* A clutch of the city’s finest artists convene in a church this Sunday for one of the best quality music events of the winter.

The Pin Drop Midwinter Festival, at St John The Evangelist Church, in Iffley Road, Oxford, is the antidote to the winter blues, with a sunshine-kissed programme of rock, folk, country and acoustic loveliness.

Headlined by country-rock band The Epstein, pictured, and hot new things Wild Swim, it offers a blend of very familiar and cutting-edge artists in a glorious setting.

Also appearing are drone-rock band Flights of Helios, Danny George Wilson (of Danny and The Champions of The World), and acoustic sets by Rainbow Reservoir, Until the Bird, Marcus Corbett, My Crooked Teeth, Brickwork Lizards, Matt Sage, Billy T’Rivers, Huck and Jess Hall.

And having fun can also help a good cause, with all profits going to the Gatehouse Centre for the homeless.

Tickets are £10 in advance from wegottickets.com, or £12 on the door

* HAILING from Casamance in the lush south of Senegal, in West Africa, Jali Fily Cissokho, pictured, is a world-class artist and master of the Kora – an African harp made of gourd and goat skin. Now living in Witney, this Mandinkan griot, a traditional poet, storyteller and singer, has charmed and delighted concert, carnival and festival audiences with lilting performances of breathtaking beauty.

He tells us: “When I play the kora it takes me to a place of peace. I like to make people feel happy and peaceful. It’s my job in life.

“My music can be peaceful or rocking – chilling you out or getting you on your feet, dancing.”

Jali Fily brings his kora to Cowley Road tomorrow, when he headlines a night of music to raise money for the African-Caribbean Kultural Heritage Initiative (Ackhi) at the East Oxford Community Centre.

Also playing are Afro-pop band Nairobi, featuring talented guitarist, and Oxford Mail reporter, Pete Hughes, and dance-pop act Duchess.

And if you like what you hear, learn to play it yourself at an Afro-beat workshop led by Dele Sosimi of Fela Kuti.

Tickets: £5 from wegottickets.com