THESE youngsters have gone from Glasgow to a Moscow palace after being asked to perform at a festival for gifted children.

The four music pupils, Dean Tyrrell, 15, Moilidh MacGregor, 14, George Costford, 14, and Aimee Clark, 15, are from Glasgow Gaelic School and they spent six days in the Russian capital playing Scottish music in front of crowds of hundreds of people.

Their gigs involved playing in a palace, a museum ... and the former home of Tchaikovsky, composer of Swan Lake and the 1812 Overture.

Music teacher Frances McEachen went with the third year pupils as they toured the city.

She said: "It was flattering for us all to be approached and asked to attend. The pupils' performances went down very well and they even had a standing ovation."

The pupils all study music at the Gaelic School, which is in Berkeley Street, near Charing Cross.

They were approached by organisers of the annual Spirikov Foundation International Music Festival, which sees young people from all around the world travel to Moscow to perform at events across the city.

The Glasgow quartet performed A Man's A Man For A' That, Sleeping Tune and Scotland The Brave on drum, fiddle, bagpipes and clarsach.

Moilidh said: "It was amazing. We couldn't believe the size of the underground: every station is different and they are like underground towns.

"Playing for the crowds during the festival was nervewracking, but once we started it was fine.

"We could hear the other acts before we went on and they were all of a really high standard, so we were worried we would not be as good.

"But everyone seemed to enjoy the Scottish music and have a good time. We got a standing ovation at the palace."

As well as performing, the youngsters had a tour guide from Glasgow University, who took them around the city. They visited the Kremlin, Red Square and St Basil's Cathedral, as well as viewing the city's unusual architecture and learning a bit of Russian history.

Ms McEachen, who has taught at the Gaelic School since it opened six years ago, added: "It is something they will always remember and it was very interesting to see round Moscow. It's a remarkable city."

catriona.stewart@ eveningtimes.co.uk