:00:14. > :00:19.And very warm welcome to our second programme of the 2011 Eisteddfod.
:00:19. > :00:25.Once again this is a festival pillock highlights will stop
:00:25. > :00:35.spectacular performances, two well on tenors, countries united on the
:00:35. > :00:56.
:00:56. > :01:02.stage and the who will claim the Hello will stop welcome to the
:01:02. > :01:08.children's choir from China. They have spent 10 hours in a plane and
:01:08. > :01:12.several hours more travelling overland to get here. Despite all
:01:12. > :01:20.of that, they have sung beautifully thought as. We are so pleased to
:01:20. > :01:26.see them. Here is a taste of the junior choir competition. And here
:01:26. > :01:36.is that choir from China up on the stage singing and dancing a
:01:36. > :01:44.
:01:44. > :01:54.beautiful song about the flight of The New Forest Choir from England
:01:54. > :02:01.
:02:01. > :02:08.sank a song about smugglers. -- How will front the children of a
:02:08. > :02:13.primary school in Hong Kong. This is Joyce and Christopher will start
:02:13. > :02:19.this is their teacher. You must be very proud of how the children have
:02:19. > :02:29.performed today. Yes, indeed did very well today. We all love you
:02:29. > :02:34.
:02:34. > :02:44.beautiful costumes, the at some colour to VED. No thank you. Here
:02:44. > :02:49.
:02:49. > :02:54.is at traditional Chinese song This Welsh choir has been competing
:02:54. > :03:04.here for 10 years. Here in the junior children's competition they
:03:04. > :03:10.
:03:11. > :03:20.are singing a piece by a local Now we have the results of the
:03:21. > :03:23.
:03:23. > :03:29.junior choir competition. Here are the winners will stop is your
:03:29. > :03:39.conductor the best in the world? yes. What was it like being on the
:03:39. > :03:49.
:03:49. > :03:59.stage? Amazing. Enjoy the rest of your time here. Well done! Now over
:03:59. > :03:59.
:03:59. > :04:02.to our other reported down in the town. After travelling all the way
:04:02. > :04:12.from India they still manage to look fresh and bright, how do they
:04:12. > :04:37.
:04:37. > :04:47.On Thursday the honour of being Des President was bestowed on us all
:04:47. > :05:00.
:05:00. > :05:04.You can die more than once in Cardiff and in Llangollen. There is
:05:04. > :05:13.something very special about this coming together to share music,
:05:13. > :05:18.isn't there? There is. It is a very special place. Sometimes you need
:05:18. > :05:25.to go elsewhere to find that out. I visited people in Africa who knew
:05:25. > :05:29.about it. They knew that you had to cross the peace bridge to get here.
:05:29. > :05:34.They knew that once you got to the field the whole one of would be
:05:34. > :05:42.here singing in friendship. The festival spells out off the field.
:05:42. > :05:46.I have been down the tow path and the canal. In the town the pubs are
:05:46. > :05:51.full, there is dancing in the streets. It is literally the whole
:05:51. > :06:01.world coming together having a ball. It is lovely to see it will stop
:06:01. > :06:10.
:06:10. > :06:20.enjoy the rest of your time here. Take me back, remind me of so many
:06:20. > :06:28.
:06:28. > :06:35.charms. I long to lie in Cardiff's From lung Coughlan be moved to an
:06:35. > :06:45.historic baskets city known as San Sebastian which has been a city of
:06:45. > :06:50.battles. The recent history has been less turbulent and the truce
:06:50. > :06:56.announcement of 2010 created a new political environment. The basket
:06:56. > :07:02.school is now openly the focal point of revival of traditional
:07:02. > :07:09.cultures. We know that we always have to work with our basket
:07:09. > :07:15.tradition and sculpture -- tradition and culture. Those
:07:15. > :07:22.traditions, we have realised, and an important way to take the
:07:23. > :07:28.children to new environments, to give them new opportunities to meet
:07:28. > :07:33.different people and experience different cultures. The school's
:07:33. > :07:38.dance teacher has made significant strides during his seven years with
:07:38. > :07:48.the students. The dance group has increased in numbers six Fall and
:07:48. > :07:53.
:07:53. > :08:03.now boasts over 180 members. This week, visitors to Llangollen have
:08:03. > :08:13.the opportunity to enjoy some Basque culture. The young students
:08:13. > :08:40.
:08:40. > :08:48.take to the stage in the children's And did the when requesting murk
:08:48. > :08:58.here is an adjudicator. In the winner for traditional dance action
:08:58. > :09:03.
:09:03. > :09:07.is reliant the Basque Country. their hard work paid off. The
:09:07. > :09:15.dancers from the Basque Country and their college. You must be very
:09:15. > :09:21.delighted. Yes, we came here 20 years ago and we won now this year,
:09:21. > :09:31.two times. All those hours of hard work and practice paid off. A pint
:09:31. > :09:52.
:09:52. > :09:58.Now we have an act from Perth in Welcome to Wales, all the way from
:09:58. > :10:03.the Australia, how was your trip over? It was a really good
:10:03. > :10:13.experience for me. I never thought I would be able to get this far
:10:13. > :10:31.
:10:31. > :10:35.with my byline. We have come and Taking first place in the brand new
:10:35. > :10:45.competition this year, the fault jockeys' competition, from the
:10:45. > :11:00.
:11:00. > :11:10.Republic of South Korea. -- fork showpiece competition -- Folk
:11:10. > :11:11.
:11:11. > :11:18.Showcase Competition. We checked in yesterday afternoon and were to be
:11:18. > :11:26.up for or so one bus at 8 o'clock and one bus at 8: 30. When our
:11:26. > :11:33.career went down to the lobby at 20 minutes to seven she was greeted
:11:33. > :11:40.with two men who said we had to vacate the building immediately,
:11:40. > :11:46.pack everything and leave. They had put the business into bankruptcy.
:11:46. > :11:54.It was quite a challenge therefore for the Eisteddfod committee to
:11:54. > :11:59.find them beds for the night. A body had to start each day and bet
:11:59. > :12:03.earlier, it did not dampen their spirits. It is an extraordinary
:12:03. > :12:09.experience to be there with so many people are who are there to make
:12:09. > :12:19.music and share a love of music. It is a great cultural experience.
:12:19. > :12:30.
:12:30. > :12:34.There are groups from all over the A worthwhile visit it was to
:12:34. > :12:44.Llangollen, they came second in the Chamber Choir and third in the
:12:44. > :13:11.
:13:11. > :13:15.There was an exciting community performance held featuring hundreds
:13:15. > :13:25.of local schoolchildren, brought together to present a modern
:13:25. > :13:36.
:13:36. > :13:46.We had the opportunity to follow the last-minute preparations in the
:13:46. > :13:52.
:13:52. > :13:57.local school and made the director The children have risen to the
:13:57. > :14:02.challenge splendidly. They have never performed in an opera before.
:14:02. > :14:06.They have never done this type of music. And never on this sort of
:14:06. > :14:10.scale. It is like going into battle. You have to be like the General on
:14:10. > :14:15.top of the hill, you have cavalry and infantry and you try to bring
:14:15. > :14:19.them together and keep an old repute as well as not lose too many
:14:19. > :14:25.lives on the way! We have done the dress rehearsal. Loads of people
:14:25. > :14:31.from other schools. It is good because you can make more friends.
:14:31. > :14:36.It will be good for when we go to high school. I am really excited.
:14:36. > :14:43.All my mum's friends are coming to see us. And all my dad's friends as
:14:43. > :14:47.well. It is going to be great fun and I am a bit nervous. I have
:14:47. > :14:53.already been on that stage before. So I am quite excited. I know what
:14:53. > :14:59.it is like. With such a busy week, there was only one opportunity to
:14:59. > :15:05.get the cast together Ron stage, and there was lots of looking
:15:05. > :15:11.forward to arriving at the pavilion. We'll -- we will go every day when
:15:11. > :15:21.it is on, it is a great time for our town. And the performance left
:15:21. > :15:32.
:15:32. > :15:42.a huge impression on both the And now, to a mass performance by
:15:42. > :15:50.
:15:50. > :15:53.the combined barbershop choirs and I saw your lips, I have your voice,
:15:53. > :15:58.believe you me, I had no choice, and wild horses could not make me
:15:58. > :16:07.stay away. I thought about Ammon live tonight, arms around you, good
:16:07. > :16:13.and Pike, that is all I need for me to stay. Hello, Sara Edwards! It
:16:14. > :16:18.has been so long, sour. What a great place to meet the French at
:16:18. > :16:26.circle, surrounded by all these barbershop choirs. It is such a
:16:26. > :16:33.good atmosphere. I had a permanent smile on my face. I am getting my
:16:33. > :16:40.sequins sewn on this afternoon! have a very famous tenor with us
:16:40. > :16:46.these days, meeting the people. This is my first time here!
:16:46. > :16:51.Fantastic, wonderful! They might have been singing in harmony
:16:51. > :16:57.outside but what was it like on stage? It was one of those
:16:57. > :17:02.competitions that brought a smile to every face, especially when the
:17:02. > :17:12.squire from Cheshire came on and gave a very rousing rendition of
:17:12. > :17:17.
:17:17. > :17:24.Another competition that was new for me was the folk choir
:17:24. > :17:29.competition, and in particular, this group from Taiwan, who sang an
:17:29. > :17:39.incredible song about a train journey and told the story very
:17:39. > :17:59.
:18:00. > :18:04.We will hear more from Wyn Evans later. I am joined by the First
:18:04. > :18:12.Minister of Wales, Karen Evans. It is more than just an arts festival,
:18:12. > :18:16.isn't it? It is. The festival was originally started after the Second
:18:16. > :18:21.World War, and the message of peace has been strong throughout its
:18:21. > :18:25.history. What do you enjoy about Llangollen, as a visitor? The fact
:18:25. > :18:30.that you see so many different people from around the world. There
:18:30. > :18:34.is scope dancing taking place. Tremendous variety. It helps people
:18:34. > :18:39.to get together and understand each other, and the more you can do that,
:18:39. > :18:43.the more chance you have got copies. What about the future of
:18:43. > :18:47.Llangollen? There are cutbacks happening all around us. Has it got
:18:47. > :18:52.a good future? There have been difficulties in the past few years,
:18:52. > :18:59.and these can be resolved, and the festival can be put on a comforting
:19:00. > :19:04.four years to come. We have had the power for 65 years. Llangollen is
:19:04. > :19:11.not short of performing talent. These are images to be cherished.
:19:11. > :19:21.The window on the world ceremony, when countries marched in
:19:21. > :19:32.
:19:32. > :19:37.There are plenty of performances taking place across town. Here we
:19:37. > :19:47.have a quiet from China, reforming a song about smiling, Europe by the
:19:47. > :20:22.
:20:22. > :20:27.From the smiling choir at the Rover, to a smiling Russell Wotton,
:20:27. > :20:33.performing at a packed pavilion, headline they -- headlining the
:20:33. > :20:38.gala concert on Tuesday. I came here as a child of my grandparents
:20:38. > :20:48.and my parents, so I have fond memories of this area, and of North
:20:48. > :21:05.
:21:05. > :21:09.Do you have to stand back and think that I have got 4,000 people
:21:09. > :21:15.hanging on every note? That is what makes this event special. It is
:21:16. > :21:24.steeped in history as well. This gentleman has performed you, and Le
:21:24. > :21:29.Channel Pavarotti, -- Luciana Pavarotti. It is a real thrill to
:21:29. > :21:39.be here. It is not often that I walked out in front of one audience
:21:39. > :21:40.
:21:40. > :21:45.and think, oh, dear. I feel blessed to be here this evening. Thank you
:21:45. > :21:50.very much! People ask if I am pooling nervous before I go on
:21:50. > :21:57.stage, and that was how I was three or four years ago when my life was
:21:57. > :22:07.threatened by two brain tumours, but now nice like this are just a
:22:07. > :22:18.
:22:18. > :22:22.dream come true for me. -- now it One of the many lovely things about
:22:22. > :22:26.the international Eisteddfod is that the pavilion and field are so
:22:26. > :22:31.close to the town, it gives everyone the chance to explore
:22:31. > :22:36.everything that Llangollen has to offer. The street dance competition
:22:36. > :22:40.was held in a local hotel, because the rain made it difficult to dance
:22:40. > :22:50.on the streets. This dance group from Ghana did not seem to mind at
:22:50. > :23:02.
:23:02. > :23:06.But winning this competition held in the Hotel were the Heritage
:23:06. > :23:11.dancers from India, wrecker were winners here at Llangollen, but
:23:11. > :23:21.this is the first time they have one insider hotel, and typical of
:23:21. > :23:31.
:23:31. > :23:37.the mood at Llangollen, everybody I young Italian tenor came to
:23:37. > :23:45.Llangollen for the first time with a choir from more dinner in Italy.
:23:45. > :23:55.-- Modena. Leakey and we have my father, and we want, to win, it was
:23:55. > :24:11.
:24:11. > :24:16.And this is the Pavarotti Trophy, for which representatives from five
:24:16. > :24:23.categories battle it out for the choir of the world title. Last year
:24:23. > :24:27.of this trophy went to the Philippines. When I arrived
:24:27. > :24:31.everyone said, you have to hear the squire from the Philippines, they
:24:32. > :24:37.are brilliant. And it has been fantastic. The level of performance
:24:37. > :24:46.is very high. What did you make of the choir from the Adventist
:24:46. > :24:55.University of the Philippines? piece is, they say, a gibberish
:24:55. > :25:00.chant to encourage a good harvest. Their loud singing was so control.
:25:00. > :25:10.Never sing louder than lovely, they say, and it never went cloud our
:25:10. > :25:22.
:25:22. > :25:26.What did you make of the Chamber Choir? They signed a boss another
:25:26. > :25:31.piece, which was a huge mistake because they started doing the
:25:31. > :25:41.movements, and that is very difficult to pull off. It was like
:25:41. > :25:50.
:25:50. > :25:54.watching my father dancing at the We saw quite a bit of movement Mthe
:25:54. > :25:59.barbershop group. The affinity group. I was thinking I should put
:25:59. > :26:05.on some sequins for this number. Somehow it pulled together this
:26:05. > :26:15.movement, all kind of individuals, but singing as a quiet, a beautiful
:26:15. > :26:24.
:26:24. > :26:30.blend. THEY SING: Son of a Preacher Then the ladies of the Mansfield
:26:30. > :26:35.University Choir of the USA. What did you think of them? They were
:26:35. > :26:39.sensational. They had been singing these angelic pieces all the way
:26:39. > :26:44.through, then they sang something that was like something from the
:26:44. > :26:54.film, Sister Act. They threw caution to the wind and really went
:26:54. > :27:01.
:27:01. > :27:07.Last but by no means least, the Wessex Male Voice Choir. This was
:27:07. > :27:12.the competition everybody was watching. Three Welsh choirs
:27:12. > :27:17.competing, and so, for this English male voice choir to come to what we
:27:17. > :27:21.think is the land of male voice choir singing, to competing -- to
:27:21. > :27:26.compete against the Welsh Millwall's -- Welsh male voice
:27:26. > :27:36.choirs, they sang a piece by a Welsh composer, and that went down
:27:36. > :27:58.
:27:58. > :28:03.delay well in the hall. -- really So, if you were one of the
:28:03. > :28:07.adjudicators, what would you do? would go for the Filipino choir.
:28:07. > :28:14.They showed a lot of dynamic and sang with real heart, and that is
:28:14. > :28:24.what I am looking for. Let us see if the adjudicator's agree with you.
:28:24. > :28:25.
:28:25. > :28:30.The Adventist University of the It has been an incredible week at
:28:30. > :28:36.Llangollen. We hope you have enjoyed the coverage. We can leave