Disney’s new Oasis documentary Don’t Look Back in Anger was released in cinemas this week, following the band as they head out on their 2025 reunion tour. If you’re experiencing it on a big screen sound system you’re going to hear a lot of songs featuring the Gallagher brothers. But they’re not the only group you’ll hear in the film.
Nestled in between those Oasis classics, you’ll hear the voices of Margate’s Social Singing Choir on the score for the film. Composer Zebedee C. Budworth worked with choral director and Social Singing Choir founder Hughie Gavin on bringing the choir’s voices to the soundtrack.
Asked about the finished music, Hughie says, “It's quietly beautiful in places, while epic and orchestral in others. There are hints of 60s nostalgia, and Zeb manages to create space for the music of Oasis, whilst also highlighting the emotion of the reunion shows.”
Clearly this is not a normal gig for a non-professional choir that meets for an hour a week and doesn’t require members to audition. However, this is no normal community choir. To date, the 120-strong group has supported Haim and Self Esteem, headlined Margate Pride, played the opening of Tracey Emin’s TKE Studios, appeared on several award-winning recordings and much more.
However, despite this list of accolades, being hired by Disney to help tell the story of one of the world’s biggest bands coming back together is certainly an unexpected turn. Hughie Gavin explains how it all came together.
How did your involvement with the Oasis documentary come about?
Zeb and I have the same agent, but we hadn't met before the recording. I think the job came about after a conversation with another composer, Oli Julian, who we’d just finished working with on a BBC series. He thankfully said nice things about the choir and the work I did on that score, and that started a conversation about being part of this amazing project.
Was it the plan from the outset to involve the choir?
The score was quite late in the post-production process, with there being so much live music in the film. But I think Zeb had a clear vision for it. And for it to include choir. It was more the question of whether it was logistically and musically feasible within the timeframe.
What was the process in creating the choir’s parts?
Zeb had composed all the music for cues. My job was to translate and recreate that accurately with the choir. So that means the creation of scores from project files, then splitting parts and deciding how best to realise that - who’s singing what - so the music matches the choir in the best way possible. However, there were a couple of cues where we took a more experimental approach and created a series of drones and articulations rising in pitch on the spot. That was epic. So much fun!
The other element is planning, organising and rehearsing the choir. Some of the choral sections had 10-12 part harmony. So we worked out the best way to record that. In all of this, I had amazing help from the team at [publishing company] Manners [McDade], including Ruby, Laura and Anna, Phil Self and Mike at [recording studio] Big Jelly.
This isn’t a normal gig for a community choir. Was there any trepidation about involving non-professional singers in the recording?
In all honesty, I think only for me, as I knew it was such a short turnaround. And what I would need to do to really prepare the singers. I also wanted it to be a fun experience.
But from the production side, I’m not aware of any nervousness about the choir. I think Zeb wanted the sound our choir creates - free, full, and honest. So it was a match made in heaven. The fact that the previous project for the Beeb had been such a success meant that it was pretty plain sailing. Often I find I have to remind production that the SSC aren’t a professional ensemble. It’s a testament to their amazing energy and hard work.
Has there been any response from the Oasis camp to the music?
I haven’t heard. But seeing how emotional the Gallagher brothers were after the premiere really brought home how amazing it was for us to be involved in this project.
How did it feel seeing the film on the big screen and hearing the choir?
It was so amazing. It’s a brilliant film. Zeb’s score is stunning, and I was sitting there enjoying how uplifting and positive it was, but also how the choir absolutely smashed it. I couldn’t have been prouder.
When did you set up the choir and why?
It’s 10 years next year. We’d moved to Margate. I didn’t really know anyone. I’d taken on a studio at the old Printworks as I spent most of my time working alone. I wanted to use those skills locally and with other people. So I hired the yoga studio next door, put a couple of messages on local groups about starting a choir. About 30 people turned up for that first one, and it quickly grew to about 60, and we’ve been at a capacity of 120 for about three years now.
When you started out, did you ever imagine it would lead you to where it has now?
I don’t know if I had this on our bingo card. But I did start with an ambition of it being a really shit hot community choir.
I was a choral scholar as a kid, and that gave me the tools to do what I do for a living. I’ll forever be grateful for that. And I try to bring that attention and dedication into what we do. But without some of the intensity - without the Whiplash-style hairdryer treatment that we were given all the time.
My focus is on people having a good time. Having a good time, and also improving and finding a deeper connection to their voices and hopefully others.
The choir has also supported Haim, headlined Margate Pride and appeared on award-winning recordings. What have been your highlights of leading the choir to date?
I have a few. I had a moment after we supported Haim on the VIP area at the top of Dreamland. I was with choir members. And I walked up onto the highest point of that section and looked down on all the choir members and then further on to the six thousand or so people we’d just performed to, and allowed myself a moment to think how absolutely nuts that was.
After the Oasis session, it was the early hours of Tuesday, and I was sending everything across to Zeb. I listened to the choir parts on full pelt in my studio. I was struck by how amazing it sounded, and even more so that all these choir members had come together and put their time, energy, and emotion into making it. It really hit me. In a good way.
What’s next for the Social Singing Choir after this?
The dreaded question. There are lot of exciting things on the horizon. But I can't say too much on that yet…
Oasis: Don’t Look Back in Anger is screening in IMAX and cinemas now. It will be available to stream on Disney+ later this year. Find out more about the Social Singing Choir.
Lead image: StillMoving.Net for The Walt Disney Company Limited
