School musos see stars on centre stage

The moment rock stardom beckoned, Sam Allen's guitar strap failed him, leaving the 15-year-old scrambling before a large crowd at Auckland's Town Hall last night.

"I didn't know what to do, I had to put the strap back on," the Papatoetoe High School student said after the show. "Luckily the other guitarist was playing the same part at the same time, so we didn't miss a beat.

"The song was mean."

Sam's band, fronted by Steriogram's Tyson Kennedy, was one of several to take the stage at the inaugural Band of Strangers concert.

In what organisers hope will be an annual event, the show threw about 60 Auckland high school students in the deep end with some of the best-known names in New Zealand music - Kennedy, the Exponents' Jordan Luck, Russian-born singer Yulia, and hip-hop crew Savage, Mareko, Devolo and Alphrisk from the Deceptikonz.

The result: a two-hour 16-song spectacle, a different student band playing each song, and the country's best singers and songwriters sharing the stage with Auckland's talented youth.

"It's fantastic because it's never been done before, and it's definitely something I'd do again," said Yulia.

And the verdict on her backing band? " They were brilliant."

Many of the Year 12 and 13 students had only one or two rehearsals before their performances but, for most of them, nerves were not an issue.

"We were all pretty calm because Tyson's so cool," said Lynfield College guitarist Pete Hodkinson, 15.

The concept came from the Play it Strange charitable trust, formed in 2003 to help young New Zealanders enhance their musical prowess.

Trust chief executive Mike Chunn, a former Split Enz member, said he wanted to showcase the best school musicians.