The soundtrack to summer has been set for Hampstead Heath as amateur musicians take to the stage on a working outdoor piano.

The play-it-yourself piano has been placed outside the Parliament Hill caf� with Maple Leaf Rag, Jerusalem and Bach pieces already being heard – carried across the Heath on the warm summer breeze.

The piano, which has been brought to the Heath all the way from the Square Mile business district as part of the City of London Festival, can be played by anyone.

Paul Maskell, the Corporation’s Heath events manager, said: “The Play Me I’m Yours initiative is brilliant in its simplicity – place a piano in a public place and let the public entertain each other.

“On the Heath, we have had kids having fun learning, right up to great pianists who have attracted impromptu crowds. Everyone who plays or listens to the piano seems to smile and the spontaneous fun that it creates matches the Heath’s atmosphere on a summer’s day.”

For those looking for a more professional musical experience, attached to the piano are details of the Heath’s summer concerts which will take place at Parliament Hill and Golders Hill Park. The piano will be available to be played until the end of the City of London Festival on August 12.