Mika and Jon Batiste have travelled all across the UK
to find seven extraordinary and unique amateur pianists.
Tonight they will step out onto a completely sold-out auditorium -
the Glasshouse in Gateshead.
And they will be faced with this.
They will make their way to this piano,
where they will have to give the performance of their lives.
There are a lot of nerves,
but there is also a lot of excitement.
Welcome to The Piano: The Final Concert.
Here we go, standby to cue them on, and three, two, one, cue on.
In just under two hours' time, the concert will be under way.
PIANO MUSIC PLAYS
A brilliant showcase of our amateur pianists' talents,
and a celebration of why they play.
Are you ready?
Oh, it feels amazing. It's been a tough journey.
And now they will prove they've progressed
from playing on a station concourse
to performing on a professional stage in front of a paying audience.
Kind of have been walking them slowly
to the realisation of what it will feel like.
Visualising the moment,
walking through the stage directions,
walking through the lighting cues.
Don't walk straight into the bow.
Yeah, yeah. Just land yourself first, look around the room.
Yeah. I swear to you, you'll remember this for ever.
I feel curious
to see how these amateur pianists transform
when they step onto that stage.
Please welcome onto the stage, Diana.
No amount of rehearsal can replace that fundamentally important thing,
which is letting go, being in the moment.
SHE LIP-TRILLS
There's my suit for tonight.
Is that your sister? Zac when you go out there,
what are you gonna say to them?
If I do a speech I'll speak for hours so we'll just,
it's just better to leave, leave it there.
He's a waffler. Yeah.
I love sisters.
Good evening, Newcastle. My name's Anisa,
my grandad has, sorry, a major influence, erm,
on my love for playing the piano.
Per... That's perfect.
I actually fumble, though.
No, but, also, I'm gonna fumble.
You're here because you're phenomenally talented.
I want you to just enjoy it.
How does that feel? Do you want to change your glasses,
or can you read like that? Oh, that's all right, actually.
LAUGHING:So long as I don't get them muddled up.
You'll be all right. I'm gonna number them, sweetheart.
But, remember, if at any point you're like, "What am I...?"
just say "Claudia," and I'm there.
When I'm playing, I'm thinking of why I wrote it,
I'm thinking of my husband.
I had to be very careful because I realised that
if I did that too much, it would distract me
and I would become too emotional.
"We cannot wait to watch you perform
"and be there to support you.
"I am, by far, the proudest grandson on the planet right now,
"and I feel so lucky to call you my granny.
"Go out there and give it your all."
If only Dad was here. I'm sure, I'm sure.
But he's looking down
and I'm sure he's as proud as everyone else is, to be honest.
"To my incredible husband, Josiah.
"I'm so unbelievably proud of you.
"This is your moment, so enjoy every second
"and think of how far you've come, despite the odds."
This is, by far, the biggest performance of my life.
In a short space of time,
I've had to literally put this whole piece together and learn it,
so there's a natural level of pressure.
Only you seven know what it's like, what you're going through.
Yeah, that's so true. The rest of us can try and tell you
not to be nervous, but that's sort of useless.
We'll do it, don't you worry.
This means everything to Anisa.
We're all a little bit emotional,
a little bit scared, but we're all supportive.
Very excited to see her play.
I think she's feeling very frightened
and scared of the big audience that's coming for her.
Nearly 2,000 people will watch tonight's concert,
the largest audience our amateur pianists have ever faced.
Would you like to know which order you're performing in?
Yes. Yeah. Uh-huh!
We need a big moment to open this concert,
and a big moment starts with a big note -
an octave.
Zac, you launch the ball.
Ah!
I'll get you special biscuits.
LAUGHTER
I'm the first pianist, you know what I mean?
So it adds a little bit more pressure onto me.
And after making a mistake in this morning's rehearsal,
Zac's eager to fit in one last practice.
The first time I played it, I thought, "I hope this is not
"how I play it onstage." It was a completely new piano,
it was a new feeling, so it threw me off
after I played the first few notes.
I just took some time getting adjusting and getting used to it,
but now I know what the piano feels like.
Ready to go? Because that's it now.
The next time you come out of there, there's gonna be a full crowd.
In the second rehearsal, I got more into it,
but I'm playing first, so I feel a bit overwhelmed.
I've got goose bumps a bit.
When I see the crowd, I am gonna get terrified.
They're the longest minutes of all, aren't they,
the ones before you go onstage?
You all right, yeah? A little bit nervous.
Yeah, why? Cos I don't know how I'm gonna go onstage.
Make it like a conversation.
If it's a conversation, you'll always find a way.
I just don't know what's gonna happen with Zac.
I know that his first rehearsal was bad,
but it's about being excited enough to feel tension
but also being receptive enough to be able to adapt
the performance in the moment to the energies
and to the audience that's in front of you.
If Zac understands that, when he hits that first note,
we'll be off to a flying start.
If he freezes up...
..I don't even wanna think about it.
OK everyone, if you'd like to follow me.
Thank you, ladies, just this way.
It's starting. It's happening.
What are you gonna play? What are you gonna play?
I don't know. It's time to decide.
How are you feeling? I'm shook.
Yeah, you're shook. I'm shook. Oh, no, you got it. I'm shook.
When I get on there, I'm gonna be bricking it.
Thank you so much for being here tonight, guys.
It's gonna be a fantastic show.
In front of 1,500 people for this once-in-a-lifetime experience
of your first performance.
Are you scared? I am scared.
You got it.
You just have this special moment to share their life.
Mate, look at the... Look, that's where we're gonna be.
Wow.
This is terrifying. Don't watch that.
Jon, stand here, block the television with me.
There's expectations all round, from the audience...
I just can't wait. Are we excited for Daddy? Yeah?
..to the pianists themselves.
You look beautiful, Diana. As do you.
Thank you. As do you.
We're waiting for those pianists to make magic with that piano,
and they know that,
and they need to rise to the challenge.
Take a deep breath. Remember to breathe.
Ladies and gentlemen, give it up for Claudia Winkleman.
CHEERING AND APPLAUSE
Hello!
Hello, everybody.
Thank you so much for coming tonight.
You are gonna meet seven extraordinary amateur pianists,
and I'm gonna ask you a massive favour.
They are nervous - do you promise to look after them?
Will you? As you can see, Mika is back,
we have a wonderful new mentor.
So, Glasshouse,
please, raise the roof for the one, the only Jon Batiste.
CHEERING AND APPLAUSE
HE IMPROVISES
Oh, the finesse.
CHEERING
Thank you.
Oh, that's a big crowd. That's so scary.
Right about now, I wanna invite my good friend
to the stage, the incredible Mika.
CHEERING AND APPLAUSE
# Ya-da-ya-da-ya-ya! #
JON BATISTE LAUGHS
# Relax, take it easy... #
# Took a ride
# To the end of the line where no-one ever goes
# Ended up
# On a broken train
# With nobody I know
# It's as if I'm scared
# It's as if I'm terrified
# It's as if I'm scared... #
I'm the first pianist, you know what I mean?
So, I've never been scared of a performance, but just look at it.
# For there is nothing that we can do
# Take it easy
# Blame it on me Or blame it...
# ..on you. #
CHEERING AND APPLAUSE
Mika and Jon Batiste!
Jon, your first time with us.
How have you found the whole process?
This has been spiritual for me. It's the beauty of music.
It...it...it's the sound of a person's soul.
It's such a gift to see someone for five minutes,
and then now be doing a concert together.
Mm, it's was really amazing,
the generosity with which every single person
showed up in all these stations, and an airport.
Could everybody who came
and played for Mika and Jon please stand up?
Can we have a round of applause for all our pianists?
CHEERING AND APPLAUSE
Let's talk about performance of the night and what it means.
We're gonna be just tipping our hats
to what we think will be that performance that really grabs us
emotionally, musically, and that creates a certain kind of magic.
It's also a provocation.
Make the most of this,
shine as bright as you possibly can, dare to be brilliant.
Thank you both so much. Please get into your seats.
Please, a massive round of applause for Mika and Jon.
Sorry we're late.
Hello. It was the Tube. Hello.
Hey, how you doin'?
Oh, look, Jon's next to my dad!
Are you ready to meet our first pianist?
CHEERING AND APPLAUSE
That sounds like me.
In Sheffield, we met Zac.
I'm actually brickin' it.
Hi, Zac.
You all right, lovely? I'm Claudia, nice to meet you.
It's nice to meet you, Claudia.
Growing up in Chapeltown in Leeds,
people have, like, a certain image of what I'm going to do.
When I play the piano, I get a lot more respect.
That is so funny that you got Chapeltown on TV.
That is so funny, wow.
He has a charisma in his sound.
He has music in his fingers.
He's got so much he wants to share with the world through the piano
and it's just bubbling over.
Just breathe. Yeah.It's OK.
You're playing things that are
beyond your technical ability right now.
You need to have basic technical lessons.
Well, we have a month, but I was going to say for months.
He just needs to clear all of the distractions
and get right to the heart of what he wants to do.
You're going to be all right. Just breathe in, breathe out.
You have a phenomenal talent.
This is for your friends, this is for your family, it's for you.
It's important.
Ladies and gentlemen, please welcome Zac!
He's going to be so nervous. Yeah.
Ladies and gentlemen, please welcome Zac!
Right, so good evening, Glasshouse.
My name's Zac.
I am a pianist from Leeds. I'm 18.
Today, I'll be playing you a piece called Dolore and Agape.
This means "pain and terror" in a few different languages.
But let me not do too much talking
because I believe that music speaks louder than words,
so let my music speak for me.
He's playing so good.
Bravo!
Oh, Zac, you smashed it, mate!
Amazing, Zac.
Woo!
Woo! I did it! Guys, I did it!
See? A performer.
I knew he would rise to the occasion. Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Utterly brilliant.
When I got onstage, all the nerves went away, to be honest.
You know what? I'm happy, I'm excited
to see everybody else's performances, you know.
I'm really excited to see one in particular.
I think she knows who she is.
Our next pianist we met just across the river.
And I'm going to be completely frank with you -
we all fell rather deeply in love.
This is Diana.
CHEERING AND APPLAUSE
How long have you been playing piano?
Since I was about four.
Goodness me.
And I applied to join the RAF because they had a band.
It's a very good reason!
LAUGHTER
I met my husband, Phil, when I was in the band.
It was love at first sight.
Oh, look, Mum.
We were married for 63 years,
but, unfortunately, he was diagnosed with Parkinson's
before he passed away.
One evening, I was feeling really, really lost.
I remember going to the piano and I was just dreaming.
And, somehow, out of that came a tune.
Just be yourself and enjoy it, OK? OK, yeah.
You've waited 87 years for this, so you might as well milk it!
Love is, like, the most monumental thing in her life.
How does she play that piece, emotionally, without crumbling?
All those little trips and stumbles, if they happen...
HE INHALES
..we breathe with it and we follow through.
Tell a story and make it as real as the emotion that it came from.
Have I got you OK? Yes, thank you.
OK. Thank you.
Ladies and gentlemen, Diana!
# Ye-ee-ee-ee-ee-ah! #
Ah, she's so cute!
Good evening, everyone.
The music I'd like to share with you tonight
is my own composition, Dreams.
This piece was born out of loss and grief.
Dreams has also taken on another meaning.
You see, even from a young age,
I dreamt of being a concert pianist,
and it has taken all of my 87 years to finally realise that dream.
So my message is to never give up on your dreams.
That's touching. Beautiful.
BITTERSWEET MELODY
CHEERING AND APPLAUSE
Ladies and gentlemen, Diana.
Oh, man. Hallelujah.
That was lovely.
That was gorgeous.
Wasn't that unbelievable?
Diana, you made a billion people cry.
Yeah, you did. That was touching.
That was amazing. Did you love it?
It was just amazing.
Did you see them all? They all stood up. I know!
They all stood up.
You're a concert pianist.
There's your baby.
God!
How about that? Oh, my God.
Your family was so proud.
They were, like, whooping. They were all standing and screaming.
Did it happen?!
Yeah, it happened.
It was amazing.
Next up, a first - two pianists playing together.
Jon and Mika met them in Brighton.
This is Phil and Marcus.
Hey, I'm Marcus, I'm 12.
Ugh!
I went to a jazz festival in Rye...
Yeah. ..and I got really inspired to play some jazz.
Thelonious Monk, Miles Davis, Jon Batiste.
Well, I know him.
LAUGHTER
He is owning it like a musician who's done this for 20 years.
That's an old soul right there!
The second pianist that will be a part of this duet, Phil.
BLOWS WHISTLE All aboard!
Oh! There's Sophie.
You got 81 and you got 12! LAUGHTER
I love it because it's like a jazz tradition.
My elders taught me this way,
then also they're learning from you.
Good luck, man. Have fun, have fun. Go and smash it.
The main thing that worries me about the performance
is they've got to communicate.
What are our nonverbal cues of how we're going to play together?
Communicate, communicate.
That's hard.
Ladies and gentlemen, please welcome Phil and Marcus!
Hello, my name's Marcus.
It feels amazing to be here. Thank you so much.
As just, like, a 13-year-old kid, it's been amazing, so...
Yeah. Thank you, Marcus.
And thank you for reminding me
that I'm 70 years older than this young man.
LAUGHTER
But he's got some talent, I tell you.
It's absolutely amazing.
Anyway, go on, say something else.
LAUGHTER
This is our interpretation of Blue Moon.
CHEERING AND APPLAUSE
Yeah, OK. Thank you.
One, two and three...
That's good. Eh? Mm.
See the way Phil's looking at him and the way he looks at Phil?
High level of communication and connection.
They're making music together now, they're not just playing. Mm.
THEY HUM ALONG
# Standing alone... #
It's brilliant. It's brilliant.
TEMPO CHANGES
SHE MOUTHS
CHEERING AND APPLAUSE
The audience loved it. Ha-ha!
I mentored them!
Are you very proud?
Oh, boy.
That was an insane experience. I don't think...
Yeah, we've never felt anything like it -
the lights, the crowd, the hall.
It was mad.
Amazing! Phil and Marcus!
I've seen me family down there in bits.
I think my wife was standing up and...
Heh... Oh...
Our next pianist, the boys found at Heathrow Terminal 5,
and this is Josiah.
Hi, Josiah. I'm Claudia. Nice to meet you.
When you're not playing the piano,
what do you do, other than just cuddle Isla?
Which is all I would do.
Yeah, so she takes up a lot of my time... Yeah. ..as you can imagine!
I am a site manager.
I am doing an apprenticeship as well.
It's like having three big things that I'm trying to do
at the same time, but what I really love about piano is...
..I think it's a vehicle for self-improvement.
You OK? Yeah. You ready?
You look so smart.
The piano and me go a long way back.
It was a gift that my mum left with me.
She was a pianist as well.
I unfortunately lost my mum when I was 14.
Oh, young.
I feel like since then,
I kind of became driven and I said to myself,
"Whatever I do, I'm going to take very, very seriously."
So, what have you got?
This is actually a composition.
The thing is, it isn't complete.
Go on, Josiah. Yes, Josiah, go on! Gonna smash it! Woo!
This process would normally be done over four years
and you, my friend, are trying to do it within four weeks.
Good luck, darling.
We have never, ever had someone take such a big risk.
Ladies and gentlemen, please welcome Josiah!
Yeah!
JOSIAH:Good evening, everyone.
This piece, I wrote for a moment like now.
It's so important to always dream, and believe,
and practise, and work hard on the things that you want to do
because if you keep doing that,
eventually, it accumulates and adds up,
and becomes a moment like now.
So this is Josiah's Dream.
I hope you guys enjoy it.
Be good.
So cute.So cute.
Look at Zac.
SOMBRE MELODY
DRAMATIC MELODY
Wow. Whoa. Mm.
Woo!
Oh, my gosh.
My God. Boom.
My God.
Brilliant.
Whoa!
CHEERING AND APPLAUSE
Yeah! Yeah! Yeah!
Woo!Woo! Go on, Josiah!
Ladies and gentlemen, Josiah!
I saw my family. It means the world.
I kind of looked for them as soon as I got out there.
I feel really proud of myself
and my mum would be proud if she was here.
Yeah, it was great, it was great.
I feel like I'm on cloud nine.
I just need to cool down a little bit!
We met our next brilliant pianist at Liverpool Street Station.
Please meet Anisa.
Tell me all about you and the piano.
Since I was a baby, my mum and dad have got so many pictures
of me just hammering notes.No!
I have a gift for this. I'm telling you - star power.
You may be right.
LAUGHTER
What have you decided to play?
I've decided to play Thoughts of the Past.
It's an Iranian piece and it holds a special bond
between me and my grandad.
Good. I'm getting a bit emotional.
When he was in hospital, we listened to this song over and over
and over again, so when I play it, I'm always thinking of him.
You chose this very personal choice.
Inject a lot more emotion and have a lot more fun with this.
Take us on a proper journey.
You just need to open that door.
Find it, open it, let it rip.
Yeah.Do you understand?
Ladies and gentlemen, Anisa!
Is that her brother? That's her brother, yeah. Ah, OK.
Good evening, Newcastle.
I feel incredibly blessed to have my nana, my grandad,
my aunt and uncle, cousins, brother,
and my beloved parents here with me tonight.
But I can't help but miss my other grandparents who are unable
to join due to my grandad's poor health conditions,
so I've decided to dedicate my piece to him
and I send lots of love and prayers.
She has a beautiful touch. Yeah.
Amazing, amazing.
Absolutely mind-blowing.
CHEERING AND APPLAUSE
Look, she's crying. Aww, that's cute.
Incredible.
Makes you hold your breath.
Anisa, everyone!
She's sick! She's so sick, man!
We met our final pianist in London.
This is Mia.
Have fun, have fun.
Enjoy it. You look amazing.
Thank you. Yeah, absolutely.
My name is Mia and I'm 17 years old.
When I was about 11, I searched up on Google,
"black woman", "pianists" and "composers"
because I was so confused why I couldn't find anyone else
who looked like me.
I came across Florence Price and Margaret Bonds.
They were African-American women writing and composing,
and this music is so precious, and it's so wonderful.
I would like to be one of the people playing and sharing it.
Aww.
I don't know how y'all sit down and listen to music like this.
LAUGHTER
Yeah, yeah!
With Mia, I think by finding these composers
and the lineage that represent her,
she's connecting herself to something
that's much bigger than her.
SHE HOLDS HIGH NOTE
I didn't know you sung.
We also now have a singer.
This is going to be something different,
crafting a performance in a way I have never done before
with both singing and piano elements.
Ladies and gentlemen, please welcome to the stage...
..Mia!
CHEERING AND APPLAUSE
Woo!
It was February in 1929 when Florence Price wrote her
Fantasie in E minor, and only three years later,
Price's Symphony would be performed all around America and Europe,
and win several awards.
And yet, why is Price's name
not a part of standard classical repertoire?
Unfortunately, this is the case with many composers
of African descent.
But, with this piece, I take it through many different settings
to show how African-American music is so integral
to much of the music that we adore today.
Thank you.
# Sinner, please
# Don't let this harvest pass
# Sinner, please
# Don't let this harvest pass
# And die and lose
# Your soul at last. #
Wow.
# Sinner, please don't let this harvest pass
# And die and lose your soul at last
# And die
# And lose your soul at last. #
Wow.
Enormous power in those chords.
CHEERING AND APPLAUSE
Yeah! Yeah! Yeah!
Mia, everyone!
She has a good presence.
She has, like, an aura.
Oh, bless her.
It was literally my dream to perform music by Florence Price
and Margaret Bonds on a massive stage
so that so many people can hear.
Mia!
And the dream has come true.
They really are our magnificent seven.
We're going to take a short break now.
When we come back, Jon and Mika - an impossible decision -
will announce their performance of the night.
We'll see you very soon.
I know. This year's really hard.
That was amazing. Well done. Thank you, guys.
That was gorgeous. Thank you so much.
Wow, we've done it. It's amazing.
I think everyone should be very proud.
Oh, my goodness!
You were so phenomenal, every single one of you.
You have completely blown us away.
Thank you so much.
I'm blown away by the quality,
the passion, the wide range,
the youthfulness, the age,
everything about it.
There was a bump.
I couldn't care less.
LAUGHTER
Oh!
Thank you so much.
I loved the lady who lost her husband.
I was in tears. I couldn't hold it back.
Every single one, I'm like, "Oh, they're going to win it.
"Oh, they're going to win it."
Your seven were amazing. Mm.
And now you have to do something really, really hard.
Very difficult choice.
The truth is, it could be any of them. Of course.
For so many different reasons. Yeah.
There's Anisa. That is not the girl that we met -
in the best possible way.
She wasn't changed, she was liberated by this experience.
Anisa gathered lightning and shot it through the instrument,
and that's something that's difficult to do at any age.
In the same way, I feel that about Mia's performance.
Yeah. Yeah, yeah.
It was such a real, authentic display of what she cares about.
Yeah. But Josiah, I feel, rose to the occasion,
maybe more so than anyone.
Yes. Yeah.
It was so amazing to rediscover Phil through Marcus' eyes
and vice versa. Totally. Yeah.
It was such a magical moment that happened.
I felt that way about Zac.
Yes. Yeah. When he stepped into the ring, he was like,
"Oh, I AM a contender."
He turned into this performer beyond what I expected.
But if it was a storybook ending, it would be Diana. Yeah.
Just judging based upon the response of the audience,
there was a connection to that piece that set a new tone
for the rest of the concert. Yeah. Right.
They were all standing and screaming.
Oh, my God. It was brilliant, Mum.
It was fantastic.
And, now, we have to make a choice.
The two for me that I'm tussling in my head
are so completely different
that it makes it very difficult.