisted of speeches by…A program of six pieces of piano music and songs, in which Miss Gomien, Mr. H. A. Bischoff, Mr. Jerome Hopkins, Messrs. Dachauer and Reiff appeared, was brilliantly rendered and gave full satisfaction to the audience, two of Mr. Hopkins’ pieces being difficult fugues by Bach and Cherubini. Mr. Hewitt’s remarks served to explain the object of the Orpheon Free Schools, namely, the musical enlightenment of the people. He then introduced Mr. Hopkins, whose paper referred to the average choral society as at present conducted. Rev. Dr. Deems then took the ecclesiastical side of the question, and gave some pretty hard raps at the fashionable church choirs of our city. Both Mr. Hewitt and Dr. Deems were complimentary to Mr. Hopkins for his devotion during twelve years to the cause of free musical instruction, by means of which upward of 10,000 persons have been benefitted.”