ST Mary's School's Schola Cantorum is one step away from national glory as a semi-finalist in the Sainsbury's Youth Choir of the Year 2000 competition.

The all-girl Calne youth choir will take to the stage of the Buxton Opera House in Derbyshire on November 11 where it will compete against seven other choirs for a place in the final at the Royal Albert Hall next month.

Mark Latham of Sainsbury's said: "If successful in its own category the group will also have a chance of scooping the top prize in British amateur choral music, the overall title of Sainsbury's Choir of the Year 2000, which carries an extra £1,000 prize money and a Sainsbury's choral commission worth £1,500."

Both the final and the semi-final will be televised for Christmas broadcast on BBC2.

The Schola Cantorum of Calne regularly performs on a local and international level including a tour of Austria in 1994 and Italy in 1998.

Last year the choir won the BBC Minstrels In The Gallery competition and it came first in the youth section of HTV's Sing Out 2000.

More than 300 choirs across the country entered the competition in January, competing in four categories, youth, single voice, children's and mixed voice.

Only 32 groups have reached the semi-finals eight choirs in each category and only eight will reach the grand final.