ABSTRACT
Perhaps the unlikeliest place to find performances of Avison’s music must have been Oxford, given the enmity of musicians there to Avison’s views on Handel. The purchase of music by the Oxford Musical Society indicates that even there Avison’s music penetrated; surviving concert programmes mention the music surprisingly often. Avison’s name and his work were well known in Oxford musical circles and he achieved a lasting place in Oxford’s musical life, in particular in the celebrated subscription concerts held at the Holywell Music Room (opened 1748), the first purpose-built concert room in Europe.
