Orchestra United

James Lowe's orchestra have been together for almost a year and the most important two hours of their journey are fast approaching.

The final preparations for the Bridgewater Hall concert concentrate on the centre piece of the performance: Mars from Gustav Holst's The Planet Suite. James is insisting that the full version of Mars will be played: no dumbed-down easy-play version for this orchestra.

As the big day approaches, the Halle's Director of Music, Sir Mark Elder, arrives to give the young musicians a final helping hand with a masterclass in performing Mars: a piece he has conducted dozens of times and has recorded with the Halle Orchestra.

Meanwhile, 16-year-old trumpeter Daniel has had to leave home and faces a very uncertain future. He hasn't even got a trumpet and is missing crucial rehearsals.

Two members of the orchestra, 16-year-old violinist Faz and 14-year-old trumpeter Andrew, are both preparing for their solos in front of 2,000 people at the Bridgewater Hall. Faz reveals that the last time he played a Vivaldi violin concerto in public, in front of just a few people in a church hall, his mind went blank and he froze. How will he fare this time?

The finale piece for the concert is Nimrod by Sir Edward Elgar, and its theme of friendship gives the teenagers the opportunity to talk about the friendships they have made over the year, and ensures that most of them are crying by the time they play the final bars.