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Chapter 9
“What? The car’s tire blew out? So you’re saying you have to cancel tonight’s dinner show? Couldn’t you just take a taxi?”
At last. That call had come.
“Then what are we supposed to do about tonight’s dinner event? How are we supposed to hold a dinner show without a band?”
Haa. Just as Derek, with a grave face, finished the call…
“Derek, what’s the pay for that?”
At my sudden question, Derek looked at me in a daze and answered.
“Ah, well… It’s not much. A hundred pounds per person for six songs. The band had four members, so four hundred in total.”
Hmm. I fell into thought for a moment, then asked again.
“Then would you be willing to hire five artists at a hundred pounds each? Dinner included?”
“Five artists? That would be five hundred pounds…”
It was over a hundred pounds beyond the original budget, and Derek hesitated. He tilted his head as if he didn’t understand why I was asking. I turned to the group I had brought with me.
“Do you want to save the Korean food for later and have the hotel dinner tonight?”
“Hotel dinner? Where would we get the money for… Wait. Don’t tell me, Sinu, you…”
“Exactly.”
I grinned playfully, and they broke into wide smiles too, as if it sounded fun. I turned back to the bewildered Derek.
“If you’re in a bind, we’ll help.”
It was a hundred pounds more than the original budget, and he’d have to cover dinner for five people on top of that. From Derek’s standpoint it might look like a loss. But in this situation, he wouldn’t be able to refuse the offer.
Because it’ll still be cheaper than refunding all the customers.
And dinner only needed a little extra preparation. As I smiled at Derek, his eyes suddenly flashed as if he’d remembered something he had forgotten.
“Ah, that’s right! They’re your friends, so they must all be LSPA students! You’re all musicians, correct?”
“Yes. Two of them are dance majors.”
“Aha, even dance majors…! Thank God! It’s a bit over budget… but I’m so relieved to have found a band right away.”
Derek let out a deep sigh of relief and patted his chest. But soon his face crumpled again.
“But there’s only one hour until the dinner show. Isn’t it impossible to get six songs ready by then…?”
“If we pick famous songs that all of us already know, it won’t be a big problem. All we need are the instruments and a little space to sync up before the actual performance. Right?”
I asked Hjalmar and Itai, and they nodded with broad smiles. Right. Even if they were freshmen, they were music students of LSPA, called the Berklee of Europe. And these two were among the most skilled of them all. With popular songs they already knew, they could reach a stage-ready level without much preparation.
Derek’s eyes went round, and he exhaled in relief.
“Oh, is that so? LSPA students really are skilled. What a relief. The instruments are all already prepared on our side. As for space… the dinner show doors don’t open for an hour anyway, so you can rehearse and sync up in our restaurant.”
Hmm. Derek thought for a moment, then spoke again.
“Then, before we decide, could I hear just one song first? As the hotel manager, I need to confirm the level of the band I’m booking.”
“Ah.”
That made sense from his side. To him, we were nothing more than freshmen who had just entered LSPA. There was bound to be some doubt. Besides, bands that can’t prove performance experience usually have to audition when booked for a gig like this. I turned to my group.
“What do you think? He’s asking us to play one song right now.”
“Mm, sure.”
“What song should we do?”
As we deliberated, Derek smiled and answered.
“The Beetles’ ‘Bluebird’ would be nice.”
“Ah, ‘Bluebird.’”
I looked back at my group. They all nodded as if it were no problem.
“I know it.”
“Me too.”
“Okay. Then should we go up to the stage in the restaurant right now?”
When I asked Derek, he smiled and guided us into the restaurant.
“Yes. This way, please.”
And after watching Sinwoo and his group perform on stage, Derek couldn’t close his mouth. Their performance was far above what would suit a small hotel like this.
Inside the hotel restaurant, where staff bustled about setting the tables. Having finished the audition, we all sat down together on the stage set up in one corner for a short meeting.
“I think we have so little time right now that we should do songs we all know.”
“Right. We can’t memorize six unfamiliar songs in an hour.”
“Sinu, it’ll be even harder for you. You have to sing the lyrics.”
Fortunately, Derek had loved our “Bluebird.” No, more than loved it: by the end of the song he was applauding in a near daze.
I asked the group.
“Then how about a Beetles medley? Everyone knows them. They’re practically Liverpool’s legendary band, so the audience will love it. Derek liked it earlier too.”
“Good idea, Sinu.”
“Then, we can’t choreograph all six songs right now, so the two of us will take three songs each and improvise.”
One of the dance majors spoke.
“Okay. Then let’s go with the Beetles. The songs: <Blue Bird>, <Today>, <Imagination>, <Let It Bring>, <Hey Jade>, <Come Over>. How’s that?”
“Sounds good. We know all of those.”
“We know them all too!”
“There’s one I don’t really know, but an hour is plenty to memorize it.”
“Great.”
I stood up. I slung the guitar in the corner over my shoulder, strode up to the mic, and said:
“Then shall we start the rehearsal?”
Time flew, and an hour passed. The hotel restaurant bustled with people having dinner with family and friends.
“Welcome to our hotel’s dinner show. How is the food?”
“Everything is just lovely. We’re having a wonderful time thanks to you.”
At Derek’s kind question, the guests filling the tables answered with satisfied expressions. But the male guest at the next table seemed somewhat displeased. Derek approached the rather fussy-looking man and asked.
“Are you having a good time?”
“Ah… well…”
The man mumbled without giving a clear answer. He kept looking at the watch on his wrist, and finally, as if he couldn’t take it any longer, spoke to Derek.
“I have a question. When exactly does the live performance start? I’ll have to get up soon, and I still don’t see a band.”
Derek smiled and answered.
“The performance will begin very shortly, sir. It will be one you’ll be satisfied with, so please wait just a moment.”
He acted composed in front of the guest, but in truth Derek was anxious and trembling. A band that had synced up only about an hour ago. Of course, since they were LSPA students, gathered from artistic talents around the world, their basic skills must be solid. He had already confirmed they were remarkably skilled. But having to go straight onto the stage after putting together six songs in one hour…
But there’s no other way.
Still, the rehearsal he’d heard before opening the restaurant had been wonderful. Even the staff preparing the dinner show had unconsciously tapped their feet to the singing. It was enough to captivate any listener.
It was a rapturous performance, incomparable to the band we’d originally hired…
Having deftly handled the man’s complaint, Derek checked the time on his phone. 7:30 PM. Haa. With a heart both nervous and excited, he stepped onto the small stage set up at one side of the restaurant and picked up the microphone.
“Thank you for waiting. Now we’ll begin the highlight of our hotel’s dinner show, the live performance.”
Clap, clap, clap.
Polite applause rang out. Since many of the guests were middle-aged and older, the atmosphere before the show was different from an ordinary concert venue. When the applause faded, Derek pointed to the center of the stage with one arm and raised his voice.
“Here is the band who will take care of our hotel’s evening tonight! Please welcome them with a big round of applause!”
“Phew. I’m nervous.”
“It’s okay. We can do this!”
As Derek’s introduction and the audience’s applause reached us, the dance majors kept taking deep breaths. Beside them, Hjalmar and Itai were smiling calmly.
As expected, those two have so much stage experience, they’re relaxed.
I went up onto the stage with them.
“Please take good care of us, Sinu.”
Derek, stepping off the stage, greeted me, and I answered with a smile. I slung the guitar waiting on stage over my shoulder and stood before the standing mic in the center.
I’ve lived two lives and stood on plenty of stages, so why does my heart pound like this every time I go up?
No, why does it thrill me like this? Haa. I breathed out a small, deep breath and opened my mouth.
“Good evening, guests of the Dolby Hotel restaurant.”
Clap, clap, clap.
The hotel restaurant was still filled only with elegant applause. Faced with that audience reaction, with its sense of distance from the performers, a tension different from usual performances rose in me.
It’s fine. Soon, everyone here will forget their dignity and be swaying in their seats.
I was nervous, but I was confident. Steadying my heart, I stood at the mic and met the audience’s eyes.
“Hello, it’s a pleasure to be here. Tonight’s songs are a medley by the Beetles, the pride and legend of Liverpool.”
“Oh, wonderful!”
“The Beetles, on a night like this, how lovely!”
Of course. In Liverpool, picking Beetles songs was bound to succeed. Especially when most of the guests were Liverpool’s middle-aged and older.
Thinking about it again, choosing the Beetles was a good call.
I continued with my final remarks at the mic.
“I hope everyone here will make a special memory tonight with the songs we’ve prepared. Then, let’s begin.”
Having finished the lines I had prepared, I turned my head and met my teammates’ eyes. Then, thrum, thrum, I began a guitar part like the chirping of birds in a forest. In time with it, the bass and drums came in one after another, and before long the dance major performing the improvised solo choreography for the first song entered. Cheers of “Wow” rose from the audience.
“So beautiful!”
“They’re all so talented. Truly lovely!”
The first song was the Beetles’ “Bluebird.” A song where a beautiful guitar riff, melody, and lyrics blend together perfectly. Guitar, drums, bass. With just three instruments, a graceful dancer showcased improvised choreography that deftly mixed contemporary dance and street dance. As people gazed as if entranced at the dancer sweeping across the stage…
Bluebird flying in the pitch dark forest.
In the middle of all that melody, a single thread of a human voice lit the space like light. Everyone in the restaurant drew in a sharp breath. Though they all knew the song already, they looked as if shocked, hearing it for the very first time.
“This is a voice from heaven…!”
“It’s as if a second Beetles has appeared…!”
And the round eyes of everyone filling the restaurant turned only to me, sparkling.
