St. Cecilia Society

The St. Cecilia Society of Charleston, South Carolina, named for the traditional patron saint of music, was formed in 1766 as a private subscription concert organization. Over the next fifty-four years, its annual concert series formed the most sophisticated musical phenomenon in North America. Due to the loss of its own administrative records during the American Civil War, however, much inaccurate information about the society has been published, and its important role in the formation of early American musical culture has been largely overlooked. Although its musical patronage ended in 1820, the St. Cecilia Society continues to flourish today as one of South Carolina’s oldest and most exclusive social institutions.