Sweet tunes flowing from a Taupō school's music faculty have been silenced after thousands of dollars of music equipment was stolen.
Tauhara College principal Keith Buntting said the school was left "disappointed" after six electric guitars and bass guitars were taken last Wednesday night.
He said the timing had been especially unfortunate as the next night a student-planned art and music showcase was being held at the school.
However, the kind hearts of the community shone through with many locals donating their time and resources to make sure students were not impacted and the show could go on, he said.
He said there was a bit of a "heavy feeling" throughout the school, however, the positive attitudes of the staff and students were helping them move forward.
Schools were vulnerable when it came to robberies as people were always "coming and going", he said.
Head of Music at the school Rowan Bolley said it was "really sad" as the instruments were "part of the family" and had been with the school for a while.
He said he had received messages from ex-students who were devastated that the equipment they had played for so long had been taken.
The students cherished the instruments and always looked after them so well, he said.
"You should have seen the kid's faces when they found out.. it was terrible, they were devastated."
He said the school was now left with no permanent electric or bass guitars.
For the rest of the year the school would be working with what they had as budgets were "lean", Buntting said.
The Board of Trustees would review the situation next year, he said.
Buntting reported to theft to police on Thursday.