THE FINEST classical musicians in the UK visited a Kendal primary school as part of a very special music project.

Ghyllside Primary School welcomed several members of the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra to take part in a one-of-a-kind music lesson on Monday, March 16.

Four expert players from the orchestra spent the day at the school, on Gillinggate, Kendal, as part of the BBC's flagship music project called 'Ten Pieces'.

It is an ambitious project created by the BBC for primary school pupils, which aims to open up a world of classical music to a generation of children.

Launched in 2014, the BBC announced Ten Pieces of classical music designed to act as a gateway to children to learn more.

A spokesperson for the BBC said: "Ten pieces hopes to inspire children to develop their own creative responses to the pieces through music, dance or digital art. The repertoire includes a range of music from baroque to contemporary."

During the “Ten Pieces Take Over” day, the BBC Philharmonic players lead workshops with the primary school pupils, helping them to create their own unique take on one of the Ten Pieces - which include Beethoven's Symphony No. 5 (1st movement), Handel's Zadok The Priest and Mozart's Horn Concerto No. 4 (3rd movement).

As part of a week long road trip, the BBC Philharmonic musicians are travelling far from their home in Salford Greater Manchester to visit schools in Cumbria, Tyne and Wear, Teesside and Yorkshire.

Simon Webb, General Manager of the orchestra, told the Gazette: “We are the BBC’s orchestra in the North of England, and an important part of our role is to get out and about to share the music which we love with a new audience. It is a great privilege to do this and to hear what the children create in the space of just a few hours.”

Headteacher at Ghyllside Primary School, Mr Mark Woodburn, said: “Ghyllside Primary School is delighted to have this wonderful opportunity to work with renowned classical musicians from the BBC. It is a real honour for the school.”

A spokesperson for Ghyllside School said: "We were one of 10 schools in England lucky enough to work with the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra. Ten pieces is a BBC initiative which focuses on classical music and creativity. The main thing is to get the appeal of classical music across to the children. The children had the opportunity to compose musical and digital responses to 'Mars' by Gustav Holst and all the children had an absolutely brilliant day and have been inspired to continue their work. The day concluded with a Year 3 composition performance and a whole school rendition of Zadok the Priest."

Nearly half of the primary schools in the country are now engaged in some way with the Ten Pieces project, which launched in October 2014, with an immersive film introducing the 10 pieces of music, springing children into their exploration of classical music.

Two Ten Pieces Proms will also take place this Summer in London, it has just been announced.