Striking the Right Notes at House Music Competition

The House Music Competition has taken place recently, with two very busy days of intense competition involving individual performances by fifty pupils as well as the always entertainingly fought out House Song Competition, the only House event of the year that features each and every pupil in the Middle Years and the Sixth Form.

The solo round was split into five sections, with one for each of the Middle Years and the Sixth Form divided into vocal and instrumental classes. In essence, the competition involved five concerts spread throughout the day, offering the opportunity for pupils to perform to each other in an informal setting in College Hall. This year’s adjudicator was no stranger to House Music at King’s: during his time as Director of Music here, Honorary Old Vigornian, David Brookshaw organised twenty–four music competitions, but this was the first time he had adjudicated the event. It brought back many memories for him of his time here, particularly all the musical events that took place in College Hall.  The winners of each class can be found below.   

The House Song Competition was, as ever, a truly splendid occasion in College Hall. The atmosphere amongst the Houses was convivial and a lot of fun was had by all. Yes, this is a singing  competition, but there are many more experiences that are gained by the pupils working together as one. The Upper Sixth have to work hard encouraging pupils to sing during the rehearsals, as well as take the lead in ‘conducting’ the houses: there were some very entertaining attempts at doing so! Musicians in each House are also required to accompany the song, whether this is just on the piano or with a full band. The standard of singing was particularly impressive from many of the Houses, which led to some difficult decisions for the adjudicator. Creighton came out on top with their rendition of Ain’t No Mountain High Enough; last year’s winners, Oswald took second place this time with Valerie and Castle were third with Uptown Girl. Two new prizes were introduced last year: the Best Band or Accompaniment went to Wulstan, and the Best Conductor went to Bright (below).

The Winners’ Concert is an opportunity to reprise the top three songs, as well as an opportunity for some of the successful performances from the solo round to be heard by a large audience of pupils, staff, parents, and guests. A recording of the event can be found in Firefly:

The winners of the individual classes were as follows: 

 Lower Remove: 

Winner: Flo S (Kittermaster)

Runner-up: Sazan M (Oswald) 

Third: Benedict R (Castle) 

 Upper Remove: 

Winner: Hebe S (Bright) 

Runners-up: Tom R (Kittermaster) and Belinda P (Creighton) 

 Fifth Form: 

Winners: Rosie B (Creighton) and Sophie J (Wulstan) 

Runner-up: Sophie R (Oswald) 

 Sixth Form Instrumental: 

Winner: Nicholas A (Creighton) 

Runner-up: Sam C (Oswald) 

Third: Jack B (Bright) 

 Sixth Form Vocal: 

Winner: Florence P (Creighton) 

Runners-up: Elijah B (Bright) and Lucy W (Choir)