Lollapalooza: The Kids Are Alright

A host of teenage musicians hit the big time yesterday (Aug. 5) during My Morning Jacket's early evening set at Lollpalooza in Chicago. The kids from the Chicago Youth Symphony Orchestra backed the Kentucky-based rock combo (pictured: frontman Jim James) for most of its performance, carving out new spaces in the arrangements of tracks like the rarely performed "Just One Thing," "Gideon," "Dancefloors" and "Dondante" against a backdrop of "Candyland"-themed imagery.

Backstage, Jaded Insider ran into two of the musicians, who were still beaming from their respective moments of glory. "This was absolutely amazing," said 16-year-old Marisa Sheppard. "It was nothing like going to a rock concert," said Chris Sitton, 17. There were a couple of big fans amongst the kids before the pairing was announced, but most of them had never heard of MMJ before. "Now, they're my favorite band," Sheppard enthused.

There was only time for one rehearsal with band and orchestra, which ran from noon until 8 p.m. on Friday. The orchestra earlier practiced by itself for two hours, but Sheppard noted, "When they came, we just energized." Fans were asked to film the performance with their cell phones and digital cameras for potential inclusion in a video to be posted in September on Current TV.