Here is a list of the current choral opportunities available for students studying at University in Oxford. They are divided into College Choirs which mostly sing services in the college chapels and university choirs (including a capella groups) which are not college based.
If any information is missing, incorrect or needs updating please contact admin@singoxford.org
College Choirs
Balliol Chapel Choir is a large and very friendly Chapel Choir which sings weekly evensong, frequent recordings & choir tours, and has recently established a 8-singer Chamber Choir, whose singers remunerated £180/yr, who are part of the main Chapel Choir, and who have the opportunity to sing a range of concerts to Balliol guests and the wider Oxford community.
If you are interested in joining either of these choirs please reach out to Benjamin Gardner, Senior Organ Scholar, using organ.scholar@balliol.ox.ac.uk
SATB
Services:
Sundays 17.30: Choral Evensong
During school term time Christ Church Cathedral Choir sing most of the Cathedral services. During the University Term, the College Choir sing at Evensong on alternate Mondays. The girls' choir, Frideswide Voices, sing throughout the school year, mainly on Wednesdays, and usually with the adults of the Cathedral choir.
Tr*ATB (*Trebles from Christ Church Cathedral School)
Director of Music: Peter Holder
Services:
Sundays: 11.00 Sung Eucharist and 18.00 Evensong
Tuesday - Saturday: 18.00 Evensong
(Thursday Sung Eucharist)
NB Monday 18.00 Service sung by the College Choir not Cathedral Choir
Exeter College Choir consists of approximately twenty singers drawn from the College and University. The Choir's main purpose is to sing the three weekly choral services in Exeter Chapel.
SATB
Services:
Sundays: 18.00 Choral Evensong
Tuesdays: 18.15 Choral Evensong
Fridays: 18.15 Choral Evensong / Eucharist
Jesus College Chapel Choir is a large, lively, and welcoming team. It is open to all, without audition. We sing Sunday Evensong weekly in term, and enjoy a lively social life. The college is proud of its Welsh roots and we are the only choir in Oxford to sing Evensong entirely in Welsh (just once a year!). Cathedral visits & choir tours are a regular feature, with free singing lessons and free Sunday Formals available to all choir members. Our eight-voice Consort, whose singers are auditioned and remunerated, are the section leaders of the Chapel Choir, also singing as a distinct group from time to time. Get in touch! We look forward to meeting you.
SATB
Director of Chapel Music: Peter Parshall
peter.parshall@jesus.ox.ac.uk
Services:
Sundays: 17.45 Choral Evensong
LMH Chapel Choir is a friendly non-auditioned choir, supported by auditioned choral scholars, organ scholars, and our Director of Chapel Music. New members are always welcome, no previous experience is necessary, and you don't have to be at LMH to sing with us so just come along and join in!
SATB
Services:
Fridays: 18.00 Choral Evensong
Lincoln College Chapel Choir is one of the finest mixed-voice chapel choirs at the University of Oxford. Containing between 20 and 25 members, the Choir gives talented singers the opportunity to make music in the intimate setting of Lincoln College's seventeenth-century Chapel.
SATB
Services:
Sundays: 18.00 Evensong
The Choir of Magdalen College has 16 singing boy trebles (from Magdalen College School) and 12 Academical Clerks. The Consort of Voices was founded in 2010, offering opportunities to women students to sing in the Chapel on a weekly basis.
Tr*ATB / S*ATB
*Trebles from Magdalen College School. *Sopranos sing on Saturdays in Consort of Voices.
Informator Choristarum: Mark Williams
Services:
Sundays 11.00 Eucharist 18.00 Choral Evensong
Tuesdays - Fridays 18.00 Choral Evensong
Saturdays 18.00 Choral Evensong (Consort of Voices)
The Choir of Merton College consists of 30 undergraduate and graduate students at Oxford University reading for degrees in a variety of subjects.
S*ATB
*Mondays and Wednesdays Merton College Girl Choristers
Director of Music: Benjamin Nicholas
Services:
Sundays: 17.45 Choral Evensong or Choral Eucharist
Mondays: 18.00 Choral Vespers*
Tuesdays: 18.15 Choral Evensong
Wednesdays: 18.15 Choral Evensong*
Thursdays: 18.15 Choral Evensong
*sung by the Girl Choristers
The Choir of New College Oxford is composed of adult singers, including university undergraduates and graduates and boy trebles from New College School.
Tr*ATB
*Trebles from New College School
Director of Music: Robert Quinney
Services:
Sundays: 17.45 Choral Eucharist
Mondays: 18.15 Choral Evensong
Tuesdays: 18.15 Choral Evensong
Thursdays: 18.15 Choral Evensong or Choral Vespers
Fridays 18.15 Choral Evensong
Saturdays: 17.45 Choral Evensong or Choral Eucharist
The Choir is a mixed-voice choir with about 30 members, eight of whom are Choral Scholars. While most of its members are from Oriel, people from other colleges are always very welcome to audition.
SATB
Director of Music: David Maw
Services:
Sundays: 18.00 Choral Evensong
Wednesdays: 18.00 Choral Evensong
At present there are about 12 student scholars and award holders, and the same number of choristers from Christ Church Cathedral School. They are appointing an additional 10 choral scholars for 2023 and a further 6 for 2024.
Tr*SATB
*Trebles from Christ Church Cathedral School
Director of Music: Mark Wilson
Services:
Sundays: 17.30 Choral Evensong
The Choir of The Queen's College is a mixed-voice choir consisting of thirty singers, including some twenty Choral Scholars who are students of the College, Choral Exhibitioners from other colleges, and two professional Lay Clerks.
SATB
Director of Music: Owen Rees
Services:
Sundays: 18.15 Choral Evensong
Wednesdays: 18.30 Choral Evensong
Fridays 18.30 Choral Evensong
Worcester Chapel has a choral tradition in which alto, tenor, and bass choral scholars are joined alternately by adult sopranos (typically on Monday and Thursday) drawn from the College, and boy trebles (on Sunday and Tuesday), who are day pupils at Christ Church Cathedral School.
Tr*SATB
*Trebles from Christ Church Cathedral School
Director of Music: Caius Lee
Services:
Sundays: 18.00 College Evensong
Mondays: 18.00 Choral Reflection
Tuesdays: 18.00 Choral Evensong
Wednesdays: 21.15 Compline
Thursdays: 18.00 Choral Evensong, Choral Eucharist or College Communion
University Choirs
The choir consists mainly of students and staff from the various universities in Oxford. We perform at least one concert a term in Oxford and regularly participate in a wide range of other musical ventures both in and outside the city. Our programming is both innovative and eclectic, ranging from early to contemporary choral music, and has included commissioned works by both young and established composers.
Founded in 2003, In the Pink is one of the longest running all-female a cappella groups based in Oxford. We are mostly comprised of students from the University of Oxford and Oxford Brookes, but do not let that put you off if you are not a student - we have had non-student members in the past! Our philosophy is to create amazing music and have fun doing it. From 80s mashups to Christmas classics, nothing is off limits for our multi-talented group of women. Recently In the Pink has competed at national competitions and performed hit shows at the Edinburgh Fringe. Look out for our latest live sessions, available on our youtube channel now!
Out of the Blue is Oxford's internationally acclaimed a cappella group, and the top a cappella group in the UK by number of championships. You may have seen us from our viral video hits, which have received over 17 million views on YouTube! Comprising students from Oxford University and Oxford Brookes University, Out of the Blue has performed on the West End and on Broadway, reached the semifinals of Britain's Got Talent, and toured around the world to places including Switzerland, Canada, India, Hong Kong, and Japan.
The Oxford Belles are known for our big voices, big personalities and even bigger empowerment anthems. Established in 1995 to combat Oxford’s male-dominated music scene, the Belles have spread our message of female empowerment all over the world - and right here in Oxford. Whether we’re singing the American national anthem at Madison Square Garden or giving intimate gigs for local charities, we bring our trademark enthusiasm, professionalism and sass to every performance.
We are The Oxford Singers, a choir for popular and contemporary music. The group takes on pop, funk, rock anthems, jazz, musical theatre, film music and much more. In the decade since its formation, The Oxford Singers has brought together hundreds of singers of a variety of experience levels. With friendly and light weekly rehearsals, we aim to make music together, build confidence, and above all have fun!
Schola Cantorum of Oxford is one of the longest established and most widely known chamber choirs in the UK. Founded by conductor László Heltay in 1960 as Collegium Musicum Oxoniense, Schola Cantorum has worked with many highly respected musicians, including former patrons Sir Michael Tippett and Yehudi Menuhin. Schola comprises around thirty singers, most of whom are students at Oxford University.
The Oxford Alternotives are one of Oxford University's finest mixed a cappella groups, and the longest-running student a cappella group in the UK! Formed in 1993, the Oxford Alternotives were created as an alternative to and an escape from Oxford's prominent chapel choir scene. The Alternotives have gone from strength to strength through the years, performing on BBC1's Pitch Battle, reaching the UK Final of the International Championships of Collegiate A Cappella, and at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival.
The Oxford Commas is a lower-voices a cappella group based in University of Oxford, founded in 2015 by a motley crew of talented singers who wanted to escape the cliché of other established vocal groups. We have considerable experience performing at balls, corporate functions, innumerable concerts, and our dedication to slick presentation and an uncompromising approach to vocal performance has won us a growing following. We are also committed to give everyone a chance to experience a cappella singing by running workshops in various primary schools and charities in Oxfordshire.