Cathedral Musicians Take On 800km Fundraising Pilgrimage

Published on: 3 Apr, 2026
Updated on: 8 Apr, 2026

Asher and Fraser in the Cathedral. They hope to complete the 800km route in just under three weeks

Two musicians from Guildford Cathedral are set to undertake an extraordinary 800km pilgrimage across France and Spain immediately after the Cathedral’s Holy Week and Easter services, in a fundraising challenge to support church and school music.

Asher Oliver, sub-organist of Guildford Cathedral, and Fraser Ellson, one of the Cathedral’s lay clerks and choral director for the Catholic Diocese of Arundel & Brighton in the Surrey Area, will leave on Easter Monday to undertake the Camino Francés, travelling from Saint-Jean-Pied-de-Port in the French Pyrenees to Santiago de Compostela on Spain’s Atlantic coast.

The two friends and colleagues, travelling as Team Guildford Cathedral, hope to complete the route in just under three weeks, covering the distance by a demanding mixture of walking and cycling.

They will need to average around 30km a day on foot or 70km a day by bike.

At the heart of the challenge is Asher’s fundraising effort for Guildford Cathedral music, helping to support the future of its choir and organists and preserve a musical tradition that has shaped worship, community life and young musicians for generations.

Fraser is fundraising through the pilgrimage to support music provision in nine state primary schools across the South of England. Through the primary school singing programme he leads, he has already reached around 1,600 children.

The challenge comes immediately after one of the busiest and most significant periods in the Cathedral year, with the pair taking part in the full schedule of Holy Week and Easter services before setting off at dawn the following day.

All costs associated with the pilgrimage are being met personally by Asher and Fraser, ensuring that every donation goes directly to supporting Cathedral music and music education.

Asher said: “After the busyness and intensity Holy Week and Easter at the Cathedral, setting off at the crack of dawn on Easter Monday will probably feel pretty abrupt. We are however on something of a deadline and so need to crack on! Music is such an important part of daily life at the Cathedral, and I am really pleased to be raising funds to help sustain it for the future.”

Fraser said: “Music has the power to shape lives, whether that is in Cathedral worship, parish life or in the classroom. It is very special to be doing this together, as friends, colleagues and musicians, and to be raising money for two causes that are both so close to our hearts.”

The Very Rev’d Bob Cooper

The Very Rev’d Bob Cooper, Dean of Guildford, has expressed his wholehearted support for the challenge.

“Asher and Fraser are two outstanding musicians who give so much to the life of this Cathedral,” he said. “To head straight from the intensity of Holy Week and Easter into an 800km pilgrimage across France and Spain is a quite remarkable commitment — and entirely typical of their dedication and spirit.”

The Dean added: “I know the Camino well, having walked it myself. It is demanding, beautiful, and genuinely transformative. I can think of no better people to represent Guildford Cathedral on that ancient road.”

He is encouraging all those who value church and school music to support the fundraising efforts of both pilgrims.