Performers on various instruments associated with the orchestra must have been found in New York City in 1766, for in October of this year, William Tuckey, organist of Trinity, advertised for " gentlemen who play on any instrument to lend assistance " in a sacred concert. This particular concert was not held in a church, however, but was given at Burns' New Assembly Rooms. The instrumental music, and incidentally the orchestra work which William Tuckey zealously introduced and promoted in New York City, became the pioneer movement which later resulted in this city becoming a leader in orchestral presentation. To William Tuckey should be given the credit for awakening an early interest in instrumental music in general, and in orchestral work in particular.
The St. Cecilia Society, established in New York in 1791, was organized for the purpose of promoting instrumental music. This society had been preceded by earlier organizations, the Apollo and the Musical Society of the City of New York, both of which were pioneers in orchestral music. In 1799 there was organized the Euterpean Society, which combined social features with its amateur orchestra, its rehearsals becoming general assembly nights for musicians, literary men, and artists. Its public concerts were held in the City Hall and were followed by a ball and supper.
The first Philharmonic Society of New York was organized by the merging of the St. Cecilia and the Harmonical Societies on Dec. 9, 1799, and the first Philharmonic concert was held Dec. 23, 1800. This organization, while not keeping regularly together, during the earlier decades of the Nineteenth Century nevertheless exercised an influence upon the musical life of New York. The second Philharmonic of New York, which was destined to influence the orchestral work of other musical centers in the United States, was established in 1842. Its orchestra, at the inception of the still existing Philharmonic Society, numbered between fifty and sixty performers. In the meanwhile the old Philharmonic had been superseded by the Musical Fund Society, which latter also had its place in the development of orchestral music
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New York, July 27, 1828.
The reason why I have not written before, although I have been here since the third of June, is this; I wished to be able to write somewhat more particularly about myself, and especially to be able to give more information respecting the position of music here.
    I have been engaged at the Lafayette theatre and received ----. I am going soon to Boston, which is reported to be a very musical place.  The following will give an idea of music in this city; New York has four theatres, the Park, Bowry, [sic.] Lafayette and Schottam {Chatham].  In these theatres are performed tragedies, comedies, melodramas; also passages from operas, as for instance he Wolf-den scene (in Der Freyschütz), –  not with the music, however, but melodramatically, –  and operettas. A complete and fully appointed opera is not to be thought of; they have no orchestras for that, for the orchestras here are in the highest degree bad, as bad as it is possible to imagine, and not then complete; oft-times they have two clarinets – but that is a great deal – generally but one.  One sees nothing of bassoons, oboes, trumpets, or drums (?); perhaps, now and then, one of the former. Oboes are entirely unknown in this country; there exists but one oboist in North America, and he is said to live in Baltimore.
But in spite of all their incompleteness they play the symphonies of Haydn and grand overtures;  and when there comes a gap, they think to themselves –  only a passing matter – all right as soon as all cracks again.
In every one of the orchestras you are sure to find a trombone; this instrument serves only to strengthen, and therefore  never plays its own proper part, but that of the violoncello; and if the subject is suitable, it plays now and then a passage with the violin. This instrument and the double bass are also the best paid; sixteen or seventeen dollars a week is not uncommon; the others have ten; some better twelve, and the very highest for a first clarinet is fifteen, because the usefulness of this instrument comes next to that of a contrebass and the trumpet; but the player must be able to blow strong.
It is a matter of course that the director of the orchestra accompanies every solo with the violin; therefore one never hears a solo performed alone; one reason of this is probably to strengthen the voice.
In all these  theatres  they perform six times a week;  Sunday is a day of rest.  The performances begin at 7½ and last till 12, often till one in the morning.  If a rope dancer comes, or one who can play the clown well, or jump about a little something like dancing, and in addition can make up all sorts of faces, and farther, one who can grind a hand-organ, blow the panpipes, beat a pair of cymbals and a big drum, and jingle a string of bells upon his hat, and all of these at once, –  these are the men that are good for the treasury of the theatrical lessees, and who make enormous sums.
Such is the condition of music here, so far as I have been able to learn it during my short stay in New York.  I am now going to see if it is better in Boston; I have my doubts of it.
I a pecuniary point of view, music is a lucrative business for men who in addition to their regular engagements can give lessons on the piano or guitar. Such persons can save up a small fortune in a short time; –  but only on these two instruments; nobody finds time for any other. Good teachers get one thaler (75 cents) a lesson; others get eighteen thalers ($13,50) for twenty-four lessons.
Living is not very dear here; young musicians from Germany, even those with only moderate talents, who could scarcely keep soul and body together at home by their music, find good incomes here, and if economical, make their fortunes;  and moreover, they find themselves placed in the first rank of artists. However, for lesson giving, the English tongue is an indispensable necessity.
Next time farther from Boston.
[Dwight’s Journal, vol. 3 no. 5 (7 May 1853) p. 38. “Music in New York twenty-five years since. (By a German Musician)” with the following additional annotations: [“To see oursel’s as others see us” is no bad plan, and as Gungl has held up the mirror in these latter days to the musical public, here is a sort of retrospective looking glass to go with his, in which we may see ourselves (with a German’s eyes) as we looked quarter of a century since.  The letter is to be found in Gottfried Weber’s  musical periodical, “The Caecelia, ” vol. IX, “printed word for word  after the original,” and we translate it literally.] and [The letter from Boston is not forthcoming; whether the music was too good to speak of in this city at that epoch or not, we have no intimation.]] 

The Daniel Schlesinger memorial concert or “Grand Musical Solemnity” on June 25, 1839 featured a large orchestra including 5 horns. See the Evening Star, June 29, 1829

February 1842  Concerts in this year of the Philharmonic’s birth were not unduly plentiful. Those given by the essentially private music societies – the Eurterpean and Condordia – were not advertised, consequently infrequently reviewed. Watson, who attented a Concordia concert at the City Hotel, offers a rare glimpse of what they offered.   … Their ambitious program included among instrumental works, the  Freischütz Overture and “Hunting Symphony (Jägersinfonie (1837), op. 9) by the Bohemian composer Jan Bedrich Kittl (1809-1868). (New World, February 26, 1842, p. 145).