Can anyone touch Melinda Doolittle and Jordin Sparks when it comes to those vocals? It didn't seem so after last week's ''Songs That Inspire'' episode, but that didn't stop us from breaking down the notes on the top six with Idol's arranger and pianist extraordinaire Michael Orland.

ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY: Michael, you must be the lucky charm! Because you worked with Phil last week and he finally avoided the bottom three, and this week, you got Chris Richardson out of the judges' doghouse.
MICHAEL ORLAND: I was waiting for that! One of my favorite things when we were all watching the Disney Hall performances [during ''Idol Gives Back''] was seeing Rascal Flatts, one of Chris' favorite country artists — [their lead singer Gary LeVox] has that whole nasal thing going in his voice. As soon as he was done I ran over to Chris and said, ''Let's see Simon tell him about the nasal quality of his voice.'' Chris had asked me, ''Do I need to change my sound?'' and I said no. I think he picked a good song too. His attitude up there was ''This is who I am.''

As usual, both Melinda and Jordin were incredible. What more can we say about them?
Yeah, I thought that was the most modern song Melinda has sung. She's so talented. And with Jordin doing that song [''You'll Never Walk Alone''], I was honestly worried. She got really emotional at the show. I thought we were going to be in trouble. I was in the back watching them and I saw her going there emotionally and I thought she was going to crack.

Because of the theme?
They were showing all those packages between the kids performing. It hit her why they were all here to help and how big it was going to be that people voting for them would raise millions of dollars.

Phil continues to be on a roll with his newfound inner country singer.
I don't think the song he sang was the most well-known Garth Brooks song, but it's so moving. That was the first song he came up with and we were all like, ''I don't know if it's well-known enough.'' So we went through two more song choices and arranged them both. He came back and said, ''I have to do this song.'' I really feel like Phil has this newfound confidence on stage. He's found his voice and people are identifying with him.

What did the judges mean when they said he lacked some of the country twang he had the week before?
I thought he still had that country edge. Plus Garth Brooks is so country-pop crossover. Phil's going to bring that to Bon Jovi next week as well. He needs to do that. That's who he is. That's the record he could make.

I had a problem with Blake's version of ''Imagine'' — to me, you can't make that song your own. It's too perfect in its raw form.
Yeah, but it's all about emoting in that song. I think Blake did a couple of nice phrasing things. It's so hard to change up the notes in a sacred song like that. Blake played me other versions of the song and I thought it could be too dangerous to move too far off. It was one of the safest vocals he's done as far as singing it straight. But I think if he changed it too much the judges would not have been too kind to him.

Let's talk about LaKisha, because someone needs to tell her she can't choose two American Idol winners' songs two weeks in a row [Carrie Underwood's ''Jesus Take the Wheel'' and Fantasia's ''I Believe'']. It makes it look like she had no musical knowledge outside of the past five years.
I did feel bad for her. It wasn't until after she picked it that she realized she was doing two Idols' songs in a row. It was definitely hard for her. I'm happy for all of them that no one got eliminated, but I'm especially happy for her. She took the biggest risk in terms of song choice, and with the judges it didn't go in her favor. Fantasia is so identifiable that it's hard to copy or change that up.

Speaking of making a song your own, I could barely contain myself when Annie Lennox sang ''Bridge Over Troubled Water.'' What were your favorite moments from the Wednesday-night show?
Isn't Annie Lennox just unbelievable? She can sing anything to me. She was one of my favorites. And I know you're going to laugh at me, but another favorite was Josh Groban with the children's choir. But Annie Lennox blew me away.

When Ryan said his shtick about it being ''the most shocking results show,'' I thought it was completely obvious that no one would be sent home, and yet the kids still looked somewhat shocked. Did they really not figure it out?
Here's the real lowdown: Right before the show the kids kept saying, ''Nobody's going to get eliminated.'' I was like, ''You guys are crazy!'' Even though they thought they had figured it out they really had no idea, as you can see from the way Jordin reacted.

What can we expect from Bon Jovi week?
I think the guys definitely have an advantage singing Bon Jovi songs. Whatever the girls do, they should get extra props for having to sing a guy rock & roll-vibe song.

You're working with Chris, Phil, and Jordin this week. Has the theme been tough on Jordin?
It's tough for all the girls, though I can't speak for Melinda and LaKisha because I'm not working with them. What I will say about Jordin is that the second it was announced we were doing a Bon Jovi week, she requested her song early. She knew exactly what she was going to sing.

At this point it seems clear that the finals will be between Melinda and Jordin. How do the other contestants cope?
I don't feel any of that coming from the other contestants. I don't feel that whole ''We should give up because of them'' thing. Everyone is fighting for that place in the finale. That's what's so great about the competition right now. Everyone has a chance of being there. When two people get eliminated next week, we're going to lose two good ones.