Alfred Corning Clark built Mendelssohn Music Hall (1890s) on 40th Street, east of Broadway, NYC; in addition to his interest in music, he was a patron of the visual arts. As part of the decoration of the interior of Mendelssohn Hall, as the new building on 40th Street was called, Clark commissioned Robert Frederick Blum, muralist, colorist, and illustrator, to do twin panels for either side of the proscenium arch in the concert hall. The first, begun in 1893 and completed in 1895, was called "Moods of Music." The frieze was 50 feet long and 12 feet high. Later, Blum completed the companion piece, a canvas of equal size entitled "Feast of Bacchus."

The Blum murals were lost when the building was destroyed in 1912, and speculation as to what had become of them engaged the interest of the Club members for years. Then, just before the centennial jubilee concert in 1965, the murals were found in the vaults of the Brooklyn Museum and were placed on display in the entrance hall of the Museum directly above the main portals.