MUSIC FOR THE BLIND.

Auckland Star, Volume XLVIII, Issue 159, 5 July 1917, Page 6

MUSIC FOR THE BLIND.

OPENING OF ORGAN. AT JUBILEE INSTITUTE THE GIF! OF iffi. H. BRETT. The organ formerly the property ot the Auckland Choral Society, which has been presented by Mr. Henry Brett to the Jubilee Institute for the Blind, Parnell, was formally opened at a gathering of inmates and friends of the institution last night, when a recital was given upon the instrument by Mr. Maughan Barnett, City

Organist. | Hon. George Fowlds, a member of the. board of trustees, who presided, apologised for the absence, through illness, of the chairman (Mr. John Reid). He read ! a letter from Mr. Brett, in which the : latter expressed his regret that owing :to the state of liia health he could not be present at tbe ceremony. " I have a strong sympathy for the blind," the letter continued, "and trust that the organ will contribute to their happiness, and that it may also prove of use to those amongst them who possess musical talent, and who can qualify for tie profession of organists and teachers. I appreciate very much the expression of goodwill conveyed in your letter, and I [ shall certainly take an early ' opportunity of visiting the inatitution to see the organ in its new position. In the meanwhile you may rest assured that, though unable to hear Mr. Harnett's promised recital, my thoughts and good wishes will be with you on j Wednesday evening. I wish to convey Ito the committee and yourself my corj dial thanks for the trouble and care so I readily borne in connection with the I removal of the organ from the Choral Hall and its re-erection at the Institute for the Blind."

THE ORGAN'S HISTORY. Mr. Fowlds went on to pay a tribute to the many benefactors of the Institute, and to the debt which the musiclcving people of Auckland owed to Mr. Brett lor his lifelong interest in music, and for the generosity which led him first to place an organ in the Choral Hall for the use of the Choral Society, and later to provide the city with the magnificent organ in the Town HalL (Applause.) When the Choral Society was compelled to move from the Choral Hall, Mr. Brett generously offered to re-purchase the organ (built by Mr. G. Croft for the Auckland Exhibition) which he had given to the Society some years before, and for which the Society had no further use. In offering to present the instrument to the Institute for the Blind, Mr. Brett stated that he would contribute £75 to cover the cost of repairs and re-erection, and later on he increased this sum to £100. The offer was gratefully accepted by the trustees, and tbe organ was duly placed in a chamber added to the dining hall of the Institute, the work having been carried out by Mr. H. A. Tustin. Mr. R. Leslie Hunt, the secretary of the Institute, lias been working for a number of years raising funds for the purpose of procuring an organ for the Institute, and had succeeded in collecting £172 fcr this purpose. The fund raised by tlie secretary was expended in various improvements to the organ, including an additional keyboard (prepared for when, the organ was built) and the installation of an electric blower. The Institute - was now in the possession of a very fine instrument, worth approximately, £1)000. "This noble and generous gift by Mr. Brett," said Mr. Fowlds, "will be a .; scurce of joy to the' pupils of the Institution for years to come, and will also provide an opportunity of teaching those - musically inclined a profession which niay be to them a valuable source of income." (Applause.)

Mr. Maughan Barnett then gave a recital on the organ, playing the following pieces: — "Triumphal March" (Lemmens), "Romance sans Paroles" (Bon- " nett). "Gavotte" (Corelli) ? "Toccata" (BoeLmann),togetherwith hJsown"Faintaisie on National Airs," and an impro- ; visation. Three part-songs were contributed by a dozen of the pupils of the I Institute, and one of them. Miss Olive Martin, sang "A Dream of Paradise"*

At the conclusion a hearty vote of flanks to Mr. Brett was moved by the Hon. J. A. Tole, who recalled that seventeen years ago he was called upon to announce to the Choral Society that Ml Brett had decided to make that body a gift of the organ. The motion was seconded by Mr,. X. A. Nathan, and carried by acclamation. A vote of thanks was also passed to Mr. Maughan Barnett and the singers.