Episode 1 Llangollen

Welcome to Llangollen and the first of two highlights programmes from

the 2011 International Eisteddfod. The pavilion is getting ready for

tonight's concert. There is a week's worth of events him at

Llangollen, and he was a taste of what is becoming tonight's

programme. Our pick of the coral and dance competitions. We meet

this year's star performers Lulu and Russell Watson. We will be out

and about experiencing the magic of Llangollen. What better way of

starting our highlights then that the colourful opening parade

through the town. Worry from? Bradford, in West

Yorkshire. Have you been before? came two years ago. How does it

compare to last time? It is brilliant. Whereabouts? Perth.

Hello, whereabouts in Canada after you from? Alberta. How long are you

here? 16 days. Is at your first visit? This is the second time we

have been here. It is great to see Hello, welcome to Wales. Hello.

do you say hello in your language? What do you think of Llangollen?

is a very beautiful town. I love Wales. What does Llangollen mean to

you, do come all this way? It is such an honour to be here. We are

so excited and the children are so excited to give America this

Welcome to Wales. Are you having a great time? Yes, great time,

thousands of people. What are you doing in the competition? Singing,

of course. We are from Slovakia, singing in three categories. It is

not just about the parade. Llangollen is an all-inclusive

Dancing Music singing experience and for the people who watch it as

well. What do you enjoy about it?

colour, the music, it is so inspiring. I can't sing or play

As well as attracting international competitors, Wales has always been

well represented at Llangollen and taking part for the very first time

this year Cor Ysgol y Strade and we followed their preparations for the

children's competition. It is such a privilege, competing at

Llangollen with the other groups and they are from different

countries. It is an honour to be there, when we found out we were in

shock. When we think of Llangollen has just the world. We have been

practising every day, every dinner time, after school. We don't see

the light of day. Never, not really. Keeping them indoors and to on

their toes is Christopher Davies. Since we were able to compete in

Llangollen, it has been non-stop between concerts and recordings. It

has been quite a challenge to fit everything in, to be quite honest.

Mr Davies is amazing. He is really fun. Really good. He makes us laugh.

He is nice. He criticises us sometimes but he gives us words of

praise. It is a scary feeling to be completing a with kids choirs from

all over the world. It makes you wonder if we are good enough.

pressure is on. There accompanist is the head of music. The school

children will gain valuable experience in this international

festival. I think it will be an experience that will stay with them

I expect we are going to have really good fun, nice food. We're

going to enjoy it and we're hoping And after all of that hard

rehearsing, here is CoA is gone Ystrad Rhondda stage. -- Cor Ysgol

Apology for the loss of subtitles for 48 seconds

Now to Perth, Australia, and the I am delighted to say I am with, in

the very middle of the Young Voices of Colorado, and we have Victoria

and police. I am right in thinking you have a very in rock -- a very

strong Welsh collection, haven't you? Yes, most of my family is from

Wales and my grandma is from Wales and here today. It must be like

coming home to you? Yes, it is Five years ago a 10-year-old girl

took the Llangollen stage by storm and since then she has starred in

Britain's Got Talent. Soprano Faryl Smith is back in Llangollen and

supporting Harold -- old choir, masquerade, with whom she has also

appeared here. The last time I came, we won. It was quite a nice way to

end it. We know you now from your solo career, which is going great

places. You have been sharing the billing this week in the Tuesday

night concert with Russell Watson, but today, you are supporting

Masquerade. They are fantastic, it is fantastic. Now, it is a two-way

thing. You are her Grace's fans come aren't you? -- greatest fans,

As part of a very strong competition this year, the senior

children's choir from Croatia appeared on the stage after

spending two-and-a-half solid days And so to that all important

announcement. And the marks. Methodist Ladies College, total 170.

Young Voices of Colorado, 164. Children's Choir Brevis, Croatia,

178. Masquerade, England, 174. Cor Congratulations to Croatia, first

place to them. And a very proud second place to his glory strap. --

Cor Ysgol y Strade. How you feeling about it? I'm very

proud of them. It is a relatively new choir? It is a normal school

choir, we will be back next year. We will be waited with bated breath.

Well done, all of you. They do. we're at one of the most iconic

places near by. After six years of campaigning the

great Llangollen aqueduct can shut -- can proudly stand shoulder to

shoulder with the Great Wall of China, Stonehenge, as a World

Heritage Site. One can argue that only in gamble -- and Llangollen

can you get such a dramatic backdrop mixed with a dance group

The Dance Group was formed in 2002, to promote gunmen culture. They

have ambitions to establish their own international festival, their

version of the Eisteddfod in Ghana, perhaps. The dances inspired by the

The President of the International Eisteddfod is Terry Waite and his

many responsibilities during the week includes welcoming all the

nations to the Llangollen pavilion Terry, it is lovely to meet you.

is very nice to be here, even though today is a little damp. It

has not dampened the its spirits of the Eisteddfod, as you come here

with the children in the background. It doesn't. What does Eisteddfod

mean to you? A great deal. Ordinary people from here, and from Wales,

build on what is natural to Wales, which is music and the language of

music and news that to work for peace. Because here, in this little

town in Wales, people come from every part of the world and young

people especially and they form relationships across cultural

boundaries come across religious boundaries, which last a lifetime.

It is 20 years ago this year that you were held hostage in the

Lebanon. It is 65 years ago this year at Llangollen was born, so all

of those things have a special resonance, don't they? That is true.

I don't tend to remember days very well but I do remember when I came

out and I came out into a world that was still confused and it is

still confused today. I do think we live in an age when people tend to

go to walk too quickly, rather than talk and rather than get together.

I think for instance of groups that came here, the Chechen children,

they came from the most appalling background. Wonderful performance

they put on. I spoke to those kids, there wasn't one child who hadn't

had a relative who hadn't been either killed or injured in the

conflict, yet they came with that marvellous vivacious spirit. It was

drawn out from them by the rest of it. I think the future is good. I

dashed by the Eisteddfod. It will continue to attract people from all

over the world and with the spirit that has emanated from this place

since 1947. We will do it. When I was invited to be President I said,

you don't want me, I'm not Welsh. They said, this is the

International Eisteddfod and it is Wales'' contribution, one of

Wales'' contribution to the world. I'm very proud to be associated

with it. Over the years the whole host of celebrity artists have

performed here at Llangollen, from Pavarotti, Katherine Jenkins, to

Shirley Bassey. Rocking her way I am so thrilled to be in

Llangollen. This is a very famous festival. You have the most

unbelievable people here. I am very honoured. I have been performing in

front of Welsh audiences for 47 years. That is since I was 15 years

old. The great thing is that, it is actually not so great, the

audience's sing better than I do. But I like it when I hear a Welsh

boys because there is nothing like a Welsh boys. Surrey, Glasgow! -- a

Welsh voice. Sharing the stage was the Eighties pop Blair don't, Rick

It was kind of strange because my first song, I was lucky to have it,

it was a bit hit around the world. It can become a bit of a stone

around your neck, because far a long time I was, not sick to death

of it, but I had had enough of it. The past five or six years, I have

got into singing publicly again, not just at friends' weddings. I

enjoy singing the old songs again now. When I hear the intro, it

This is what makes me tick. I am 62, and I will probably do this until

the day I die. It is all about the music. The Welsh a know about

singing. You know all about how important it is too... It is a

muscle, and if you do not work it, it will get smaller and not be so

powerful. All my secrets, I have given new! I have met Lulu before

but I have never sung with her. She sings for six or seven hours. I

have said to her that she will have be stopped doing it. If there is a

microphone there, she was saying. Her voice is amazing. She goes for

The Llangollen International Music festival was established in

reaction to the second world war, to help heal the wounds of war and

to promote peace and understanding bit dreamy nations. Culture, music

and dance can play a part in rebuilding relationships. Tent-

pegging was initially division of Harold to death. He took his vision

to Llangollen where a musicologist receive the idea with a great deal

of enthusiasm. In June 1946, a public meeting was held at the Town

Hall in Llangollen and the new international project was announced

with invitations sent to choirs Is anybody here who understands

music? Yes! Just give me a hand to move this piano. They came and they

have been coming here since ever since. As the visitors arrived,

they needed somewhere to stay. afternoon. Can you help us to find

some accommodation? Yes, I think we can help you. While we are waiting

to see if you can help these girls, perhaps you can tell me how many

people you have accommodated this year? Our private accommodation has

accommodated, I should think, well over 600 people. One or two nights?

You can decide tomorrow? I have to decide today because someone else

might need the accommodation tomorrow. I believe you have some

camp bed accommodation? I am in charge of the camp bed

accommodation. We have approximately 600 camp beds in

various buildings. Excuse me. Hello? Yes, what a breath?

Llangollen has been a welcoming home for groups of 65 years and in

the period, it has witnessed a huge social and cultural changes

including a South African group, reflecting the new post apartheid

era. We have become a rainbow nation and we have come into the

international Rainbow. We have come to enhance the rainbow of the

nation and we are very proud. Am I right? Yes! In 1955, a young tenor

came to Llangollen as part of a competing male voice choir from

Italy. Require one and the fires -- the choir one and the tent-pegging

left a lasting impression on the 40 years later, Pavarotti returned

to the International Pavilion in a spectacular gala concert, welcoming

him back to a stage that meant so APPLAUSE.

It is the first day of the tent- pegging and it is children's day

and we have local schoolchildren promoting a message of peace and

goodwill. We have a whole pavilion full of children getting to enjoy a

world-class performances. One of the most colourful performances

came from disquiet from the Ukraine. I like to St. It was really good

I like watching the people dance because I have never seen at that

APPLAUSE. Not only do they get to enjoy the shows, schoolchildren

from the Llangollen area get to It was a really good show. We got

the audience going more this year. It was really fun. It made me get

up off my seat and go like this... It was really fun. The star of the

show was this man. Here's the former chairman of the Notting Hill

Carnival. Have you been here before? This is my third time. It

is so beautiful. I like it. And why do you keep coming back? A the

management invited me here to take over at what they were doing and

what I did with the Notting Hill Carnival. Let us see how we can

I am here now and I am looking forward to next year. Why they are

told to -- while they are talking about the Olympic, let us make an

international song and dance their Olympics here. Bring people from

the smoke and fog of London and bring them here. Thank you very

much. Wicked, so stuff. PC! standard of the instrumental

soloists is always very high. At just 13-year-old, the skull from

Apology for the loss of subtitles for 48 seconds

Hong Kong was a very accomplished With me now is a special guest who

has been keeping an eye and the tapping their feet watching the

first dance competition of the week what adults here at tent-pegging. I

am sure many of us recognise her. Welcome. We know that you know that

you know what you are talking about. What were your impressions of the

competition? It was a very high standard. It is always beautiful,

the costumes are fantastic. There is such a variety. I think, to be

honest, I would have hated to be one of the judges because the

standard was so high and it is hard to compare. They are also good

within their own styles. How do you compare them? Who stayed out?

first group that took my type were from India. They had beautiful

costumes, red and gold. They were very elegant dancers, they had a

very slow approach and they were A group from Newcastle, they were

very impressive. They had very specific skills and the way they

interacted with each other and the skills that they had a with props

were incredible. They were very agile men.

It is not just about agility, each dance that tells a story, doesn't

it? Yes, you want to be taught and educated about whatever style you

are watching at the time. The more information you can get, the more

you are going to enjoy it. The dancers from the Ukraine, they were

such an exciting group of girls To Watch, there were so many of them,

they were beautifully dressed. The energy needed for this style of

dance is huge. The group from Northern Ireland,

they are always impressive and this year, they were better again. They

are always so professional and they make everything look so easy and

barefoot work is so technical. I do not really know how they all

managed to do it. We have been all around the world. What about the

group from Wales? They were lovely. They really managed to capture the

Welsh spirit that we had, the fairground feel, it was such a

relaxed environment, very enjoyable. The standard of the clog-dancing

was very high. It was lovely. you had to choose, if you were the

judge, who would win top prize? I said, I would not want to be the

judge, but if it was my personal opinion, I would go for... Let us

It was actually this dance groups from Brittany who received the

first prize. A surprise? Yes, I am surprised. They were not so much to

my taste. I can see why the judges would have been impressed by the

Here we are, live backstage with the performers of tonight's concert.

Terry Waite himself is appearing as the voice of God. There will be