St. Cecilia Punch

A small subscription concert given in 1737 in Charleston, South Carolina, in honor of St. Cecilia’s Day marked the founding of America’s first musical society. Today a prestigious ball preserving antebellum-style hospitality is the only remnant of the culturally ambitious society. Mrs. St. Julien Ravenel wrote: “each and all have it on their consciences to see that all goes well,—that no guest is overlooked, no lady neglected, no stranger unwelcomed.” Immediately after the