Archival Family Photograph

Going through boxes of photos acquired from different sources over many years I came across this very stylised formal studio portrait of a middle class Glasgow family. The young girl sitting in front of her father gave my husband singing lessons for a number of years as a school boy. They were  distantly related and she was known as Aunt Jenny. I don't think the lessons quite worked!  However, I do remember being invited to meet her in her flat in Pollokshields  (I  think on my engagement)  when she was quite an old lady, and being struck by her piercing, intelligent, sparkling eyes. She introduced me to the world of operatic arias which she played on an ancient record player. She never married and music was her passion. Subsequently, I have enjoyed the occasional performance of Scottish Opera in the Theatre Royal. 
I think this photo encapsulates the way photography captured status and success and, although this would end up as a framed photo in a genteel drawing room and was not in general circulation, it was a statement of class, financial security and solid family values that Victorian society wished to convey to the world. Compare it to the Shetland photo where the trappings are very simple compared to this studio but the same pride in family shines through -https://www.blipfoto.com/entry/2825866038564884303