Hosting the ISA A Cappella Competition 2026!

Leighton Park School once again had the honour of hosting the yearly ISA A Capella Competition, accommodating 16 schools from across the nation. There were three categories to take part in: Junior, Middle and Senior, with Leighton Park taking part in the Senior category. Judges Pascal Blaschta (actor and freestyle rapper) and Lisa Lynn (singer, actor and improviser) returned for this year as well, not only judging but also workshopping with the whole crowd how to create music beyond our voices.

We had two competing groups. One beautifully performed ‘Christus Factus Est’ by Anton Bruckner, and another gave a great performance of one of the mashups from the ‘Pitch Perfect’ series.

Maria-Ange, the ISA’s National Arts Manager, shared with us her enthusiasm for the event: “We’ve been running this event for seven years and each year we’ve got more and more schools taking part. This is the biggest one we’ve had so far, so a huge thank you for letting us use the beautiful theatre in the MMC! What we value about this event is that schools can showcase their talent, whilst sharing and listening to others as well. It’s so valuable for them to have the chance to share their passion for music with as many people as possible”

One of our performers, Taylor (Lower Sixth), felt: “It was quite a nice experience being able to listen to all the other schools perform. Everyone was clapping for every school, the quality and support from everyone in there is amazing. Alongside this I liked the workshop where the judges taught us how to work as a crowd to make different sounds to create a piece of music. So its been a fun day of learning whilst also competing.”

Alice (Lower Sixth) agreed: “It’s good to see the energy and diversity in the music. I find it valuable to see other young people here really passionate about music. It really inspires you to push yourself and get involved as much as you can!”

The A Capella Competition is one of the many events that Music at Leighton Park is involved in. Taking part in events, workshops and concerts allow our students to further their musical ability and explore their passion. If you’d like to find out more information about Music at Leighton Park, you can visit here!