Episode 6 The Big Performance

Ten kids terrified of singing in public...

-What's happened?

-I don't want to do it.

-Two soloists,

-Chris and Oli.

-No!

..must undergo the toughest performance challenges...

-You must be extra nervous.

-Argh!

-I'm still shaking. I don't know why.

-..to face their ultimate fear,

singing to a crowd of 40,000.

There's enough people there to eat you alive.

I can't explain how I feel. I'm really scared.

Could you do it? This is the Big Performance.

Top choirmaster Gareth Malone is taking ten shy singers

on a musical tour of the country. At each new destination

their confidence is tested to the limits.

Oh! Hey, hey, hey, I don't want you to cry.

I'm not doing it.

Last time, the group's performance at Warwick Castle,

in front of Mr Proms wasn't up to scratch.

There's still some work for Gareth to do.

Can they handle the ever-increasing pressure at the next stop?

They're getting better all the time but I still expect more.

They could go the extra mile. They're not digging deep enough yet.

Today the bus is heading north to Emily's home town of Liverpool,

where one of the most successful bands of all time,

The Beatles, found fame. This city of culture

with its well-known music groups is

the perfect place to perform like stars.

I am super excited about this one. We have got a perfect venue

and a really good style of music.

The two things will go together beautifully.

I think we'll do rock or heavy metal or something like that today.

It will be heavy metal, punk rock or rock 'n' roll because of

the jacket Gareth is wearing. It always gives us a hint.

They may be on to something. Remember

the suspiciously shiny electro-pop number?

-And what about the cowboy checks of country music.

-Yee-ha!

This is how I dress all the time. Honestly.

Today we're in Liverpool, home of the kind of music you'll master.

For this you need a crowd-pleasing alter-ego and a stadium-filling

vocal projection because today is all about...

-rock music!

-THEY CHEER

Every rock band needs a lead singer and the person who's trying out

for the big solo and the big performance is...

-Emily!

-Oh, no!

I'm a majorette and I love it.

I only sing to my mum. She says I'm good but I don't believe her.

Yes, it's you, Emily. Are you OK?

I don't want to. I don't like rock.

You don't like rock? By the end of today you'll love rock music.

Let's go!

Rock music is best known for its flamboyant acts, wild crowds

and guitar riffs. What better way to become a rock star

-than to walk in their footsteps?

-This is a huge music venue.

It's home to the MTV awards and concerts by Beyonce, Rihanna,

N-Dubz and now it's your turn to sing here.

I'm excited cos, like,

if we touch the floor, we'll have Beyonce sweat, N-Dubz sweat...

Let's go.

-Oh, my God!

-Hello!

-What do you reckon?

This is an 11,000 seater arena.

Rock is all about having a sort of alter-ego.

It's about being a rock star. Also, and most importantly,

it's about... PROJECTION!

THEY GIGGLE

Last week the group had a wake-up call when they

discovered their performances had been lacking any star quality.

-Oli, slightly depressed face.

-I know.

If they are to be ready for the Big Performance in five weeks,

they need to give rock all they've got.

The song you're going to learn is by a top British rock band.

They've won countless awards and they inspired a set of films,

-I don't know if you've heard of them, the Twilight films?

-Yeah.

The song that you're going to learn is called Starlight by Muse.

-Never heard of it.

-Never heard of it.

-Never heard of it? No?

HE PLAYS MUSIC ON LAPTOP

# Far away

# This ship is taking me far away

# Far away from the memories

-# Of the people who care... #

-All right.

I think this is the best song we've ever had to sing.

I think the song's really exciting that we're getting to do

and the lyrics actually mean a lot.

# Far away

# This ship is taking me far away... #

Who thinks that that would fill a stadium?

On a microphone it would.

No, a microphone doesn't make the energy of your performance bigger.

If you come out into here and go... # I'll never let you go. #

..the audience won't feel the energy.

It's not like... # I'll never let you go. #

That, amplified, connects with the audience. I want you to look me

in the eye and go... # I'll never... #

..really like you're kind of jabbing a sword into me.

# I'll never let you go

# If you promise not to fade away. #

You are starting to impress me with that. It was really good.

The question is, can you impress a friend of mine

who used to be in a rock band. You know him

because he's CBBC favourite Barney Harwood.

-THEY ALL GASP Luscious Barney!

-Barney, come in.

Hey, guys, how are you doing?

As a former keyboard player and guitarist,

Barney knows what's needed today.

I'm here today because I used to be in a band

so I know a bit about projection and how to hold yourself on stage.

You've learnt a song. Can we hear a bit?

# Far away

# This ship is taking me far away. #

At the moment you sound like you're really quiet...

In a box!

You've got to go... RAH! It doesn't matter if you feel silly

because rock stars, front men, hold the stage.

I'll go and stand over there and you'll project to me.

No microphones, I want to feel that rock.

Projecting their voices to the back of an 11,000 seater arena

means digging deep for this shy group of singers.

# Far away

# This ship is taking me far away...

That's it.

# Far away from the memories

# Of the people who care if I live or die... #

Louder!

This task would have been impossible for the group

when they started their music training tour six weeks ago.

-What do you think?

-I thought that was brilliant.

The difference between when I first came in

to just then when you were shouting it at me was fantastic.

Right, brilliant. I think that's made a really big difference.

You're really starting to project. Later on you'll be performing in

a space where it's not just 11,000 people, there's no limit

to the number of people because you'll be outside busking

on the streets of Liverpool and raising money for Children in Need.

Busking in the middle of nowhere, that's just like...

-No, that's not me.

-When you're busking for charity

you've got to deliver a performance, you've got to reach out to

your audience or they won't make a penny.

I've got to do it on the streets! That's really, really scary.

Emily - bubbly, popular and loves being a majorette with her sisters.

She's always stick twirling and dancing around, but singing in front

of anyone other than her mum and she's quiet as a mouse.

I think it's really good for Emily to do a rock song

because she's quite timid at the moment

and I just want to see her let her hair down and become

a bit of a rock star.

This is perfect. I think she's going to struggle cos

she's very nervous but this is the right song for her.

How are you feeling about your solo?

-Scared.

-Scared. OK, good start(!)

-Are you going to go for it?

-Yeah.

HE PLAYS THE PIANO

# Far away

# This ship is taking me far away

# Far away from the memories... #

Ah-ah-ah.

When you make a mistake, you don't need to panic about it.

That's what rehearsal's for.

# Far away

# This ship is taking me far away... #

Right, fantastic start. There's just one thing missing.

Do you look like a rock god when you're singing this song?

I'd say no.

You do... Don't you do majorettes?

-Tell me what you do when you're in the majorettes.

-Stand like that.

Right, quite upright? And how does your head have to be?

-Up, like that.

-It's exactly the same with singing.

One, two, three and...

-# Far away... #

-Fantastic!

Gareth gets Emily marching like a majorette

to try and bring the confidence she has in her hobby into her singing.

-Louder!

-# Far away from the... #

I think that Emily has got the best voice so far,

but she is the least confident.

And that's a real, real problem.

In five weeks' time,

Gareth's singers will be performing

to a 40,000-strong crowd at Proms In The Park.

One will be picked to sing the solo.

Later, Gareth will be rating Emily's chances

as high, medium or low.

But before their busking challenge,

the tour bus is stopping at one of the world's most famous venues,

which has played host to some of rock's biggest legends.

Come on in, everyone.

Meet Katie, who is one of Britain's top air guitarists.

ROCK MUSIC PLAYS

Being a rock star means owning the stage no matter what.

Air guitar is the perfect example -

no instrument, no excuse.

So, this afternoon, it'll be your turn to do that.

We're going to find your inner rock star.

We're going to have a competition. This air guitar can be yours

for the most exciting display of rock star talent.

Barney's going to be judging with me. Ready?

The successful air guitarist bases their routine on five key moves.

Move one - headbanging.

Move two - a kick.

Move three - a power-slide.

Move four - a jump.

Move five - running and spinning.

Showing off is very healthy on stage.

That's where you do it.

Stages were invented for showing off-ness. That's a word.

Gareth has split the group into three teams.

Each one will be air guitaring to a different classic rock track.

-You're here to give them a hand.

-Yep.

-Off you go.

ROCK MUSIC

Group one get straight into the rehearsal session

with some classic rock moves.

Play the guitar a bit.

Chloe's finding her rhythm,

but soloist Emily hasn't quite made the band.

You're playing the ukulele.

Can we have group two?

This is one of my favourite songs

and you can really rock out to this one.

It's a slow start from group two.

Do a little headbanging. Not too much. Just...

But as soon as their air guitars appear,

their moves catch the judges' attention.

Can group three make their mark?

When the drums kick in, go for it.

You have to look like you're enjoying yourself or it won't work.

MUSIC: "Rock 'N' Roll Star" by Oasis

That's not very rock star!

Katie, Jordan and Howard's fear of looking stupid

stops them from attempting any moves at all.

-Are you feeling silly?

-Yeah.

Is it "I look stupid therefore people think I look stupid?"

Watch this.

Feels silly, but it's so much fun. Give it a go.

Go on. Jump...

'You can't stand on stage if you're insecure about being there.

'You project it'

and people start to feel the same. The thing about being on stage

is bringing out this personality,

making people who have paid to see you feel good.

Can they shake off their embarrassment

and discover their fearless on-stage alter ego in time?

We're going to be using professional air guitar criteria to judge this

-and we've got the rule book here.

-We've got technical merit -

that's how much they look like they're playing.

They need stage presence. They need charisma,

-the ability to rock out.

-Airness - it's presentation.

Like in skating where it's about the pose.

That's what they've got to do. The performance has to be seen

-as an object of art. Says it here.

-It's in the rule book.

-We're going to judge from 1 to...

-..6.

Group one, take to the stage. And let the competition commence.

They've already shown a natural talent for it in rehearsal,

but will they be able to pull it off when it counts?

LOUD ROCK MUSIC

-Stage presence...

-Yeah.

Yeah, yeah, looks good.

Very good!

It looked brilliant to start. Oli, proper guitar playing.

Really strong. It was looking really tight at one point.

OK, so 1 is the lowest score, 6 is the highest score.

We'll judge these now.

Don't forget this is for the whole group.

There's still the individual prize to come.

Would you like to reveal your score?

Cos it tailed off towards the end, I'm going with 4.

Because it had lots and lots of energy at the beginning,

-I'm giving it 4.5.

-Well done.

-Well done.

APPLAUSE

OK, group two, take to the stage.

MUSIC: "I Can't Get No (Satisfaction)" by The Rolling Stones

With a start like that, group two pull out the stops

to impress the judges.

Nice.

Very good. Well done.

-I thought that was pretty good.

-The opening was brilliant.

You were timing it perfectly to jump off the stage

and give a surprise.

Love that. Good stage presence as well. Good technical merit.

I thought Miriyah looked like she was really enjoying herself.

Isthaque, you looked like you completely lost it

which I think is the right idea. Reveal your score, please.

Based on the opening and the improvisation rock stars do...

Because it maintained a good level of energy all the way through

and a fantastic smiley quality -

-THEY CHEER

-Well done.

Last, but by no means least, it's group three. Let's rock.

They were shy in rehearsal,

but can group three get over their embarrassment

and unleash their alter egos?

MUSIC: "Rock 'N' Roll Star" by Oasis

-Tongue out.

-Yeah.

Oh, yeah! Look at her go.

Woo!

Amazing!

I honestly didn't think you had it in you.

That was like looking at different people.

Katie, you've kept that inner rock star really well hidden.

That was fantastic.

Jordan, you looked like you were having a ball. Properly enjoying it.

When you were rehearsing you didn't look confident

and you've pulled it out the bag. As a team you did well.

So a 5 from me. You were brill.

Because I saw a total and utter transformation in all three of you,

I'm going to give you...

Group three are the highest scorers,

but which air guitarist has won the coveted prize?

What's been really good, just in a short time,

is that progression from timid sort of shy people

to rock stars.

I could never have imagined what the air guitar lesson could do for them.

It transformed them. It really helped them to let go

and start just having fun.

After much deliberation we have decided on the winner.

Katie.

Well done.

Congratulations, Katie. You win this marvellous prize.

Brilliant.

At first, I was thinking I'm not going to be able to

prance around like an idiot looking very silly in front of people,

but then I thought, "I've been able to sing in front of people,

"so, why not?

Katie proved she's got rock star potential,

but they'll all have to unleash their alter egos

in the busking challenge later on today.

If everyone else does moves then I'm going to do some,

but if no-one else does it, I don't think I'll do it.

I don't think I can pull off any rock star moves.

Because, like, I'm doing the solo

and I've got to do it...by myself.

Emily's lack of confidence

could seriously affect the whole group's performance.

Gareth needs to know she can handle the pressure of singing alone.

This is the Maritime Museum.

It's one of Liverpool's most recognisable buildings.

Inside is a challenge...

but it is just for you,

Emily. The rest of you will be practising your rock moves

-for this afternoon's performance. Emily, come with me.

-Good luck.

-Bye!

-Good luck!

I'm feeling really nervous about singing

to different people, because

I'm in my own town

and I might know people and they might laugh.

They might laugh every time I sing.

OK, Emily, you can stand there.

Now, Emily, I know that you have a lovely voice,

and I want you to realise that you can sing in front of anyone

and it will sound great. So I want you to sing your solo right here,

in front of some people you know very well.

Oh, argh!

Argh, ha-ha!

Ooh!

So, Emily, who are these people?

My mates from majorettes.

Emily is so worried about people laughing at her

she's only ever sung to her mum before.

Very good, that's brilliant! Emily, you're a really confident performer

when you do your majorettes, right?

Is she a confident performer?

-Yeah.

-Yes.

I want you to realise that you can be confident when you're singing.

So I want you to perform for this lot. You ready?

-How you feeling?

-Nervous!

Nervous? Can you do it?

-OK.

-Yeah?

# Far... # Argh!

Shall we have another go?

# Far away This ship is taking me far away

# Far away from my memories

# Of the people who care If I live or die...#

# But I'll never let you go

# If you promise not to fade away

# Never fade away. #

APPLAUSE

OK, Emily, you did it, you've sang in front of your friends,

how're you feeling?

Horrible.

Horrible?

I don't think I could be a soloist,

because I don't think I've got the voice.

And the confidence.

I thought Emily's singing was amazing.

I don't think Emily should be as nervous as she is

because she's got a really good voice.

I'm still shaky and I don't know why.

I know that she can pull off the crowd-pleasing performance

that we need in order to get money for Children In Need,

but it's whether she believes it or not.

You got through it, OK?

So this afternoon,

you're going to have to really go for it, even louder.

-But that's in front of the public!

-Yeah!

You're going to be fine.

-You're going to be fine. You all right?

-Yeah.

Come on, let's go and do it.

There'll be no second chances in a few hours.

They'll all need to impress total strangers

on the streets of Liverpool to earn applause and donations.

In previous performances, the group has faced ever-increasing audiences,

but they've never had to drum one up before.

I really hope that we pull in a crowd.

You know, just a small crowd would be really great,

because it's about them getting over that fear of the general public.

Um, I'd like to raise £20.

You know. £50?

This challenge is particularly tough because of the unknown audience.

How do real stars cope with the pressure?

Got to go out there, especially in front of a live audience,

you've got to show them that you're the main man or woman.

Somebody that commands the stage, is confident.

You have to believe in yourself and think that everyone will go crazy.

Charisma, lots of confidence,

and occasional smile, a cheeky one.

That makes a real rock performance.

The group has been given permission to busk in Liverpool town centre,

where thousands of people shop every day.

There's nowhere for these singers to hide.

To make matters worse,

it's pouring with rain.

Attracting and keeping a crowd will be extremely difficult.

Everybody, we're going to perform right here

and with a full rock band.

You are going to need your rock star alter-egos

and all of your projection to be heard in this really noisy place.

Really need you to go for it.

I'm feeling kind of nervous, because everyone is staring at us.

I'm excited. I'll never see these people again and it's for charity.

We're going to raise money for Children In Need

with the help of Pudsey and these ears. Put the ears on.

Let's go!

OK, off we go, come and get some ears, here we go.

I'm going to perform in public and I'm feeling quite nervous.

With the rain easing, an audience has started to gather.

But will the performance be good enough

for them to stay and give generously?

# Dun, dun, dun, dun, dun, dun, dun Dun, dun, dun, dun, dun, dun...#

It's time for Emily to confront her fear of being laughed at

and to sing solo in front of all these strangers.

# Far away

# This ship is taking me far away

# Far away from the memories

# Of the people who care If I live or die

# Starlight

# I will be chasing the starlight

# Until the end of my life

# I don't know If it's worth it any more

# Hold you in my arms

# I just wanted to hold

# You in my arms

# I just want you to hold... #

APPLAUSE AND CHEERING

I never pictured myself singing in front of so many people before.

And I've done it!

Yes! I'm so relieved.

It's really good, she had so much more confidence

than I thought she would have, I honestly thought she might run away.

And she didn't, she delivered. Really good.

What an achievement for Emily and the group.

Proof of how much the audience was impressed will be in the donations.

The performance was really lively, everyone is on a high at the moment.

Everyone tried a lot,

and I think it was just really good.

Best performance yet.

These are kids who couldn't sing in front of each other

just a matter of weeks ago, and now they're standing

in the middle of a busy shopping mall in a strange town

and performing with confidence. It's a really big deal.

Very well done.

That was your most energetic and engaged performance so far.

Really, really pleased with that. Big difference.

So we raised some money for Children In Need today,

how much do you reckon we raised? Jordan, how much?

Maybe like, £80-£90?

I think we raised £175.

£90.33.

Well, you raised...

£214!

Round of applause!

APPLAUSE AND CHEERING

Well done, everyone. Thank you.

Nobody laughed.

It went really well and they enjoyed themselves, Emily more than anyone.

She had a real smile on her face as she was singing,

and that is exactly what I'm looking for.

I want this to be fun.

I'm going to put Emily's chances

of being the Big Performance's soloist at high.

I thought she was very good.

She's got a lovely voice and she came out with the goods.

So far, Gareth has given just three of the singers

a high chance of being the Big Performance soloist.

Oli, Howard and Emily.

With five weeks to go, there's still time for the others to show

they can handle the spotlight.

Next time on the Big Performance...

the West End star leaves them speechless...

# Lo-o-ove! #

..the group give Lady Gaga a run for her money,

and the nerves kick in

as they prepare for their biggest audience yet.

I can't explain how I feel, I'm just really scared.

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