A group of pipers from west Wales have been entertaining thousands of young people in the middle of the Sahara desert.

Pibe Bach (Little Pipes), a band of traditional pipers from Pencader near Carmarthen, have been taking part in a music festival in the Libyan town of Drj.

The concert was held in an oasis

The group of four performed before an audience of about 5,000 people on Wednesday night in a concert which was broadcast live on Libyan television.

The event has been coordinated by the British Council and is the first British musical event to be held in Libya for more than 30 years.

The Drj festival celebrates the cultural traditions and history of local communities based in or around the Sahara desert with a display of dance, music, and artefacts.

The concerts take place after midnight under the oasis palm trees.

A spokesman for the British Council explained why Pibe Bach had been chosen.

He said: "It was the imaginative, lively nature of their performances, as well as the similarities between the instruments they play and traditional Libyan instruments, that led the British Council to select the band to represent Britain at the Drj festival. "

The band is led by Ceri Rhys Matthews, who is a traditional musician who lives and works in west Wales.

Diary

He has released an album of pipe music and has composed scores for television and film.

He is be recording an audio diary, in English and Welsh, of the band's impressions and experiences of the traditional desert festival.

The concert is part of the British Council's aim to promote the UK as a partner with Libya in the field of education, art and training.

The council has offices in 109 countries worldwide and receives an annual grant from the Foreign and Commonwealth Office.