RISING VOICES
Oxford's Community Folk Choir
Rising Voices is a friendly community choir, the only Oxford choir specialising in folk music. We sing traditional and modern folk songs unaccompanied, usually in four-part harmony. Songs are taught by ear, so there is no need to be able to read music; our songs are arranged to create beautiful harmonies and include parts suitable for singers of all abilities. While we take our singing seriously and strive for high standards, it is very important to us that everyone is included and having fun.
Our Musical Director is inspirational choir leader Rose Martin, who also directs the Cecil Sharp House choir in London. Rose took over from wonderful choir founder and leader Cat McGill in 2021.
Rehearsals, Fees and New Members
Rehearsals – When and Where
We sing together on Thursday evenings in term time, 7.15 – 8.45 pm (doors open from c. 7.00pm),
at St Clement's Centre (Main Hall), Cross St, Oxford OX4 1DA.
Parking is available at the hall, which is accessible for wheelchair users.
Bus routes are close by.
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Fees
The fee is £8.00 per session. Fees are usually paid termly or half-termly in advance (pro rata if joining mid term), but we are pleased to offer a free taster session to anyone who might be interested in joining the choir.
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Join Us!
We give a warm welcome to anyone interested in joining us - do come along and see if you like what we do. Lower voices particularly welcome!
Contact us on inforisingvoicesoxford@gmail.com to arrange your free taster session.
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Performances
We like to perform locally several times a year: we have been invited to sing in many venues including the Ashmolean, Oxford Town Hall, the Pitt Rivers Museum, Oxford Castle, Exeter College, the Story Museum, the Westgate Centre, Great Coxwell Barn (Great Barn Festival), Cogges Manor Farm, Waterperry Gardens, Florence Park (FloFest) and at a variety of Oxford venues as part of Folk Weekend Oxford.
We are well known locally for our enthusiastic performances and strong sense of community and fun!
Most Recent Performances
Friday 6 Dec 2024, c 4-4.45pm in Broad Street as part of the Christmas Market.
Saturday 14 Dec 2024, 3-4pm at St James Church, Beauchamp Lane, Cowley, OX4 3LF, as part of Cowley Christmas Festival - seasonal songs, carols, and readings. We are always delighted to support the festival and its chosen charities: ROSY and SeeSaw.
https://www.cowleyteamministry.co.uk/whats-happening/christmas-festival
Other Recent Gigs
Sat 20 April 2024 in the Norrington Room in Blackwell's Bookshop as part of the new Oxford Folk Festival. We sang sea-related songs in support of the RNLI 'Sing to Save Lives' initiative to celebrate their bicentenary year in 2024. Details: Sing To Save Lives for the RNLI Bicentenary - ChoirCommunity
RV Fundraising page for RNLI : https://www.justgiving.com/page/risingvoicessingtosavelives
We performed at the lovely Cowley Festival of Christmas Trees on 14 Dec 2023 and in many previous years - at St James Church, Cowley, in support of the festival and its chosen charities: ROSY and SeeSaw.
RV sang at the opening ceremony of Folk Weekend Oxford 2023 in the Norrington Room in Blackwell's Bookshop (15 April 2023).
Folk Weekend Oxford and Oxford Folk Festival
Rising Voices was for many years proud to be the official community choir of Folk Weekend Oxford (FWO). We originally made our debut at Oxford Folk Festival in 2008, and we have sung regularly at the FWO held each April since then (Covid years excepted), usually at the festival's opening ceremony. From 2024, the new Oxford Folk Festival (OFF) has taken over the reins from FWO - long may it continue! A link to the Facebook page for the Oxford Folk Festival is given on the Explore Further page below.
Past Performances
