They came from Letterkenny, Westport and Sligo, Kilkenny, Kells and Wexford. They came to Dublin by bus and train. They filed through into the National Concert Hall in uniforms of many hues - green, grey, blue, wine and navy. And they sat mesmerised throughout, listening to Bach, Bizet, Mozart, Tchaikovsky.

One of the highlights was hearing work from The Brendan Voyage, which was composed by Shaun Davey, and listening to Liam O'Flynn, the uilleann pipe player, who came on stage to play The Gale with the National Symphony Orchestra.

Gearoid Grant, deviser and conductor of the concert, was the cool maestro, controlling every note from his podium at centre stage. With a spring in his step, he tripped onto the stage, his shoulder-length hair lifting in the breeze, and the magic started.

Grant reminded us of the story about Brendan's crossing of the Atlantic in a leather boat in the sixth century. O'Flynn was there to play the part of the boat: the orchestra will play the part of the elements. See which one wins, asked Grant. He nearly had us in the aisles, stomping our feet.

The songs "all talk of human situations," he said. And we heard a selection, all pieces from the Junior Cert course. What's Preab san Ol about, he asked. Drink, and, with a lift of his index finger, the girls of Maryfield College, Drumcondra, Dublin, were brought into the concert to sing the eight different songs from the syllabus.

Afterwards they said it was "brilliant", especially the songs. Laura Watson's rendition of Ripples in the Rockpools was mentioned several times. And they loved the haunting quality of Salve Regina, sung by Anne Marie Liddy, another Maryfield student.

In fact, they said, they loved all the songs sung by the Maryfield College Choir. Students were nearly on their feet, swaying to the gospel song, This Little Light of Mine, which Susan McFadden sang with great character and swing. The Streets of London, sung by Eleanor Lewis, is another favourite that goes down a treat. Outside Paula O'Gorman, co-ordinator of the Music in the Classroom series of concerts, which are sponsored by The Irish Times and RTE, was pleased with the reaction. Up to 6,000 second-level students had travelled to the six concerts to hear a selection of orchestral and sung pieces to illustrate work from the Junior Cert course.

Tommy Quigley, music teacher at Maryfield College, who has been arranging music for the orchestra and preparing the school-choir for the concert for the past five years, was also pleased. The girls can prepare in a matter of weeks at this stage.

Vicki McCullagh (13) from Kilkenny College was nodding enthusiastically. She liked the singing especially and felt she understood more about her music course after listening to the National Symphony Orchestra. She'd heard pieces from the baroque, classical, modern and romantic periods. Deirdre Armitage (14), Ruth Meredith and Heather Besanson (14), all class-mates from Kilkenny College, were delighted. They had travelled up on a bus with about 80 of their school-mates to attend the concert.

Again Amy Casey and Amy Mooney, both in Junior Cert year at Lucan Community College, Dublin, loved "all the songs"- their favourite was This Little Light of Mine.

"Here's another picture in sound," said Grant, introducing Tchaikovsky's 1812 Overture. "You'll hear the French soldiers marching on Moscow. You'll hear the bells ring out. You'll hear the stomping, the explosions, the mayhem and destruction." And sure enough we did.