0:00:02 > 0:00:05This programme contains some strong language.
0:00:05 > 0:00:08The Royal Opera House, Covent Garden. One of the world's great stages,
0:00:08 > 0:00:11where only the best of the best ever get to perform.
0:00:12 > 0:00:14Opera's the ultimate art form.
0:00:14 > 0:00:15It's everything.
0:00:15 > 0:00:18It's orchestral music, it's vocal sound,
0:00:18 > 0:00:21it's the most wonderful visual display.
0:00:22 > 0:00:25And ultimately, it's drama.
0:00:25 > 0:00:27It's the most powerful drama in the world.
0:00:27 > 0:00:31And the conductor is in charge of everything.
0:00:32 > 0:00:37Being in the middle of the orchestra there's nothing quite like it.
0:00:37 > 0:00:41All these people coming together can create something
0:00:41 > 0:00:44so beautiful, so powerful and so emotional.
0:00:47 > 0:00:51In this series, four hopefuls are competing for the ultimate honour -
0:00:51 > 0:00:56to conduct a real opera performance in this house.
0:00:56 > 0:00:58I see a lot of them doing that with their hands, doing that!
0:00:58 > 0:01:01None of them has ever conducted before.
0:01:01 > 0:01:05I can't remember which instruments are actually involved in this piece.
0:01:05 > 0:01:07I don't read music in any shape or form.
0:01:07 > 0:01:09I mean, how am I going to know to turn the page over?
0:01:09 > 0:01:12If you've never conducted an opera before,
0:01:12 > 0:01:15it's the most challenging thing you can think of doing.
0:01:15 > 0:01:17I didn't do that properly, did I?
0:01:17 > 0:01:18Flipping heck!
0:01:18 > 0:01:21It could be somebody's worst nightmare.
0:01:21 > 0:01:22It's the experience of a lifetime.
0:01:22 > 0:01:24I feel violently ill.
0:01:24 > 0:01:26I was shaking so much I couldn't do the triangles.
0:01:26 > 0:01:30Who wouldn't jump at the chance to have an orchestra
0:01:30 > 0:01:32and singers at your mercy?
0:01:32 > 0:01:34That was terrifying. It didn't go well.
0:01:34 > 0:01:38I think have I got the bottle to stand up in front of thousands
0:01:38 > 0:01:40of people, do something I'm not skilled at doing...
0:01:40 > 0:01:42Practice, practice, practice.
0:01:42 > 0:01:43..and pull it off?
0:01:43 > 0:01:46Bloody hell, that is so hard!
0:01:46 > 0:01:48There can only be one winner.
0:01:48 > 0:01:49Ye-e-e-es!
0:01:51 > 0:01:55There can only be one Maestro At The Opera.
0:02:14 > 0:02:17Our four absolute beginners are about
0:02:17 > 0:02:19to start a crash course in conducting opera.
0:02:24 > 0:02:26All have ambitions to take to the podium.
0:02:30 > 0:02:32But each week they will be judged by a panel of opera experts
0:02:32 > 0:02:36and one of them will be asked to leave.
0:02:36 > 0:02:38- What are we doing today? - I don't know.
0:02:38 > 0:02:42I think they've got something ghastly in mind.
0:02:43 > 0:02:46They're about to meet the chair of the judges, Sir Mark Elder.
0:02:47 > 0:02:51One of the most renowned opera and symphonic conductors in the world.
0:02:53 > 0:02:57Top conductors all have their own unique personal style.
0:02:57 > 0:03:00Sir Mark wants to test our students' natural musical instincts
0:03:00 > 0:03:03by throwing them in at the deep end with a full orchestra...
0:03:03 > 0:03:06and singers.
0:03:07 > 0:03:10I'm setting them this challenge because I want to find out
0:03:10 > 0:03:14whether they can hear and feel music.
0:03:14 > 0:03:18Everybody has this idea that conducting is just simply
0:03:18 > 0:03:20waving your arms around and it'll all be fine.
0:03:20 > 0:03:21Well, it's not.
0:03:21 > 0:03:25I can't imagine that they've done anything as hard as this.
0:03:27 > 0:03:32Picking up the baton are choreographer, Craig Revel Horwood.
0:03:32 > 0:03:34'Disaster.'
0:03:34 > 0:03:37Strictly Come Dancing's Mr Nasty.
0:03:37 > 0:03:42'Darling, you made it up almost from beginning to end.'
0:03:42 > 0:03:45I'm going in this with a very open mind and I'm hoping
0:03:45 > 0:03:51I will feel I understand just a small part of the opera world.
0:03:52 > 0:03:57Oxford professor of mathematics and broadcaster, Marcus du Sautoy.
0:03:57 > 0:03:59'As a mathematician
0:03:59 > 0:04:02'I'm fascinated by the patterns we see all around us.'
0:04:02 > 0:04:04I really fell in love with opera as a kid.
0:04:04 > 0:04:07I'll tell you, if I had to do a Jim'll Fix It,
0:04:07 > 0:04:09I would probably have chosen to do this.
0:04:09 > 0:04:15In the olden days, pound shops were very expensive establishments...
0:04:15 > 0:04:19Josie Lawrence, actor and legendary comedy improviser.
0:04:19 > 0:04:21'..candles, batteries for my household needs...'
0:04:25 > 0:04:28I want to do my hardest and work hard,
0:04:28 > 0:04:30but I want to have a laugh.
0:04:30 > 0:04:35I might even find a husband, a nice bassoonist or something.
0:04:35 > 0:04:37'First for hot new music, BBC...'
0:04:37 > 0:04:40And finally the UK's premier urban music DJ.
0:04:40 > 0:04:43'This is Trevor Nelson on BBC Radio 1Xtra.
0:04:43 > 0:04:47'Still to come we've got some Ed Sheeran and some Drake after this.'
0:04:49 > 0:04:52I'm doing this because it's one musical form
0:04:52 > 0:04:55that I've never ever embraced, ever. I mean ever.
0:04:55 > 0:04:56So I'm hoping I learn something.
0:05:02 > 0:05:05Oh my God.
0:05:05 > 0:05:07Look at everybody.
0:05:07 > 0:05:09This looks nice, darlings.
0:05:09 > 0:05:11- This is not fair.- Hi.
0:05:11 > 0:05:14Well, good evening, I'm Sir Mark Elder.
0:05:14 > 0:05:17- Hello.- Evening, Sir Mark.
0:05:17 > 0:05:19And it's lovely to welcome you here in the Royal Opera House.
0:05:19 > 0:05:23And the idea tonight is that you should conduct.
0:05:23 > 0:05:25LAUGHTER
0:05:25 > 0:05:29We'd like you to conduct an aria, a solo spot number.
0:05:29 > 0:05:33Here to work with you is the Chelsea Opera Group.
0:05:33 > 0:05:36And to sing these arias for you are four talented young artists
0:05:36 > 0:05:38from the Royal Opera.
0:05:38 > 0:05:39I'm sorry.
0:05:39 > 0:05:41LAUGHTER
0:05:42 > 0:05:45The plan is that you should listen
0:05:45 > 0:05:47to each of your pieces for about 15 minutes
0:05:47 > 0:05:50and then come back and see how we go.
0:05:50 > 0:05:52Good luck and we're all dying to see how you do.
0:05:52 > 0:05:55That's not on!
0:05:55 > 0:05:59- That's so unfair. - That is ridiculous.
0:05:59 > 0:06:0315 minutes to do what people learn in 15 years.
0:06:03 > 0:06:07'An aria is when the action stops'
0:06:07 > 0:06:10and the singer conveys what they're feeling to the audience.
0:06:10 > 0:06:13It's quite ethereal, it sort of floats through the air
0:06:13 > 0:06:15and that's why it's called aria.
0:06:15 > 0:06:17It's got... It's got space.
0:06:17 > 0:06:22It's the outpouring of enormous emotion, anger or passion.
0:06:24 > 0:06:26It's how they feel in that moment.
0:06:27 > 0:06:30Sir Mark has selected four of the greatest arias
0:06:30 > 0:06:32in the operatic repertoire.
0:06:32 > 0:06:35# O mio babbino caro... #
0:06:35 > 0:06:36It's so slow.
0:06:37 > 0:06:41For Trevor it's the soulful pleading of O Mio Babbino Caro,
0:06:41 > 0:06:45sung by a daughter to her father in Puccini's opera Gianni Schicchi.
0:06:47 > 0:06:49It's a beautiful piece.
0:06:49 > 0:06:51I'm not deaf, it is a beautiful piece.
0:06:51 > 0:06:54It's so subtle though, that's my problem,
0:06:54 > 0:06:56I thought I'd have something with a bit of a step, you know?
0:06:58 > 0:07:02Craig gets the pride and pomp of the Toreador's song from Bizet's Carmen.
0:07:07 > 0:07:10Josie's aria is from the same opera.
0:07:12 > 0:07:16At least I've heard this before.
0:07:16 > 0:07:18Trevor's never heard his before.
0:07:18 > 0:07:23Carmen is a sultry gipsy girl and this is her playful opening number.
0:07:23 > 0:07:24I could just dance it.
0:07:27 > 0:07:31And for Marcus it's the tenor aria Una Furtiva Lagrima,
0:07:31 > 0:07:34sung by the lovesick hero of Donizetti's The Love Potion.
0:07:38 > 0:07:41It's not a big piece, it's very delicate.
0:07:41 > 0:07:44Now it's getting bigger, now it's getting bigger.
0:07:44 > 0:07:47Whoa, there it goes, there, that's the push. Ooh.
0:07:49 > 0:07:51And up to the big notes.
0:07:51 > 0:07:53That's what he wants to hold onto.
0:07:55 > 0:07:56APPLAUSE
0:07:59 > 0:08:02First to take up the baton is Craig.
0:08:03 > 0:08:05The orchestra have been instructed
0:08:05 > 0:08:08to follow exactly what each conductor does.
0:08:08 > 0:08:10For better or for worse.
0:08:23 > 0:08:28I love a challenge, I love going into unknown worlds,
0:08:28 > 0:08:30and opera is something I'm nervous of.
0:08:30 > 0:08:34'Five, six, seven and... One-two, three-four.'
0:08:34 > 0:08:39I had background in music because I played the recorder at school
0:08:39 > 0:08:42and I moved on to the French Horn.
0:08:42 > 0:08:44'This is perfect.
0:08:44 > 0:08:47'If we ever ended up like that, we'd be delighted, wouldn't we?'
0:08:47 > 0:08:48And then I became a dancer.
0:08:53 > 0:08:57When I turned 30, I decided to go into choreography.
0:08:57 > 0:08:59I've even done some operas.
0:09:01 > 0:09:05I was really scared of it, though, when I first went into that world,
0:09:05 > 0:09:08because I come from musical theatre which is all
0:09:08 > 0:09:11"There's no business like showbusiness", you know,
0:09:11 > 0:09:12all bump and grind.
0:09:12 > 0:09:18And that's completely the antithesis of classical music.
0:09:27 > 0:09:33# Toreador, en garde... #
0:09:33 > 0:09:38Craig's covering his nerves with extreme flamboyance.
0:09:38 > 0:09:43He feels the music pretty well, but it's all much too balletic.
0:09:47 > 0:09:50I sort of got into it at one stage where I thought, oh yeah,
0:09:50 > 0:09:52this is all right, I'm loving this bit.
0:09:52 > 0:09:55But then of course it changes, so you get carried away with yourself.
0:09:59 > 0:10:02Oh! Just glad that bit's over.
0:10:02 > 0:10:05APPLAUSE
0:10:08 > 0:10:10Thank you.
0:10:10 > 0:10:12Oh! I have to say...
0:10:12 > 0:10:14I have to say I can't remember
0:10:14 > 0:10:17which instruments are actually involved in this piece,
0:10:17 > 0:10:22but I cue you by probably waving this baton.
0:10:22 > 0:10:24OK.
0:10:25 > 0:10:28MUSIC STARTS
0:10:38 > 0:10:41HE HUMS THE ARIA
0:10:44 > 0:10:47What's the cue for you then?
0:10:47 > 0:10:49I thought I looked at you.
0:10:49 > 0:10:51- Just looking, no. - What is the cue for you then?
0:10:51 > 0:10:53- You have to show me when to come in.- How?
0:10:55 > 0:10:58- Because you didn't move, you just look at me.- I'm sorry, guys.
0:10:59 > 0:11:02'I can't pretend that I like opera.
0:11:02 > 0:11:05'To me, it's all massive voices,'
0:11:05 > 0:11:10females screeching at the male, who's bellowing back at her,
0:11:10 > 0:11:15or something like that, it's all very preposterous and posh.
0:11:20 > 0:11:23I thought the conductor was just for show
0:11:23 > 0:11:26and he was just waving his baton freaking out, as if to say,
0:11:26 > 0:11:29"What about me? Look at me!" That kind of thing.
0:11:32 > 0:11:36Since the age of ten, I've had no musical training at all.
0:11:36 > 0:11:41I can't read music, I can't play an instrument. I mean, anything.
0:11:41 > 0:11:44But secretly I have a grudging admiration
0:11:44 > 0:11:46for people who can make classical music.
0:11:51 > 0:11:55MUSIC STARTS
0:12:02 > 0:12:09# O mio babbino caro... #
0:12:09 > 0:12:11No, he's not setting the tempo right.
0:12:13 > 0:12:16# Mi piace
0:12:16 > 0:12:20# E bello, bello... #
0:12:20 > 0:12:24But he's so calm in his physicality. That's really amazing.
0:12:24 > 0:12:31# Vo'andare in Porta Rossa... #
0:12:31 > 0:12:32It's an amazing power -
0:12:32 > 0:12:34it's like having some sort of weapon
0:12:34 > 0:12:36that you don't know how to use.
0:12:36 > 0:12:39So you're there, leading an army and you're doing it wrong.
0:12:39 > 0:12:42One minute, you're powerful, the next, you're that small.
0:12:42 > 0:12:44# Si, si... #
0:12:44 > 0:12:47I felt really vulnerable, man. Although I smiled through it,
0:12:47 > 0:12:49the truth is I didn't know what I was doing.
0:12:49 > 0:12:52APPLAUSE
0:12:55 > 0:12:57Er, hello. I'm Marcus du Sautoy.
0:12:57 > 0:13:02Um...I'm a mathematician, but I'm also a trumpeter.
0:13:02 > 0:13:06HE PLAYS A TUNE
0:13:06 > 0:13:08I really got into music when my music teacher
0:13:08 > 0:13:11at my comprehensive school said, "Do you want to learn an instrument?"
0:13:11 > 0:13:14And three of us kind of put our hands up and said, "Yeah!"
0:13:14 > 0:13:17HE PLAYS A JAUNTY TUNE
0:13:17 > 0:13:23And so I did all my exams, I got up to Grade Eight Trumpet With Merit.
0:13:23 > 0:13:25And I did a lot of orchestral playing.
0:13:27 > 0:13:29But I've never, ever conducted.
0:13:31 > 0:13:34I think opera is, for me, the ultimate art form.
0:13:34 > 0:13:38For me, winning this competition would be extraordinary,
0:13:38 > 0:13:41because I love music - it's part of my life.
0:13:41 > 0:13:46# Quelle festose... #
0:13:46 > 0:13:49Now, Marcus's problem seems to be that it's too...
0:13:49 > 0:13:52aggressive. It's too tense and hard.
0:13:52 > 0:13:57# Invidiar sembro... #
0:13:57 > 0:13:59But...he has talent.
0:14:00 > 0:14:03He has a feel for being there.
0:14:03 > 0:14:11# Che piu cercando io vo? #
0:14:11 > 0:14:13I really enjoyed it.
0:14:13 > 0:14:16And it is just an extraordinary energy
0:14:16 > 0:14:18just coursing through that room.
0:14:18 > 0:14:23And you're deciding when it's going on. That's...amazing.
0:14:25 > 0:14:28# L'amour
0:14:29 > 0:14:32# L'amour
0:14:33 > 0:14:34# L'amour... #
0:14:34 > 0:14:36Josie, in her natural element.
0:14:36 > 0:14:39Immediately, you can see it, can't you? The comedienne.
0:14:39 > 0:14:42Very, very witty, lively person.
0:14:42 > 0:14:44# Il n'a jamais, jamais connu... #
0:14:44 > 0:14:47I'm going to work really hard and take it seriously.
0:14:47 > 0:14:50You know, these people are professional musicians
0:14:50 > 0:14:54and I don't want to go in there as a sort of comedy klutz.
0:14:54 > 0:14:55APPLAUSE
0:14:55 > 0:14:58'Please welcome Miss Josie Lawrence!'
0:14:58 > 0:14:59CHEERING
0:14:59 > 0:15:01JAUNTY PIANO TUNE
0:15:01 > 0:15:03Josie may have no experience of conducting,
0:15:03 > 0:15:06but she has her own distinctive encounters with opera
0:15:06 > 0:15:09on the improvised comedy circuit.
0:15:09 > 0:15:15# We have many, many miles to go
0:15:15 > 0:15:17# Ha, ha, ha!
0:15:17 > 0:15:20# This is no laughing matter! #
0:15:20 > 0:15:23'I haven't really had any musical training,
0:15:23 > 0:15:28'although I have really loved singing from the year dot.'
0:15:28 > 0:15:31# Oh, shit, I cannot see! #
0:15:31 > 0:15:33Freeze! Do they say "shit" in opera?
0:15:33 > 0:15:35- All the time.- Oh, OK.
0:15:35 > 0:15:37'I'm hoping what I've done before will help.'
0:15:37 > 0:15:41I know I've got a sense of rhythm,
0:15:41 > 0:15:43I know I've got a sense of the dramatic,
0:15:43 > 0:15:46so that's two things in my favour, I guess.
0:15:48 > 0:15:50# Si tu ne m'aime pas... #
0:15:50 > 0:15:54Now, we've got to the last part. This is the hard thing...
0:15:54 > 0:15:58..because the singer stops and does a lovely pause on her top note,
0:15:58 > 0:16:00and then the orchestra's got to come in after her.
0:16:00 > 0:16:07# Prend garde a toi! #
0:16:07 > 0:16:10THEY ALL PLAY AT DIFFERENT TIMES JOSIE LAUGHS
0:16:10 > 0:16:12Thank you so much!
0:16:12 > 0:16:15She just didn't know how to do the last part.
0:16:15 > 0:16:17APPLAUSE
0:16:17 > 0:16:19I didn't feel in control at all.
0:16:19 > 0:16:22I felt like a silly woman waving her arms about,
0:16:22 > 0:16:25which is exactly what I was.
0:16:25 > 0:16:28But I did enjoy it, and they were lovely.
0:16:28 > 0:16:32Lovely. And God knows what they think about us lot...
0:16:32 > 0:16:34treading on their turf.
0:16:36 > 0:16:39Craig had the worst go at it.
0:16:39 > 0:16:42He relied a lot on...dancing.
0:16:42 > 0:16:44Whilst he was waving his arms around,
0:16:44 > 0:16:47it didn't really have much to do with how many beats
0:16:47 > 0:16:50were in a bar or which bit of the bar we were in.
0:16:50 > 0:16:54Mathematician, the most boring of the lot - he was really slow.
0:16:54 > 0:16:55He was...
0:16:55 > 0:17:00Oh, man alive! You just wanted to go, "Wake up! Come on!"
0:17:00 > 0:17:03Josie Lawrence looked like she was enjoying it more.
0:17:03 > 0:17:04Interesting, as well,
0:17:04 > 0:17:07she was the only one actually mouthing the words.
0:17:07 > 0:17:09I, straight away, got what she wants.
0:17:09 > 0:17:13And I'm very surprised and impressed.
0:17:13 > 0:17:19The revelation for me was Trevor Nelson. He is really good.
0:17:19 > 0:17:21He's... He's such a natural.
0:17:21 > 0:17:24It was great to see him really move with the music as well,
0:17:24 > 0:17:27and feel it with his whole body and not be rigid.
0:17:27 > 0:17:28See you!
0:17:28 > 0:17:32None of what we saw tonight could one call good conducting,
0:17:32 > 0:17:35because they don't have the technique and the tools to do a good job.
0:17:35 > 0:17:39I'd say they were, from that point of view, pretty evenly matched.
0:17:39 > 0:17:43So I think it's a good first step and everything's open now.
0:17:48 > 0:17:52At the end of the competition, one of our students will conduct
0:17:52 > 0:17:55at the Royal Opera House, in front of a discerning audience.
0:17:57 > 0:18:00To see how it should be done, Sir Mark has arranged for them
0:18:00 > 0:18:05to join the 2,000-strong Opera House audience for a performance
0:18:05 > 0:18:08of Mozart's The Marriage Of Figaro.
0:18:08 > 0:18:11'This will be the first opera I've ever seen in my life.'
0:18:11 > 0:18:16To sit for three and a half hours through it...will be interesting.
0:18:19 > 0:18:21Ooh, a box.
0:18:24 > 0:18:26The thought of standing on that podium with all these people
0:18:26 > 0:18:29in this place - I think I would just faint.
0:18:29 > 0:18:31You'd just see a hand go up...
0:18:31 > 0:18:33and then fall.
0:18:33 > 0:18:34And that would be it!
0:18:34 > 0:18:37And the sound of a "twank" as the baton lands on the floor.
0:18:37 > 0:18:41APPLAUSE
0:18:45 > 0:18:49Tonight's conductor is the music director of the Royal Opera House,
0:18:49 > 0:18:50Sir Antonio Pappano...
0:18:52 > 0:18:54..one of the world's most charismatic
0:18:54 > 0:18:57and experienced orchestral conductors.
0:18:57 > 0:19:01MUSIC: "The Marriage Of Figaro - Overture" by Mozart
0:19:05 > 0:19:09The whole idea of conducting, we think,
0:19:09 > 0:19:11"leadership, driving the music."
0:19:13 > 0:19:17In that sense, I think you're almost like conducting for a film.
0:19:17 > 0:19:19You have to create atmosphere,
0:19:19 > 0:19:22you have to create the situation that brings the audience in.
0:19:24 > 0:19:26Support the singer, drive the singers.
0:19:26 > 0:19:31You have to bring them to heaven, you know?
0:19:31 > 0:19:34# Ora si ch'io son contenta
0:19:34 > 0:19:38# Sembra fatto inver per me... #
0:19:38 > 0:19:40His conducting is amazing.
0:19:40 > 0:19:43He was full of life, he was full of the joys of what he does
0:19:43 > 0:19:46and it transmitted to us, all the way up in the balcony.
0:19:46 > 0:19:49Well, he looked like he hadn't broken out into a sweat.
0:19:49 > 0:19:52He'd been on their for three and a half hours,
0:19:52 > 0:19:55really joyously taking it all in and this rhythm that he's got as well.
0:19:55 > 0:19:57APPLAUSE
0:20:00 > 0:20:04After the curtain calls, the four students are invited backstage
0:20:04 > 0:20:06to meet Pappano and get some tips.
0:20:06 > 0:20:08What are you thinking?! THEY LAUGH
0:20:08 > 0:20:10Ten weeks to do that?!
0:20:10 > 0:20:13- It looked easy, the way you did it. - Yes, joyous, watching you.
0:20:13 > 0:20:15Yeah, you're going to confront situations
0:20:15 > 0:20:17where you're going to be in difficulty,
0:20:17 > 0:20:20but remember that it's music and it's there to...
0:20:20 > 0:20:23Yeah, there are challenges, but even in a short period of time,
0:20:23 > 0:20:25you'll find your either style...
0:20:25 > 0:20:29There are certain things that have to be a certain way,
0:20:29 > 0:20:32but if you've got spirit, then show it, you know?
0:20:32 > 0:20:34And if you've got rhythm, then show it, you know?
0:20:34 > 0:20:36I'm just terrified about the whole thing, really.
0:20:36 > 0:20:39I mean, you looked like you were dancing up there,
0:20:39 > 0:20:40that's what it looked like to me.
0:20:40 > 0:20:42Yeah. You just hit the nail on the head.
0:20:42 > 0:20:44If it's got... Look.
0:20:44 > 0:20:45- Two, three.- Exactly.
0:20:45 > 0:20:48If it's got that in it, it's spring, it has a spring in its step.
0:20:48 > 0:20:51- Yeah?- Yeah.
0:20:51 > 0:20:53- We'll keep that in mind.- Thank you so much.- Good luck. And...
0:20:53 > 0:20:57'This is the biggest ask in the world.'
0:20:57 > 0:21:00It's like asking somebody to referee the cup final
0:21:00 > 0:21:02when they've never been on a football pitch.
0:21:02 > 0:21:05It's HUGE!
0:21:05 > 0:21:07I wouldn't like to go into an orchestra pit.
0:21:07 > 0:21:10I always think it must be like going into the lion's den.
0:21:10 > 0:21:12Everyone's waiting to savage you.
0:21:15 > 0:21:19The students are about to meet four professional opera conductors,
0:21:19 > 0:21:22who will guide them through the basics of their craft.
0:21:22 > 0:21:24Ah, fantastic!
0:21:24 > 0:21:25Would you like a drink?
0:21:25 > 0:21:28In one week's time, they'll be judged on a performance
0:21:28 > 0:21:30of their arias at the Royal Opera House.
0:21:30 > 0:21:34I've set up my whole house as a music room.
0:21:34 > 0:21:37Lessons start at the beginning, and when it comes to conducting music,
0:21:37 > 0:21:42that means the upbeat - the very first signal the conductor gives.
0:21:42 > 0:21:45'Upbeats are so important.'
0:21:45 > 0:21:48So much energy and communication
0:21:48 > 0:21:52is conveyed in the manner of the upbeat.
0:21:52 > 0:21:56The gesture - that launches a piece of music -
0:21:56 > 0:22:00has to contain everything about the music.
0:22:00 > 0:22:04Not just how fast or how slow it is, but how loud or how soft it is,
0:22:04 > 0:22:07what the emotional temperature of the music is.
0:22:07 > 0:22:09Everything has to be in that first gesture.
0:22:09 > 0:22:12Imagine that my hands are the table for the moment,
0:22:12 > 0:22:15- so you're really going to shove them to the floor.- Yeah, OK.
0:22:15 > 0:22:17And "boom," and then "fwoosh!"
0:22:17 > 0:22:21- Good, OK.- Massive, huge energy so that your arms really fly high.
0:22:22 > 0:22:23Yeah. Lovely!
0:22:23 > 0:22:26One, two, three, four!
0:22:26 > 0:22:28- One, two, three...- It's like you throw a ball up in the air
0:22:28 > 0:22:30and you know where it's going to land.
0:22:30 > 0:22:32Once the orchestra has started playing,
0:22:32 > 0:22:35it's the conductor's job to beat time with their right hand,
0:22:35 > 0:22:40leaving the left hand free to indicate expression and mood.
0:22:40 > 0:22:43What the orchestra require is for you to be down for beat one
0:22:43 > 0:22:45and up for beat two.
0:22:45 > 0:22:48So on a really, really basic level, if there's no emotional input,
0:22:48 > 0:22:51just purely like a machine, what you're basically doing is...
0:22:51 > 0:22:52# Bom
0:22:52 > 0:22:54# Ber-dum, bom-bom... #
0:22:54 > 0:22:56Oh! I did that.
0:22:56 > 0:22:59- So what we're doing is beat one is their low note.- Yeah.
0:22:59 > 0:23:01Beat two is the high note.
0:23:01 > 0:23:04Whilst Josie and Trevor tackle two beats in a bar...
0:23:04 > 0:23:05Really, um...
0:23:05 > 0:23:06- Stiff?- Yeah.
0:23:06 > 0:23:10..Craig and his mentor, Michael Rosewell, go two better.
0:23:10 > 0:23:14And one, two, three, four. And one, two, three, four.
0:23:14 > 0:23:18- And one, two...- Can you do a three, so you're coming in on three?
0:23:18 > 0:23:21One, two, three. One, two, three.
0:23:21 > 0:23:22One, two, three.
0:23:22 > 0:23:24# Ai, ai, ai, ai... #
0:23:24 > 0:23:29Now that the four students have grasped the essentials of beating time...
0:23:29 > 0:23:31Are we going through here?
0:23:31 > 0:23:34..there are two days of intensive instruction and aria rehearsal.
0:23:34 > 0:23:36And the first thing they have to learn
0:23:36 > 0:23:39is what their singers will need from them.
0:23:40 > 0:23:42Their guide through this potential minefield
0:23:42 > 0:23:45is the mezzo soprano, Kathryn Harries.
0:23:45 > 0:23:48What I'd like to achieve today
0:23:48 > 0:23:52is to see what it's like from the singer's perspective,
0:23:52 > 0:23:55so you actually have a real partnership.
0:23:55 > 0:23:57# Ah-ah-ah-ah... #
0:23:57 > 0:23:59Successful opera conductors have
0:23:59 > 0:24:02an understanding of what the singers are going through.
0:24:03 > 0:24:10They tend to be sensitive to the breathing, to the needs of a singer.
0:24:10 > 0:24:16SHE SINGS HABANERA FROM CARMEN AND LAUGHS
0:24:17 > 0:24:21That might be ever so slightly off-putting.
0:24:21 > 0:24:25Is that famous expression, "less is more?" Come on, Marcus.
0:24:26 > 0:24:34SHE HUMS HABANERA FROM CARMEN
0:24:34 > 0:24:38Marcus, don't look like an axe murderer, dear.
0:24:38 > 0:24:41I think, for you, it's about a little bit more relaxation.
0:24:41 > 0:24:45If you get rigid, then you communicate rigidity. OK?
0:24:45 > 0:24:49All right, that was very good indeed. Trevor, your turn.
0:24:49 > 0:24:50- You're going to sing.- Am I?
0:24:50 > 0:24:53I do hope these conductors nowhere to sing.
0:24:53 > 0:24:55They're going to need to know where to breathe.
0:24:55 > 0:25:01They're going to need to know what a phrase feels like physically.
0:25:01 > 0:25:07# My name is Trevor Nelson
0:25:07 > 0:25:12# I work for BBC. #
0:25:13 > 0:25:17- Fantastic. Excellent, well done. - Oh, that's so sweet!
0:25:17 > 0:25:20- You have a future, my dear.- Where?
0:25:20 > 0:25:23I'm not quite sure. But I'll think of it.
0:25:23 > 0:25:28OK, do all please trust that you are musicians,
0:25:28 > 0:25:31and if there are things that you do, like you frown a bit.
0:25:31 > 0:25:33And Craig, because you're a dancer,
0:25:33 > 0:25:37- your default position is to do slightly too much.- Yes.
0:25:37 > 0:25:40And from a singer's point of view, if there's too much going on
0:25:40 > 0:25:42with the conductor, it's distracting.
0:25:42 > 0:25:45Talk to your singers, ask them what they need from you,
0:25:45 > 0:25:48and I'm sure they will give it to you.
0:25:48 > 0:25:49Thank you.
0:25:49 > 0:25:51Our four students are now ready to develop their own
0:25:51 > 0:25:54interpretations of their arias with their singers.
0:25:54 > 0:25:58Craig is working with singer Daniel Grice on the Toreador Song from Bizet's Carmen.
0:25:58 > 0:26:01I think we should bash in, and see what happens.
0:26:01 > 0:26:05It's sung by a bullfighter to his adoring fans.
0:26:05 > 0:26:07And you tell me what you need.
0:26:08 > 0:26:13- OK. We'll find out, went we?- Well, we will, darling.- The Toreador Song.
0:26:13 > 0:26:16Very familiar, incredibly rhythmic.
0:26:16 > 0:26:22So, you need a very, very strong gesture to get it going,
0:26:22 > 0:26:23and a strong feel for the...
0:26:23 > 0:26:26HE SINGS THE RHYTHM
0:26:35 > 0:26:39This aria is actually very tricky, because my singing line is supposed
0:26:39 > 0:26:44to be quite smooth over the top of a jagged sound from an orchestra.
0:26:44 > 0:26:48# Vortre toast, je peux vous le rendre
0:26:48 > 0:26:52# Senors, senors, car avec les soldats... #
0:26:52 > 0:26:55A vital part of a conductor's job
0:26:55 > 0:26:58is to agree the feel of an aria with the singer.
0:26:58 > 0:27:03- Great. All right?- What interpretation do you want of this?
0:27:03 > 0:27:06As you are the maestro here.
0:27:06 > 0:27:09- So, it sort of showing off in a way, isn't it?- Yeah.
0:27:09 > 0:27:14- You know, it's a song of seduction, led by his penis, darling.- True.
0:27:14 > 0:27:18And I think that's what you need to play in it.
0:27:18 > 0:27:19OK. Cool.
0:27:19 > 0:27:23- When you get excited. - When you get excited I start...
0:27:24 > 0:27:27Yes. I was trying not to get excited.
0:27:27 > 0:27:31His conducting style is very camp, but I'm not sure it will get
0:27:31 > 0:27:34the best respect from an orchestra, that's the thing.
0:27:36 > 0:27:38# Et songe bien, oui, songe en combattant... #
0:27:38 > 0:27:41My dancing's not really helping me,
0:27:41 > 0:27:43because I'm not allowed to use my legs,
0:27:43 > 0:27:47I'm not allowed to use my bum, I'm not allowed to use my hips,
0:27:47 > 0:27:49and that so frustrating.
0:27:53 > 0:27:56Josie, and mentor, Steve Higgins are next door.
0:27:56 > 0:27:59And singer, Justina Gringyte is joining in to rehearse
0:27:59 > 0:28:02Carmen's seductive Habanera.
0:28:02 > 0:28:04Welcome to the wondrous world of opera.
0:28:04 > 0:28:07I'm here to teach you all about it.
0:28:07 > 0:28:09THE LAUGH
0:28:09 > 0:28:13What I'm going to try and convey through you, as my Carmen,
0:28:13 > 0:28:16is the sense of this magnificent creature telling everyone
0:28:16 > 0:28:19what she thinks about love.
0:28:19 > 0:28:23You know, get the heat of it, and the playfulness and the passion.
0:28:23 > 0:28:27Come on, let's have a little go at it. Can we? That would be fantastic.
0:28:27 > 0:28:30She's being at her most evasive, Carmen.
0:28:30 > 0:28:34So, the tempo can't be too slow.
0:28:34 > 0:28:41# L'amour est un oiseau rebelle que nul ne peut apprivoiser... #
0:28:41 > 0:28:44And she'll play around it, but that rhythm must be absolutely
0:28:44 > 0:28:45rock solid underneath.
0:28:50 > 0:28:52It goes into the second part.
0:28:52 > 0:28:55There are some traditional little pushes and pulls
0:28:55 > 0:28:57that the singer might want to do.
0:28:57 > 0:29:03Just little meaningful winks!
0:29:05 > 0:29:12# Si tu ne m'aimes pas, si tu ne m'aimes pas, je t'aime
0:29:14 > 0:29:26Mais si je t'aime, si je t'aime, prends garde a toi. #
0:29:28 > 0:29:33You're very good. She's so sure of herself, which is wonderful.
0:29:33 > 0:29:35Are you that sure of yourself with blokes?
0:29:36 > 0:29:41- Pretty much, yes. - She is! No wonder I'm single.
0:29:41 > 0:29:43Will you teach me how to flirt with blokes?
0:29:44 > 0:29:47Sod the aria, let's go dating.
0:29:49 > 0:29:53Many great conductors find it more freeing to work from memory,
0:29:53 > 0:29:54and Trevor has too.
0:29:54 > 0:29:57So his mentor, Jessica Cottis, is working out a system
0:29:57 > 0:30:02to guide him through his aria, Puccini's O Mio Babbino Caro.
0:30:02 > 0:30:04I've been thinking, because you don't read music,
0:30:04 > 0:30:07we need to get some version of the score on a piece of paper
0:30:07 > 0:30:11for you to be able to memorise it.
0:30:11 > 0:30:13He doesn't read music,
0:30:13 > 0:30:16so everything that he does will be completely from here.
0:30:16 > 0:30:19We need to make sure he's comfortable under pressure,
0:30:19 > 0:30:22on the day, that he can come up with the goods.
0:30:22 > 0:30:25However you need to memorise, I'm going to write it down.
0:30:25 > 0:30:27One set, two sets.
0:30:27 > 0:30:30Of course, if you can't read music,
0:30:30 > 0:30:32you still have a fighting chance,
0:30:32 > 0:30:36because what matters is your communicative ability.
0:30:36 > 0:30:39The clarity of how you show everybody how much you love
0:30:39 > 0:30:42this music, and you know how it should go.
0:30:48 > 0:30:51Meanwhile, Marcus has a ready mastered his Donizetti aria,
0:30:51 > 0:30:55Una Furtiva Lagrima, but his mentor, Paul McGrath,
0:30:55 > 0:30:58is more concerned about facial expressions.
0:30:58 > 0:31:01You've got an amazing, big, shiny brain,
0:31:01 > 0:31:06but when you do this, you have to open it out to everybody.
0:31:06 > 0:31:09Yeah? Whereas this, "I've got all this data in my head.
0:31:09 > 0:31:12"I know that this is 83.6 beats per minute,
0:31:12 > 0:31:15"and I'm going to get ready now, I'm going to count."
0:31:15 > 0:31:21- Yeah, yeah.- We don't want to see your big brain like that.
0:31:21 > 0:31:24We want to see your big brain, opened out.
0:31:26 > 0:31:31For me, personally, the best thing a conductor can do is look happy,
0:31:31 > 0:31:34because then it puts the singer at ease.
0:31:36 > 0:31:40Marcus has got to continue thinking about how he presents himself,
0:31:40 > 0:31:42what his face looks like,
0:31:42 > 0:31:45and how he's connecting to the people in the room.
0:31:45 > 0:31:49You know, I think he was quite upset that Katherine Harris
0:31:49 > 0:31:52told him he looks like an axe murderer!
0:31:54 > 0:31:55Conducting is, of course,
0:31:55 > 0:31:58about an entire package of how a musician expresses
0:31:58 > 0:32:02the inner meaning of the music through his personality,
0:32:02 > 0:32:05through his face, his eyes, and his gesture.
0:32:08 > 0:32:12Pierre Boulez is an example of a conductor who is immaculate,
0:32:12 > 0:32:16and always intensely clear for every beat of the bar.
0:32:22 > 0:32:25At the other end of the scale, you've got Leonard Bernstein,
0:32:25 > 0:32:28who was extremely exuberant, physically very free,
0:32:28 > 0:32:31responding to the moment, spontaneously,
0:32:31 > 0:32:34and creating a different relationship with an orchestra.
0:32:34 > 0:32:37APPLAUSE
0:32:38 > 0:32:41For me, the conductor can't conduct with just one gesture,
0:32:41 > 0:32:43you've got to have variety,
0:32:43 > 0:32:46you've got to be able to respond to the inner life of the music.
0:32:47 > 0:32:51In their quest to become great conductors our students
0:32:51 > 0:32:54- are given sessions on multitasking. - Do you know what it is yet?
0:32:54 > 0:32:57Body language,
0:32:59 > 0:33:01and keeping time.
0:33:04 > 0:33:08Everything a budding maestro needs to know before taking to the podium.
0:33:11 > 0:33:17There really is so much to learn in a very short space of time.
0:33:19 > 0:33:20I hope I can do it.
0:33:26 > 0:33:28Our four would be conductors are returning
0:33:28 > 0:33:31to the Royal Opera House, to show their skills.
0:33:31 > 0:33:35I'm really nervous, but hopefully, that will disappear
0:33:35 > 0:33:37when I walk through this door.
0:33:37 > 0:33:39But at the end of the day one of them will be
0:33:39 > 0:33:42voted out of the competition.
0:33:42 > 0:33:46Home sweet home. Today's finally come.
0:33:46 > 0:33:49All of this fuss and trepidation, and sleepless nights.
0:33:49 > 0:33:54I'm either in, or I'm out, but I'm going to do my best to enjoy it.
0:33:54 > 0:33:56- That's all I'm thinking.- Focus.
0:33:56 > 0:34:00I suppose the only worry is, "am I going to blank?"
0:34:00 > 0:34:04Am I just going to go, "what's next? I haven't a clue what comes next!"
0:34:07 > 0:34:11If I start to think, "oh, it's a competition," I'll be a mess.
0:34:11 > 0:34:14So, at the moment I'm really in my, "I'm a performer," zone.
0:34:17 > 0:34:20I think it's horrific role reversal, actually.
0:34:20 > 0:34:24It's nasty being judged, so I have to get on, do my best,
0:34:24 > 0:34:27if that's not good enough, then chuck me out.
0:34:28 > 0:34:30This morning they each have a rehearsal, here,
0:34:30 > 0:34:33in the Paul Hamlin Hall, where they'll meet
0:34:33 > 0:34:37for the first time the orchestra of the Royal Opera House.
0:34:37 > 0:34:40Hello everybody.
0:34:40 > 0:34:43For a warm-up exercise they've been asked to conduct
0:34:43 > 0:34:46an extract from the overture to Johann Strauss's Die Fledermaus.
0:34:46 > 0:34:50- Here we go then.- And just starting this piece is a challenge in itself.
0:34:52 > 0:34:54VIOLIN STARTS TO PLAY
0:34:54 > 0:34:57Sorry. I didn't do that properly, did I? So I will go...
0:34:57 > 0:35:00# Du du, du-dle-du-dle-du-dle... # Is that all right?
0:35:00 > 0:35:01OK?
0:35:08 > 0:35:10May I start that again?
0:35:10 > 0:35:14I think Josie is still finding it difficult to communicate what
0:35:14 > 0:35:17she wants and trust what she wants and be really clear.
0:35:17 > 0:35:19This works so well when the music's taped.
0:35:19 > 0:35:20SHE LAUGHS
0:35:20 > 0:35:24At the moment, she's not really committing to any gesture.
0:35:24 > 0:35:27She's almost like asking permission to give it rather than being
0:35:27 > 0:35:30absolutely firm and telling them what she wants.
0:35:35 > 0:35:37All over the shop.
0:35:37 > 0:35:39It's because I'm shaking.
0:35:39 > 0:35:41I didn't think this would happen.
0:36:02 > 0:36:03Hey, well done.
0:36:03 > 0:36:06- I thought I was a mess. - You weren't a mess.
0:36:06 > 0:36:09- And they're so stern, you know?- This is the beginning of Fledermaus.
0:36:09 > 0:36:11You are a metronome.
0:36:11 > 0:36:15- Forget, don't even listen...- You're not understanding what I'm saying.
0:36:15 > 0:36:18- What?- I was shaking so much I couldn't do the triangles.
0:36:18 > 0:36:21What you did is you heard and you started following them.
0:36:21 > 0:36:23And that threw you completely.
0:36:23 > 0:36:26That's fair enough, that's what the experience was for.
0:36:26 > 0:36:28The acoustic of the room, they play behind your beat...
0:36:28 > 0:36:31- I get the feeling what's happening here...- They're playing late.
0:36:31 > 0:36:34I get the feeling what's happening at the Royal Opera house
0:36:34 > 0:36:36is they're all very lovely and bloody brilliant
0:36:36 > 0:36:38but I think they think what we're doing is a bit silly
0:36:38 > 0:36:41- and they're a bit fed up with us. - That might be the case.
0:36:41 > 0:36:43In which case, you just need to go and enjoy it.
0:36:43 > 0:36:45I think I'm going to be the first one out
0:36:45 > 0:36:48because I just made a stupid, girl mess of myself out there.
0:36:48 > 0:36:49You didn't.
0:36:51 > 0:36:54See, he started right away.
0:37:01 > 0:37:06- See, he's doing ones, which is much easier.- You were doing ones.
0:37:06 > 0:37:10I wasn't! But... I was doing. No, I don't...
0:37:10 > 0:37:12Calm, calm, calm.
0:37:14 > 0:37:16Shaking.
0:37:23 > 0:37:28Craig's problem is the extravagance of his gestures.
0:37:29 > 0:37:32It slows the orchestra down because they're reading
0:37:32 > 0:37:34a long distance between beats
0:37:34 > 0:37:39so they're reading that as if they need to take more time.
0:37:41 > 0:37:43And also because he's very muscular in what he's doing,
0:37:43 > 0:37:46they all tend to play louder and heavier.
0:37:53 > 0:37:56Darling, I look like I've just come out of a scuba class!
0:37:57 > 0:37:59So much for hair and make up.
0:37:59 > 0:38:01I'm not going to look pretty on this job, am I?
0:38:05 > 0:38:07Marcus is very clever.
0:38:07 > 0:38:10He's been able to absorb lots of strands of information
0:38:10 > 0:38:11to do with the music.
0:38:11 > 0:38:16It's not so straightforward putting them all together even for him.
0:38:18 > 0:38:21So that's obviously a minefield moment so let me try
0:38:21 > 0:38:24that one a little bit better, OK?
0:38:29 > 0:38:31You see, I can't count. OK, yeah.
0:38:31 > 0:38:34I just proved to you, mathematicians are rubbish at counting.
0:38:37 > 0:38:39That was terrifying.
0:38:39 > 0:38:41It was terrifying?
0:38:41 > 0:38:43It didn't go well, I felt.
0:38:43 > 0:38:47- It was...- Let's analyse that. What didn't go well?
0:38:47 > 0:38:50- I wasn't in control.- OK.
0:38:50 > 0:38:54I was following... I just... What I wanted to happen,
0:38:54 > 0:38:57my intention, I obviously wasn't communicating it. But, um... God!
0:38:59 > 0:39:02Finally, it's time for the four students
0:39:02 > 0:39:05to conduct their arias in front of an audience.
0:39:05 > 0:39:08If that's the Ferrari, you're holding a steering wheel
0:39:08 > 0:39:10and you have your foot on the gas pedal.
0:39:10 > 0:39:12I'm going to do it fine.
0:39:13 > 0:39:17I've never felt this sort of sweaty and nervous about performing
0:39:17 > 0:39:19for years and years and years.
0:39:19 > 0:39:21I do have to be firm with them though.
0:39:21 > 0:39:23- Good luck, I'm rooting for you. - Thank you.
0:39:28 > 0:39:31What I shall be looking for is someone who's fluent
0:39:31 > 0:39:36in the music, who sets a good natural tempo, not a tempo
0:39:36 > 0:39:40that's extreme, that forces the singer to take huge, long breaths.
0:39:40 > 0:39:42Oh, I feel violently ill.
0:39:42 > 0:39:44APPLAUSE
0:39:46 > 0:39:49Sir Mark is joined on the platform by fellow judges,
0:39:49 > 0:39:52leading orchestral bass player, Dominic Seldis,
0:39:52 > 0:39:55and the star soprano, Danielle de Niese.
0:39:55 > 0:39:57I want a clear beat.
0:39:57 > 0:40:00I want them to be able to follow the singer
0:40:00 > 0:40:04so that the orchestra can then follow them perfectly.
0:40:04 > 0:40:09Ladies and gentlemen, please welcome Josie Lawrence.
0:40:09 > 0:40:11CHEERING AND APPLAUSE
0:40:11 > 0:40:14I'm going to be looking for conductors
0:40:14 > 0:40:16who have a beautiful gesture.
0:40:16 > 0:40:19Conducting is not just about beating time,
0:40:19 > 0:40:22it's about bringing a group of musicians together
0:40:22 > 0:40:24to make a homogenous sound as well.
0:40:44 > 0:40:45# L'amour est un oiseau rebelle
0:40:45 > 0:40:48# Que nul ne peut apprivoiser
0:40:48 > 0:40:53# Et c'est bien in vain qu'on l'appelle
0:40:53 > 0:40:56# S'il lui convient de refuser
0:40:57 > 0:41:01# Rien n'y fait, menace ou priere
0:41:01 > 0:41:04# L'un parle bien, l'autre se tait
0:41:04 > 0:41:08# Et c'est l'autre que je prefere
0:41:08 > 0:41:12# Il n'a rien dit mais il me plait
0:41:15 > 0:41:18# L'amour!
0:41:19 > 0:41:22# L'amour!
0:41:23 > 0:41:27# L'amour!
0:41:27 > 0:41:30# L'amour!
0:41:30 > 0:41:33# L'amour est enfant de Boheme
0:41:33 > 0:41:38# Il n'a jamais, jamais connu de loi
0:41:38 > 0:41:42# Si tou ne m'aimes pas, je t'aime
0:41:42 > 0:41:45# Si je t'aime, prends garde a toi!
0:41:48 > 0:41:55# Si tou ne m'aimes pas si tou ne m'aimes pas, je t'aime
0:41:56 > 0:42:01# Mais si je t'aime, si je t'aime
0:42:01 > 0:42:06# Prends garde a toi!
0:42:25 > 0:42:33# Si tou ne m'aimes pas si tou ne m'aimes pas, je t'aime
0:42:34 > 0:42:41# Mais si je t'aime, si je t'aime
0:42:41 > 0:42:47# Prends garde... a toi! #
0:42:49 > 0:42:50APPLAUSE
0:43:00 > 0:43:03- It was lovely, wasn't it? - Yeah, it was great.
0:43:03 > 0:43:08I like the buoyancy that you brought to the very beginning.
0:43:08 > 0:43:11Bu the moments when you did get lost,
0:43:11 > 0:43:13you were beating yourself up about it.
0:43:13 > 0:43:15You closed your eyes and went, "Damn".
0:43:15 > 0:43:18That leaves the orchestra at a bit of a loss
0:43:18 > 0:43:21because in that moment, they need you.
0:43:21 > 0:43:23Yeah, absolutely terrific.
0:43:23 > 0:43:26I really appreciated the cueing that you gave to the French horns.
0:43:26 > 0:43:30When you give a good cue, it gives the players so much confidence.
0:43:30 > 0:43:34You got a fantastically expressive left hand and if I were playing,
0:43:34 > 0:43:37I would be able to follow everything that you were doing.
0:43:37 > 0:43:39What I think is really marvellous, Josie,
0:43:39 > 0:43:41is the way you've learnt this two in a bar.
0:43:41 > 0:43:44We knew absolutely where the downbeat and the upbeat were.
0:43:44 > 0:43:47But I felt that sometimes, you were... You were following them,
0:43:47 > 0:43:49rather than really leading them.
0:43:49 > 0:43:54Because the beat lacked definition. Like, there it is. There it is.
0:43:54 > 0:43:59But your understanding of the spirit of music is really lovely.
0:43:59 > 0:44:01So bravo, well done!
0:44:11 > 0:44:15Let's put it this way - they were very kind.
0:44:15 > 0:44:18They were very kind to me.
0:44:18 > 0:44:20Because I made lots of mistakes.
0:44:20 > 0:44:24You did well. You couldn't tell!
0:44:24 > 0:44:27And I have done it now, no matter what happens, I have done it.
0:44:29 > 0:44:31Let's all welcome Trevor Nelson.
0:44:46 > 0:44:53# O mio babbino caro
0:44:53 > 0:44:58# Mi piace, e bello, bello
0:44:58 > 0:45:05# Vo'andare in Porta Rossa
0:45:05 > 0:45:13# A comperar l'anello
0:45:13 > 0:45:20# Si, si, ci voglio andare
0:45:20 > 0:45:27# E se l'amassi indarno
0:45:27 > 0:45:35# Andrei sul Ponte Vecchio
0:45:35 > 0:45:42# Ma per buttarmi in Arno
0:45:42 > 0:45:49# Mi struggo e mi tormento
0:45:49 > 0:46:04# O Dio, vorrei morir
0:46:09 > 0:46:16# Babbo, pieta, pieta
0:46:23 > 0:46:34# Babbo, pieta, pieta. #
0:46:47 > 0:46:48Dom, what do you think?
0:46:48 > 0:46:50I think you were conducting,
0:46:50 > 0:46:53but not necessarily the orchestra or the singer.
0:46:53 > 0:46:57The performance that you gave was entirely yours.
0:46:57 > 0:47:00It just was not connected to what was going on around you.
0:47:00 > 0:47:04I almost had the sensation that you were so seduced by the music
0:47:04 > 0:47:07that you slightly just went along for the ride.
0:47:07 > 0:47:08That is the problem with me.
0:47:08 > 0:47:11- It was that moment you lost the orchestra.- I love melodies.
0:47:11 > 0:47:15And every time that bit comes up, I want to close my eyes and...
0:47:15 > 0:47:18You know, be on a beach somewhere.
0:47:18 > 0:47:20It is really not easy. But you just flowed.
0:47:20 > 0:47:24And as Dom said, you did not always flow at the right moments.
0:47:24 > 0:47:27But at least physically you are giving yourself to the music.
0:47:33 > 0:47:35Oh, that was tough.
0:47:37 > 0:47:42My aria, which I normally really control quite well
0:47:42 > 0:47:46I kind of lost the connection between the orchestra and the singer.
0:47:46 > 0:47:50Which I don't normally do, funnily enough.
0:47:50 > 0:47:52So I saved my worst aria
0:47:52 > 0:47:56for the main performance, which is really disappointing.
0:48:34 > 0:48:40# Una furtiva lagrima
0:48:44 > 0:48:48# Negli occhi suoi spunto
0:48:51 > 0:48:59# Quelle festose giovani
0:48:59 > 0:49:05# Invidiar sembro
0:49:07 > 0:49:13# Che piu cercando io vo?
0:49:16 > 0:49:21# Che piu cercando io vo?
0:49:27 > 0:49:36# M'ama! Si, m'ama, lo vedo
0:49:36 > 0:49:43# Lo vedo. #
0:50:02 > 0:50:05Well, Dani, what did you think?
0:50:05 > 0:50:06I was really impressed, Marcus.
0:50:06 > 0:50:09The one thing that I would say,
0:50:09 > 0:50:13it is very easy to become bar orientated.
0:50:13 > 0:50:17So you have, DUM-dah-ree-ree, DUM-dah-ree-ree...
0:50:17 > 0:50:18Sometimes with the orchestra,
0:50:18 > 0:50:22I felt it got small, slowing down before each time.
0:50:22 > 0:50:26So it was, DUM-dah-ree-ree-dah-dah, MMM-dah-ree-ree...
0:50:26 > 0:50:28Maybe it would help to have a bit more flow.
0:50:28 > 0:50:31Marcus, sometimes you delay a little bit.
0:50:31 > 0:50:34- "Will they do it for me?"- I know!
0:50:34 > 0:50:37You turn to the singer, hoping he'd start at the right time,
0:50:37 > 0:50:39you slowed down a bit, as if to say, "Is he there?"
0:50:39 > 0:50:42- My mentor told me not to do that! - Yes, that is very scary for singers,
0:50:42 > 0:50:45if you slow down, just before they are about to come in.
0:50:45 > 0:50:47It slightly makes them breathe, and then go...
0:50:47 > 0:50:52If there was one tiny criticism, I'm seeing a lot of mirrored movements.
0:50:52 > 0:50:55So you are doing the same with your right hand as you are with your left.
0:50:55 > 0:50:57Try using your left for the emotion and volume
0:50:57 > 0:50:59and your right to keep the beat.
0:50:59 > 0:51:01As a general rule, that should be your default.
0:51:01 > 0:51:04I think it is because I study symmetry as a mathematician.
0:51:04 > 0:51:08- I love doing things which are... - But this is music, not maths!
0:51:08 > 0:51:10APPLAUSE
0:51:14 > 0:51:15That was wonderful.
0:51:15 > 0:51:18That was just... They did everything I wanted them to do.
0:51:18 > 0:51:21I felt in control. It was just...it was lovely.
0:51:21 > 0:51:25I do not think axe murderer went out there.
0:51:25 > 0:51:28I think the guy who loves music went out there.
0:51:29 > 0:51:32Lastly, let's all welcome Craig Revel Horwood.
0:52:00 > 0:52:04# Votre toast, je peux vous le rendre
0:52:04 > 0:52:09# Senors, senors car avec les soldats
0:52:09 > 0:52:13# Oui, les Toreros, peuvent s'entendre
0:52:13 > 0:52:17# Pour plaisirs, pour plaisirs
0:52:17 > 0:52:19# Ils ont les combats!
0:52:19 > 0:52:24# Le cirque est plein C'est jour de fete!
0:52:24 > 0:52:28# Le cirque est plein du haut en bas
0:52:28 > 0:52:33# Les spectateurs, perdent la tete
0:52:33 > 0:52:39# Les spectateurs s'interpellent a grand fracas
0:52:39 > 0:52:46# Apostrophes, cris et tapage
0:52:46 > 0:52:51# Pousses jusques a la fureur
0:52:51 > 0:52:57# Car c'est la fete du courage
0:52:57 > 0:53:01# C'est la fete des gens de coeur
0:53:01 > 0:53:09# Allons! En garde! Allons! Allons! Ah!
0:53:09 > 0:53:17# Toreador, en garde! Toreador! Toreador!
0:53:17 > 0:53:21# Et songe bien, oui, songe en combattant
0:53:21 > 0:53:26# Qu'un oeil noir te regarde
0:53:26 > 0:53:28# Et que l'amour t'attend
0:53:28 > 0:53:35# Toreador L'amour, l'amour t'attend! #
0:53:53 > 0:53:57Three words I have got to say to you, darling. Fab-u-lous!
0:53:57 > 0:54:00LAUGHTER AND APPLAUSE
0:54:00 > 0:54:02Well, Dani, what do you think?
0:54:06 > 0:54:08I, I...I'm impressed.
0:54:08 > 0:54:13Where some of the other students have shown nervousness,
0:54:13 > 0:54:15I think you're really good at putting the show on
0:54:15 > 0:54:19that does not show you are nervous.
0:54:19 > 0:54:21But it can in some way disconnect you
0:54:21 > 0:54:25from what you are actually needing to do, which is listen.
0:54:25 > 0:54:28I agree, I totally agree. I knew that I was doing it.
0:54:28 > 0:54:31There was that moment when suddenly it comes to a stop.
0:54:31 > 0:54:35- Yes.- And then you suddenly thought, "We are going on, who moves first?"
0:54:35 > 0:54:39- Yes, and then I remembered, it was me.- That's right, yes!
0:54:39 > 0:54:42By then the music had steadied into a comfortable gait,
0:54:42 > 0:54:45and we had lost the excitement that you got so well at the beginning.
0:54:45 > 0:54:47It seemed to me that there was like a duet.
0:54:47 > 0:54:49There was you and the singer.
0:54:49 > 0:54:51And that is really not the way it should be.
0:54:51 > 0:54:54You are there to help the music come out.
0:54:54 > 0:54:56We know you can dance, we know you can move.
0:54:56 > 0:54:59But that is kind of now getting in the way a little bit.
0:54:59 > 0:55:03This whole dramatic stuff is actually quite a lot of bravado,
0:55:03 > 0:55:07and you are actually a very sensitive musician and artist,
0:55:07 > 0:55:10and I think you should let that show more.
0:55:10 > 0:55:14In the end, the art of conducting starts from the idea
0:55:14 > 0:55:18that you cannot control anyone else until you have controlled yourself.
0:55:18 > 0:55:22But anyway, bravo, and thank you very much, Craig.
0:55:22 > 0:55:25APPLAUSE
0:55:28 > 0:55:32Thank fuck that is over. Thank God that is over.
0:55:32 > 0:55:35That was just hideous.
0:55:35 > 0:55:38I was shaking all the way through like an absolute leaf.
0:55:38 > 0:55:42But it is not half fantastic, standing up there in Covent Garden,
0:55:42 > 0:55:46I mean, you know, wait until I tell my mum, in Ballarat!
0:55:46 > 0:55:49The judges must now decide which two students
0:55:49 > 0:55:52will definitely continue their journey.
0:55:52 > 0:55:56The face, Craig, with his arms...
0:55:56 > 0:55:59Marcus is methodical, but he needs more...
0:55:59 > 0:56:02Then the remaining two must face the orchestra's vote.
0:56:02 > 0:56:05and one conductor will be asked to leave.
0:56:11 > 0:56:15- It has not been easy.- It has not been easy, that is for sure.
0:56:15 > 0:56:20But we have decided that the two students who should progress through
0:56:20 > 0:56:22to the next stage of this journey, are...
0:56:25 > 0:56:27..Craig...
0:56:27 > 0:56:29and Marcus.
0:56:29 > 0:56:32CHEERING AND APPLAUSE
0:56:40 > 0:56:43That's good, darling!
0:56:43 > 0:56:46- More torture.- Yes!
0:56:48 > 0:56:51Josie and Trevor's fate is now in the hands of the musicians.
0:56:53 > 0:56:56The first thing we noticed about Josie was how nervous she was.
0:56:56 > 0:56:58You could see how tense she was.
0:56:58 > 0:57:01And coupled with the strange looks on her face
0:57:01 > 0:57:03this can give a bad impression to the orchestra
0:57:03 > 0:57:06who then could start to panic as well.
0:57:07 > 0:57:09Trevor was lovely,
0:57:09 > 0:57:11but he did not always seem very engaged with us.
0:57:11 > 0:57:12He was enjoying himself,
0:57:12 > 0:57:14but we did not get a lot of eye contact,
0:57:14 > 0:57:17and when the conductor does not have that sort of contact with you,
0:57:17 > 0:57:21you feel very much that you are driving the car yourself.
0:57:22 > 0:57:24The orchestra have voted.
0:57:24 > 0:57:26And I can reveal that the conductor
0:57:26 > 0:57:30who has been appointed to go further in this wonderful process, is...
0:57:30 > 0:57:32Josie.
0:57:32 > 0:57:37CHEERING AND APPLAUSE
0:57:39 > 0:57:41Oh, it is fine.
0:57:44 > 0:57:47- Josie, congratulations. We are all thrilled.- Thank you very much.
0:57:47 > 0:57:51- And Trevor, I am sorry.- I had a great time, a great time with everyone.
0:57:51 > 0:57:53At the start of this show, I said,
0:57:53 > 0:57:56"Conductors are probably just posers, aren't they?
0:57:58 > 0:58:02"The orchestra know what they are doing, don't they?"
0:58:02 > 0:58:05Clearly not. Honestly, the sounds that you make are incredible.
0:58:05 > 0:58:09It has changed my whole view on opera, and I am a fan now, so...
0:58:09 > 0:58:12Yeah! Good for you!
0:58:12 > 0:58:15CHEERING AND APPLAUSE
0:58:19 > 0:58:22It has been a very positive experience
0:58:22 > 0:58:25and everybody feels there is a certain justice in the decision...
0:58:25 > 0:58:27I am so sorry!
0:58:27 > 0:58:29I didn't do anything you asked me to do!
0:58:29 > 0:58:32..and those three are the ones who should go forward.
0:58:32 > 0:58:35I am disappointed. If you had six more months with me...
0:58:35 > 0:58:39You would be winning! You would be Maestro!
0:58:39 > 0:58:44But of course, conducting an aria will very soon seem halcyon days
0:58:44 > 0:58:48in comparison with what they have got coming.
0:58:48 > 0:58:52Next week on Maestro at the Opera: three surviving conductors
0:58:52 > 0:58:54tackle the next challenge...
0:58:54 > 0:58:57I thought last week was difficult enough!
0:58:58 > 0:59:01..to conduct a fully staged operatic scene.
0:59:01 > 0:59:03I am doing it every time, the ending, wrong.
0:59:11 > 0:59:14Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd