The cross-legged audience was surely not the most boisterous Ed Sheeran has ever played for.
When the international celebrity came in for a surprise gig at their primary school, the well-behaved crowd was in amazement.
Last week, the chart-topper visited Fairlight Primary School in Brighton to meet with pupils during their music classes, squeezing himself into a mini-chair for class.
He performed a mini-gig during assembly, including popular hits Shape Of You, Bad Habits, and Perfect, and subsequently spoke with students about his career and the value of music education.
The four-time Grammy Award winner, worth £300 million, even gave five of his guitars to the school in the hopes of inspiring future performers.
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Ed Sheeran surprised delighted Brighton primary school pupils and performed a mini-gig of his hits during special assembly last week
Headteacher Damien Jordan said that none of the staff or students knew about the visit in advance – and he himself only found out the day before Sheeran, 33, arrived.
‘I was told that a famous singer wanted to see the music classes at the school,’ Mr Jordan told the BBC.
‘I joked with the children that I had bought my mate along, and then Ed Sheeran was there.’
Mr Jordan stated that he hopes the children would remember the event for the rest of their lives.
And he joked: “Taylor Swift will be in next week, followed by Beyoncé the week after.”
The visit was coordinated by Create Music, a Brighton Dome and Brighton Festival organization dedicated to providing accessible music and arts education.
Sadie Avard was asked to photograph the visit.
She wrote on Instagram, “Ed gave us all an inspirational speech that resonated so much with my own school experience.”
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He put on a mini-gig during assembly – performing top hits Shape Of You, Bad Habits, and Perfect – and later chatted with pupils about his career and the importance of music education
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The four-time Grammy Award winner, worth £300m, even donated five of his guitars to the school, in the hopes of inspiring young musicians
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Headteacher Damien Jordan (right) said that none of the staff or students knew about the visit in advance – and he himself only found out the day before Sheeran, 33, arrived
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‘I was told that a famous singer wanted to see the music classes at the school,’ Mr Jordan told the BBC
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Mr Jordan said he hopes the children will remember the experience for the rest of their lives. And he joked: ‘Taylor Swift will be in next week, and then Beyoncé the week after’
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The visit was arranged by Create Music, a project run by the Brighton Dome and Brighton Festival which aims to provide inclusive music and arts education
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Sadie Avard was invited along to photograph the visit. She posted on Instagram: ‘Ed gave us all an inspirational speech which resonated so much with my own experience at school’
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He looked like he was having a great time as he enjoyed the visit to the school
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The teachers along the back row filmed some of the performance
‘His main message was not to be disillusioned by school if you don’t quiet fit the expectations of academic life.
‘Don’t let it stop you from pursuing the things you love and turning them into your career.
‘To find inspiration from others in the industry and work even harder than they do to become best.’
It comes after Ed shocked fans last week by announcing that a special version of his second album, X, would be released next month.
The singer will re-release the album on Friday, June 21, a decade to the day it debuted on the charts.
Ed will also do a one-off gig at New York’s Barclays Center, with a setlist based on his 2015 X Wembley edition album.
X, published in 2014, was the impetus for his global success. Don’t, Sing, Photograph, Bloodstream, and Thinking Out Loud are among the blockbuster tracks from this album, which has now sold over 22 million copies worldwide.
Outside of the original tracklisting, nine bonus tracks will feature on the individual formats of the anniversary editions, all of which have never been released on vinyl.
These include “I See Fire” and “All of the Stars,” both from blockbuster films The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug and The Fault in Our Stars.
Fans took to X, formerly Twitter, to express their joy about the release, while some were disappointed that the show had ended in America.
They wrote: ‘Can’t wait pre order new @edsheeran 10th anniversary album and merch for X album’
‘9 additional tracks so basically a new album’ and ‘Ordered a vinyl ! Cannot wait until it arrives – hurry up June!!’
’10 years of multiply is actually insane!! can’t believe it!!’ and ‘Ten years! Wow! Can’t wait to celebrate!’
‘Just signed up to hopefully get tickets’.
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The kids looked enthralled by the performance from the superstar
