Singing from the same balance sheet - government spending on music lessons in state schools.
"I am learning the guitar and the piano," says one 11-year-old boy.
"I hope to take all the grades for the cello," says the girl sitting next to him.
"You have got to practise, but it is better than doing maths," says another boy as he cradled a trumpet.
These were the children in the Year Seven music class at Tipton School in Sheffield as the Politics Show camera team looked in a session where they improvised the sound track to an imaginary horror film.
The resulting cacophony of drums, wind and string instruments, punctuated by the odd scream, would have sent chills up anybody's spine.
Funding allocation
But the real horror story, according to music teachers, is the way in which central government funding is allocated for music lessons.
State schools in Sheffield receive just �5 per pupil every year to provide music lessons from the Department of Education.
In neighbouring Doncaster and Rotherham that figure is �15.
"It is unacceptable that there should be this disparity between the amounts of cash available in one authority when compared to another," says Colin Brackley Jones.
"And we need far more. Music lessons are so useful for teaching children far wider skills.
The need dexterity to play an instrument and organisational skills to practise."
Government advisor
Colin is the Chief Executive of the national organisation which lobbies and advises the Government on teaching music in schools.
The charitable Federation of Music Services is based in the West Yorkshire town of Otley but represents teachers and trainers throughout the country.
"The results of a government review of spending on music are due in September.
"We expect it to improve the financial provision involved in delivering the Music Manifesto for schools which was put together in 1999 by the then Education minister David Miliband.
"We need more money overall and the abolition of these unfair anomalies which see better provision in different local education authority areas."
 Helen Cowen: Provision of music lessons is patchy |
System unfair?
The unfairness of the current system is a major issue for the teacher in the class of horror film screen composers back in Sheffield.
Helen Cowen, Tipton School's Head of music, is currently Classic FM's teacher of the year award winner.
"We currently have 200 pupils learning to play an instrument in this school," she explains.
"It is something we work hard on and try and obtain funding from as many sources as possible.
"However, I know of schools in other less affluent parts of the city where only a handful of children are able to gain access to a musical instrument.
"Frankly, that is not good enough and needs to be improved."
The Politics Show
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The Politics Show returns on Sunday 17 September 2006 at 12.00pm on BBC One.
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