This was the moment an audience member stepped in for a pianist who had fallen ill during a live performance of La La Land in concert.
Twenty-one-year-old Sterling Nasa was attending the show in Sydney, where a live orchestra performs the film’s score as the movie plays on screen.
Everything went smoothly until the intermission, when the film’s Oscar-winning composer and conductor, Justin Hurwitz, revealed that the pianist had fallen ill.
Needing a replacement to save the show, Hurwitz asked the audience whether anyone could play the piano and sight-read music.
The crowd erupted in applause as Nasa volunteered. He was brought on stage, took the keyboardist’s place, and successfully performed the piano part for the remainder of the concert.
The 21-year-old plays piano and organ and is the bagpipes tutor at his old school, but was still hesitant when Hurwitz made the announcement, he revealed to ABC Radio.
‘I was a little bit tentative,’ he said, ‘I do owe a lot of the experience to my friend, Scarlett, who sort of… put my hand up for me.
‘But I did end up finding the confidence and it was a very good decision to go down and volunteer myself.’
During the intermission, the film’s Oscar-winning composer and conductor, Justin Hurwitz, revealed that the pianist had fallen ill
The crowd erupted in applause as a 21-year-old, Sterling Nasa, volunteered
Nasa, a longtime fan of Hurwitz’s work, said it was an unforgettable experience to play one of his favourite soundtracks
He was especially nervous about playing the piece Start a Fire by John Legend, which is a difficult and intricate solo.
‘I saw it on the score and I thought, oh, I don’t know if I’m going to be able to sight-read that in one go,’ he said.
However, he took a leap of faith and ended up improvising, earning him a standing ovation from the audience.
Hurwitz, speaking to the Guardian Australia, called Nasa’s feat ‘remarkable.’
‘That is a whole other skill on top of sight-reading. To be able to play a really cool solo in the right key, in the right scale, on the fly with no rehearsal,’ he said.
The composer said he was careful to make sure the 21-year-old wasn’t simply overconfident, asking him several follow-up questions before allowing him to take the stage. In the end, however, his trust paid off.
Nasa, a longtime fan of Hurwitz’s work, said it was an unforgettable experience to play one of his favourite soundtracks.
‘It was quite a blessing to get to play a work that I’m in such admiration of,’ he said.
Audience member Maddie Corwin, who filmed the viral moment, told CNN that it was a ‘unique’ experience, adding that she had ‘never seen a professional production just stop and ask if anyone in the audience can step in and perform.’
She said the audience was rooting for Nasa, and that he did a great job.
‘Everything completely flowed and meshed and you couldn’t tell really that there was any disruption,’ she added.
Corwin said that the experience ‘exemplified what La La Land is about… artists chasing their dreams.’
Nasa, who studies politics and international studies at the University of Sydney, has no current plans to pursue a professional career in music.
However, Hurwitz said he definitely has the talent for that path in life.
‘I don’t know what he’s most passionate about,’ Hurwitz said.
‘Maybe he likes international relations a little more than music. But that’s what La La Land is about. You’ve got to do what you love the most.’
