A group of budding young cellists were judged "outstanding" in a prestigious music festival.
The six youngsters, all from Billericay and Brentwood, walked away with gold medals in the strings group category for the under 12s in the Leigh Musical Festival.
The sextet got together during the half-term holiday to rehearse their performance of an English folk song.
Picking them out from the other seven entrants in the competition, adjudicator Leonard Smith commented on the accuracy and excellent musicality of their rendition. Sally Goodfellow, who teaches the youngsters, said: "I was very proud of them.
"All the groups played well but their concentration on the day made their performance brilliant. They are all good cellists and enjoy rehearsing - even during the holidays!"
The group includes Alistair McMahan, seven, from Hutton, James Whitlock, eight, from Brentwood, and Barnaby Walter, six, from Billericay. Sarah Khoo, nine, Edward Harper, 11, and Christopher Blore, 11 also won gold medals in the solo and duet categories.
Five out of six - cellists Barnaby Walter, James Whitlock, Alistair McMahan, Christopher Blore, and Edward Harper
Picture: NICK ANSELL
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