Many congratulations to talented musician, Eloise Toone (Lower Sixth), who was awarded third place in the prestigious Newnham College Essay Prize for Music. Run by the University of Cambridge, the competition pits Lower Sixth female students against each other across a number of subjects. Eloise will receive her award officially at a virtual prize giving ceremony on Saturday 4th July.
We spoke to Eloise about her achievement, she said: “I first heard about the competition from my form tutor and Oxbridge Co-ordinator, Mrs Everitt. I thought it could be a good opportunity to engage more with music in a different way than I am used to, and to challenge myself to construct an academic essay similar to that of a university course.
“We were able to choose between three titles: I chose the title, Is emancipation through music possible? I found it very interesting how much of a role music was used in history, and in present day; for example, as a key part of the freeing of slaves in America on the Underground Railroad by Harriet Tubman; in the Suffragette movement; and even in protests for women’s rights last year.
“I really enjoyed the process of writing the essay and it taught me a lot about how to effectively research, both online and in the LRC, to find sources, allowing me to greatly broaden my knowledge of the subject.”
Mrs McKinnell (Music teacher) said: “This result is testament to Eloise’s fantastic levels of motivation for learning, as she worked totally independently on the essay, researching and exploring the subject, ‘Is emancipation through music possible?’, out of her own interest. Having recently been elected Arts Captain, this competition result further vindicates the selection of Eloise for this position, showing just how much she goes above and beyond what is asked of her at A Level. Congratulations, Eloise.”
