The Oxfords are an ever-changing sextet of outstanding young singers from the United Kingdom, who have been performing in Christchurch regularly since 1997. Nearly all of The Oxfords that have toured here in that decade hail from Christ Church, Oxford, either as undergraduates from the collage or as singing clerks from its cathedral.

For the 2009 Arts Festival, The Oxfords will showcase the great choral music of the 15th and 16th centuries alongside readings of the works of the greatest of the metaphysical poets, John Donne (1572-1631), and contemporary readings.

The powerful combination of the great architecture of ChristChurch Cathedral, the words of the Holy Sonnets, and music from a golden age to create this atmospheric series of performances.