The scene opens with the sound of a contra bass in mid-air. It's the assistant conductor of the Nagano Symphony Orchestra, and he's talking to the students about their upcoming performance. The students are all excited, and the conductor tells them that he personally chose each of them to perform in the orchestra's debut. The assistant conductor tells the students that he has a very important errand to run, and that he needs to get there on time. He's not the only one who's bummed out about this: the violin girl is also bummed out, because she has a part-time job and she can't afford to go to college.