The season 1911-12 was marked by an increase to seventy-seven men. On the retirement of Mrs. Holmes as president, the orchestra had been brought up to a membership of eighty-two men and Mr. Stokowski had been succeeded by the present conductor, Dr. Ernst Kunwald, for five years an associate of Arthur Nikisch in the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra. The orchestra's sphere of influence began to extend beyond the environs of Cincinnati in 1900. Since that time it has made annual tours, visiting Pittsburgh, Buffalo, Cleveland, Columbus, Toledo, Detroit, Grand Rapids, Indianapolis, Louisville, Terre Haute, Oberlin, Akron, Dayton, Springfield, Kansas City, Omaha, Wichita, St. Louis, Milwaukee, Chicago, and other cities of the Middle West and South. Pittsburgh, like all other cities preëminently industrial, has developed but slowly that side of its civic life in which the arts find important place, and not until 1873 did it possess a musical body that might properly be called an orchestra. This was known as the 'Germania' and was founded and conducted by George Toerge. It consisted of from thirty-five to forty-two instruments and its programs were made up chiefly of symphony movements, overtures, and lighter music. There was nothing very ambitious in its aims or achievements, but undoubtedly it was not without its influence in preparing the way for others. Later Carl Retter organized what was known as Retter's Orchestra, which, under his leadership and that of Fidelis Zitterbart, continued valiantly the pioneer work done by the Germania. Its first concert was devoted to Gluck, Beethoven, Boccherini, Johann Strauss, and Keler-Bela. Retter was succeeded in 1879 by Adolph M. Foerster, who conducted the orchestra for the next two years.