Page:The Carnegie institute and library of Pittsburgh (1916).djvu/16

 marble, lavish gold incrustations, and a variously colored inlaid floor, it is sumptuous and striking after the manner of the foyer of the Paris Opera-House. The Music Hall itself was untouched during the alteration of the building, and remains as it was at the time of the first dedication in 1895, a well proportioned and harmonious auditorium, all in white and gold and soft dull red, entirely gratifying to the eye.

The Music Hall is controlled by a committee appointed by the Library Board, and is practically self-sustaining, being in constant demand for concerts, lectures, and meetings of all kinds. Mr. Carnegie, however, has provided an emergency fund for its operation in case of a deficit.

Here the Pittsburgh Orchestra, under the direction of Mr. Emil Paur, gives its concerts during the winter; and here, every Saturday night and Sunday afternoon from October until June, large crowds come to hear the free organ recitals given by Mr. Charles Heinroth, the city organist. His musical lectures carry out the educational purpose which animates every activity in the building.

Unlike the Library and Music Hall, the departments of the Institute are operated solely by Mr. Carnegie’s endowment.

The eastern projection of the building corresponds with the Music Hall entrance, with statues on either side of the doorway representing respectively Galileo and Michelangelo. Passing through the vaulted vestibule, we find ourselves in a beautiful hall three stories in height, and open to a glass roof. It is paneled in mellow-tinted Hauteville marble and decorated with John W. Alexander’s famous mural paintings. Those which form the frieze of the