FOR a bunch of Gargoyles, this group of students have voices that could belong to angels.

The Oxford Gargoyles, a jazz a cappella group, have made it to the semi-finals of the Choir of the Year competition.

Made up of Oxford University students and graduates, the group will be competing in London on October 19 against 15 other choirs.

President Elsa Field said: “Last time we got to the grand final so we’re hoping to repeat that success. We’re a very well-established group, we have tours around the world and have performed at the Edinburgh Festival for the last nine years.”

Our top stories

The contest will be judged by composer Paul Mealor, choir director Joy Hill and music coach Stephen Connolly.

If the Gargoyles win their section – the open category where there is no age restriction – they will join five other choirs at the final in Manchester on December 7.

Miss Field, who is a second-year biology student at Magdalen College, said: “We’re feeling confident about the semi-finals – we’re performing a repertoire that we know really well.

“We tried to choose pieces we think the judges will like, because it’s a very choral competition. We’re only performing two pieces so it’s quite tricky.

“You have to think about what displays the best things about the choir.

“One of our songs is a piece one of our members wrote, it’s called Magnifiscat, and the other is the Top Cat theme tune from the ’60s. That’s a really fun number.”

The 19-year-old added: “We are really close, it’s really lovely because I get to perform with my best friends, who are a really awesome group of like-minded people.

“Every year we welcome new Gargoyles, and we’ve got auditions coming up which is very exciting.”

She said: “We have worked so hard and we believe that we’re the best a cappella group in Oxford.


Do you want alerts delivered straight to your phone via our WhatsApp service? Text NEWS or SPORT or NEWS AND SPORT, depending on which services you want, and your full name to 07767 417704. Save our number into your phone’s contacts as Oxford Mail WhatsApp and ensure you have WhatsApp installed.