Danielle Welbeck introduces the Aseda Gospel Choir

Giving Thanks and Praise:

Introducing the Aseda Gospel Choir

The Aseda Gospel Choir is the first choir created by and for African and Caribbean students at Oxford. Here Aseda’s Musical Director Danielle Welbeck (2019, Music) tells us how the choir has not only lifted hearts but empowered its members with new confidence and unity.

Ialways knew that studying Music at Oxford would be challenging – but knowing something and feeling it on a daily basis are two different things. I can’t deny that it’s been hard at times. My Prelims course centred around formalist and notated musical knowledge, with not much space for the aural skills I had developed during a lifetime of music in the church. There were many times when I was left asking myself whether I belonged here.

These trends also exist in the choral and chapel music that form part of the fabric of life at Oxford. Most colleges have their own denominational choirs that sing choral works and some choirs even reserve a certain number of undergraduate spaces for choral and organ scholars. These choirs are auditioned, and participation requires a fairly high level of notation-centred musical literacy, making them inaccessible to anyone whose musical training happened away from scores and sheet music.

By contrast, the black sacred music that I grew up with is an aural tradition. After hearing this music weekly in church, in our parents’ cars as they drive, or on Saturday mornings when we’re being woken up to clean, the musical conventions of this genre become internalised. Suddenly, without consciously trying, we’re

able to harmonise in three parts, or develop a gospel tone and vocal agility. In the case of vocalists in particular, the musical education imparted by the black church amounts to an accessible, yet rigorous praxis.

Inspired by the centrality of the black church both as a cornerstone of musical teaching and a place where black musical culture is preserved, several Oxford students were inspired in 2019 to found the Aseda Gospel Choir – and I was fortunate to be one of them. Recognising gospel’s rich heritage not only as a distinct genre, but also an influence on the majority of famous black popular music genres from the Americas and other places in the Black diaspora, such as Jazz, Soul, R&B and Highlife, we dreamt of creating a safe space for the University’s black students to experience and celebrate Black culture and spirituality through gospel music.

To achieve this dream, we saw Aseda as having three core aims. First, it’s a healing space, offering a sense of belonging to people with a shared interest and from a similar background in order to counteract the imposter syndrome which makes many black students feel as though they do not belong. Second, Aseda provides an opportunity to connect with faith away from the inextricable cultural associations invoked by European Christianity in most Christian spaces in the university. Third, Aseda provides a space to celebrate black culture in a way that is fundamentally accessible to the people who form the culture – unlike the many spaces in the University which have inequitable and appropriative relationships to Black music.

Looking back, I can see that serving as the Musical Director of Aseda was instrumental to me continuing my studies at Oxford. It gave me a way to marry the two worlds of my musical knowledge, the notated and aural traditions, as never before. With the support of Professor Dieckmann, my personal tutor here at Somerville, I was even able to submit a portfolio of analysis on gospel music, which effectively synthesised the two different strands of my musical identity.

But way more important than my own growth is the possibility that Aseda might help change the culture at Oxford, making it more inclusive, open to different voices. That cultural shift always seems most likely when Aseda performs. Sadly, thanks to Covid, we performed a lot less over the last three years than we wanted. But at our inaugural showcase in February 2020 and our second showcase in March 2022, playing to a packed Somerville College Chapel both times, I think we showed Aseda’s true potential. For the audience whom we brought together in that space, I think we provided a snapshot of the true breadth and richness of gospel music culture experienced by Black British Christians today.

For the members of Aseda, meanwhile, I hope we proved what it’s taken me three years to understand. Namely, the skills we’ve accumulated from our years of being in church are not just “vibes”, but legitimate musical knowledge. And our musical culture is not “easier” or “less intellectual” because our practices take a different shape to Western music theory. Rather, gospel is one part of a rich musical tradition with a stimulating approach to harmony, worthy of study and celebration.

Our singing was never just intuition and ‘vibes’, but a rich musical tradition worthy of celebration.

Having achieved a First in her degree, Danielle is currently looking to pursue a Master’s in Musicology. To discuss potential courses/support, please contact development.office@some.ox.ac.uk