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| Dr Aaron McGregor (Photo: Campbell Parker) |
Advertisements for Handel’s performances in Dublin in 1741 and 1742 (when he premiered Messiah) give the name of his organist as “Mr M’Lean” or “Mr Maclaine” and that is all we knew.
Until now, when research by Dr Aaron McGregor of the University of Aberdeen has linked this figure with an 18th-century Scottish fiddler and composer, Charles Macklean, thanks in part to documents arising from Macklean’s complex marital history.
Dr McGregor explains: “Charles Macklean has always been a fascinating but somewhat shadowy figure in Scottish musical history. He appears in north-east Scotland as a music teacher, establishes himself among Edinburgh’s leading musicians, produces some remarkable Scottish fiddle music and publishes a collection of violin sonatas, but then seems to disappear from the historical record. Once I started to delve into the sources, the project grew enormously.”
Dr McGregor originally began investigating Macklean because of his connections to north-east Scotland, where he taught and was later appointed master of Aberdeen’s music school. Macklean was already known to scholars of Scottish music as a violinist and composer of Scots tunes and Italianate sonatas, but his wider career and connections beyond Scotland remained largely unexplored.
Central to the discovery was a complex legal petition compiled by Macklean’s wife, Jean Larini, after he abandoned her, and she needed to prove the validity of their marriage. The daughter of a celebrated 18th-century acrobat noted for her ability to perform on a rope, Larini belonged to a travelling performance troupe in which Macklean himself appears to have been involved during the early part of his career.
The document brought together detailed testimony about Macklean’s travels, employment and personal life, thus allowing Dr McGregor to make the connection to Dublin and Handel, placing Macklean in Handel’s professional circle during the composer’s celebrated Irish season of 1741–42, which culminated in the premiere of Messiah.
Research also uncovered evidence linking Macklean romantically and professionally with the soprano Christina Maria Avolio, one of Handel’s leading singers. Avolio later appeared in Dublin, where records suggest she performed under the name ‘Mrs McLean’. There is evidence that Macklean and Christina Maria Avolio were living together in Edinburgh by 1741, with Macklean’s profession recorded as an organist.
Dr McGregor has completed a scholarly article on Macklean’s life and work, further details from the University of Aberdeen website.
The research also informs a performance at the Glasgow Barons Early Music Festival, taking place at Govan Old Parish Church on 24 July. The performance will launch the new early music ensemble The Curious Collection, featuring Dr McGregor on violin alongside soprano Mhairi Lawson, cellist Alison McGillivray, and harpsichordist William Cole. Further details from the ensemble’s website.
