The beat of the tune was absolutely infectious, and Twilight Sparkle couldn't stop her hoof from tapping in sync with the band's music playing out in front of her. The flare of the trombones accompanied the heavy-set bass drums marvelously, and the violins seemed to lead it all in the best of ways.

As the song continued, the noises from all the instruments came together in perfect harmony, instigating unbridled elation from the assembled ponies. When the tune ended, the assembled Ponyfolk in the auditorium moved to the edges of their seats, waiting in anticipation for the next song to come.

If the pamphlet tucked away in Twilight's Saddlebag was true, Vinyl Scratch, Aka. DJ P0n3, would be performing an original solo piece next. Before the show could continue however the mayor walked onstage. The lights- prior bleaching the whole area -had centered on the highly respected pony then, drawing the assembled audience’s attention.

“Let’s hear a round of applause for the Canterlot Orchestra!” A round of hoots and hollers reverberated around the coliseum-like building, accompanied by the clippity-clop of hooves on the metal sitting area as countless ponies expressed their satisfaction. Being the good host she was, the Mayor waited for the audience to settle down before speaking again.

“Next up we have the much anticipated original by none other than Vinyl Scratch herself! But before we get into that and I surrender the stage, I would like to say ‘thank you’ to everypony in the audience. Without your presence, there wouldn’t be any show to begin with!” As the audience erupted again, Mayor Mare smiled.

The concert was a biyearly gig, and it always drew such a good reception. Being the capable worker she was, Twilight Sparkle had stage managed the production and couldn’t help but feel some of the contentment emanating from the mayor rub off on her.

“Without further ado, let me offer the stage to the one and only Vinyl Scratch! Enjoy!” The lights spread around the stage and there, headphone askew and glasses on, was DJ P0n3. A fog leaking out of a hidden machine beneath the stage set the mood as the goddess of techno began her original.

Synths hummed, treble wavered, bass boomed and then- minutes in -a sudden burst of lightning from above struck Vinyl’s synthesizer- before spreading to Vinyl herself -shorting out the council and throwing the DJ into the tightly closed curtains at the back of the stage. As the white filly got up, shaking her head, a horrid laugh drew the attention of the stadium heavenwards. Storm clouds had crept across the sky, obscuring it's cyan depths in a murky haze. A heavy wind blew across the auditorium, distorting the wavering laugh and throwing it in tatters among the dumbstruck ponies. A figure appeared from the midst of the storm.

“You call that music?” the intruder mused, landing awkwardly on his hooves. A wicked smile playing across his face. In a field of unicorn magic a large instrument of sorts –something crossed between a piano and a drum set –was folded.

Without a word of explanation, the intruder unfolded the device and struck an off tune key. A ray of pure energy steamed out of his instrument, manifesting into a sheet that spread to cover the entire stage and freeze the rousing DJ

“I am the one and only Mozart: performer extraordinaire!” Twilight noticed with a start how volatile Mozart’s voice was. It kept reaching exceptionally high pitches, before giving way to lower ones at seemingly random intervals. “Admire me for the musician I am!” And with that, he began to play. Whatever it was that came out of his instrument clearly was not music, hay; it was more like a screech uttered from a dying cat, or tough hooves on a chalkboard.

Clenching her teeth in agony, Twilight turned to her friends. Pinkie Pie and Rarity had their eyes tightly shut and were covering their ears. Fluttershy was hiding behind Rainbow Dash, who was looking at the stage in absolute disgust. Applejack, prior munching on an apple strudel, had dropped the delectable snack from her mouth to throw Twilight an incredulous sort of look. Twilight returned it and went back to gazing at Mozart, who had begun to sing along with his playing.

“Filly, filly, filly oh, singing filly…” Mozart's voice attacked the cringing audience, assaulting their eardrums with its horribly off tune and amateur pitch. At about the point in which Twilight Sparkle could scarcely take it any longer, Mozart stopped. There was an audible breath of relief as the last of the unicorn's voice reverberated across the auditorium.

“Booo! We want Vinyl back!” a single male voice rang out after a minute, echoing off the walls and reaching Mozart's perked ears. A pegasus colt at the far back of the auditorium stood up. His nostrils were flared in agitation. A charged second of silence, and another pony from the audience stood up.

“We want Vinyl back!” From then on, the chant was picked up by the whole of the auditorium.

“We want Vinyl back! We want Vinyl back! We want…”

“Enough!” Mozart's shrill voice sliced through the angry audience, throwing the stadium into gradual silence. “Enough.” The unicorn looked wounded, and for a moment, Twilight couldn't help but feel bad for joining in on the riotous chant. This regret was short lived however, as Mozart continued.

“You’re all deaf as rocks! You ponies wouldn't recognize talent if it bit you on the muzzle!”

“I think you're the deaf one!” somepony shouted.

“What did you say! You're even more foolish then I suspected." Mozart had turned his seething attention to the protester, “However, if you think my music is that bad, you're clearly not matured enough to embrace it. I have no time for foalery, I’ll just... leave.” a small smile was splayed across his face. "However, before I do..." he tapped something on his keydrum and played a very deep note.

The same arcane energy as before emerged out of his instrument. This time, however, it spanned over an area roughly four times larger and settled across the audience like a veil.

When Twilight saw the curtain descend, she felt her heart contract in despair. She was almost certain that she too would be frozen like Vinyl had been. However, as the vale fell over her- going straight through to the ground -all she felt was a tingling at her very core before a wrenching sensation. By the time the sheet of energy had disappeared, so had Mozart.

The sky had returned to its previous midday azure and Vinyl Scratch could move once more

Next Chapter: Pinkie's Predicament Estimated time remaining: 27 Minutes