Worcester piano man shares keys to ‘Idol’ singers’ success By Gayle Fee and Laura Raposa

Another contestant will get booted off “American Idol” tonight, but according to associate musical director Michael Orland, it doesn’t really matter.

“I used to get really, really devastated over who got kicked off the show,” said Orland, a Worcester homey who has been with the Fox mega-hit since the end of season one.

“But after Clay Aiken in season two, it turned out that you didn’t have to win to have a career. Jennifer Hudson was the best example of that. She was voted off sixth from the end and she won an Oscar. Chris Daughtry was fourth from the end. It’s feasible that every single one of the top 12 this year could have a recording career. So I stopped getting emotionally attached to where everyone finishes.”

Orland, who grew up in Worcester and got his musical start taking piano lessons from “Mrs. Siegel down the street” is the man at the piano during the “Idol” rehearsals and celebrity mentoring sessions. He plays for the contestants, does the musical arrangements - and so much more.

“I’m a part-time coach, part-time therapist, friend, everything. Whatever it takes to make the contestants as great as they can be,” Orland told the Track.

A former rehearsal pianist for Barry Manilow, Orland got the call to “Idol” in the first season after some of his Manilow colleagues were hired for the then-unknown reality program. After initially turning the gig down because he had promised “Golden Girl” Estelle Getty he’d come to her house on the same night, Orland got called to play for the finale of the first season - and has been there ever since.

But don’t try to make him pick an all-time favorite contestant.

“I couldn’t name one,” he said. “Although my favorite, growth-wise, was Kimberly Locke. She learned and grew so much during her four months on that show.”

As for the current crop of Idol wannabes, Orland says he has no idea who will be the last man - or woman - standing.

“I love every single one of these contestants,” he said. “It’s like asking a father which one of his kids he likes the best.”

Orland said he’s a “huge fan” of the last singer voted off - the ever-so-emo Brooke White.

“The thing I love about Brooke is that she wears her heart on her sleeve,” he said. “You can see how vulnerable she is. I think she did a great job.”

Syesha Mercado, the only gal left in the running, is improving by the week and the more good performances she has “the more confidence she builds,” Orland said.

David Archuleta “has been amazing since day one,” and rocker David Cook has “grown every week.”

As for the ever-so-laid-back Jason Castro, Orland said he’s “a great person with a great style.”

“Girls love him, little kids love him, the reaction from the fans when he comes out is crazy,” he said. “He’s definitely got something.”

Orland says he - like everyone else - is amazed at the staying power of “Idol,” still a ratings behemoth in its seventh year.

“I think it’s like the show ‘Friends,’ ” he said. “Only every season you get a whole new group of Friends and new people to root for. Even though I’m on the show, I’m obsessed like everyone else. I can’t wait to get home and watch it. I hope it stays on for a long, long time.”