Virginians Will Dance or Die!

<p> Music was everywhere in pre-Revolutionary Williamsburg Virginia. In 1771 plantation owner Landon Carter noted in his diary that he could hear instruments through the windows of every house in town. In taverns and private homes at formal performances and dances and casually around the campfire music filled the daily lives of the people of Williamsburg.</p><p> While the average citizen enjoyed music during public events the city's elite emulating their British counterparts spent lavishly on instruments sheet music and private lessons and held private concerts and dances. Williamsburg's theater the first of its kind in America provided a venue for all Virginians and brought numerous musical acts to the stage. Drawing on contemporary newspaper accounts this book is the first to explore how some 18th-century Williamsburg citizens experienced the growing musical world around them.</p>