0:00:02 > 0:00:08The search for the next BBC Cardiff Singer of the World began last year.
0:00:08 > 0:00:10This is not just a local competition in Cardiff.
0:00:10 > 0:00:12This is a worldwide event.
0:00:13 > 0:00:16We are constantly looking for new operatic stars
0:00:16 > 0:00:18to feed the operatic system.
0:00:19 > 0:00:22Everyone in the business knows that it's one of
0:00:22 > 0:00:24the most important competitions in the world.
0:00:24 > 0:00:25Valentina Nafornita.
0:00:25 > 0:00:26It's a big title.
0:00:26 > 0:00:30To have that name attached to yours - I wouldn't mind it.
0:00:32 > 0:00:34Over 400 young opera singers entered,
0:00:34 > 0:00:37with 52 selected for auditions around the world.
0:00:38 > 0:00:41We're always looking for the best possible candidates.
0:00:41 > 0:00:44Those voices that give you that tingle, that you think,
0:00:44 > 0:00:48"This is a different voice, this is a special voice."
0:00:48 > 0:00:51In this, the competition's 30th anniversary year,
0:00:51 > 0:00:5420 of the world's best young singers have made it through
0:00:54 > 0:00:57to compete in Cardiff, all of them
0:00:57 > 0:01:01hoping to lift the Cardiff Singer trophy and take their place
0:01:01 > 0:01:04on the distinguished list of winners.
0:01:04 > 0:01:07BBC Cardiff Singer of the World really launched my career.
0:01:07 > 0:01:11Winning that competition was a very special moment for me.
0:01:11 > 0:01:13It actually changed my life.
0:01:13 > 0:01:18It's where everything started. And we're still counting.
0:01:19 > 0:01:24This is a celebration of 30 years of BBC Cardiff Singer of the World.
0:02:01 > 0:02:061983. The pound coin was first introduced in the UK.
0:02:06 > 0:02:09Margaret Thatcher was returned to power
0:02:09 > 0:02:12on a wave of post-Falklands patriotism.
0:02:12 > 0:02:14And music entered the digital age,
0:02:14 > 0:02:16as CDs hit the shops for the first time.
0:02:18 > 0:02:22In Cardiff, a new world-class concert hall opened its doors.
0:02:23 > 0:02:26Keen to take advantage of the new St David's Hall,
0:02:26 > 0:02:29BBC Wales producer Mervyn Williams came up with the idea
0:02:29 > 0:02:32of an event to show off the hall to the world.
0:02:34 > 0:02:37I thought of this idea of having a competition.
0:02:37 > 0:02:39I thought it came from a Welsh background
0:02:39 > 0:02:43of the Eisteddfod and so on. I thought, yes, that might work.
0:02:45 > 0:02:47To make his idea happen, Mervyn joined forces
0:02:47 > 0:02:51with Welsh National Opera and Cardiff City Council,
0:02:51 > 0:02:54but he would also need the help of broadcasters from around the world
0:02:54 > 0:02:56to find the singers.
0:02:56 > 0:02:59I was head of music in the Finnish broadcasting company TV1
0:02:59 > 0:03:01and Mervyn Williams came to a meeting
0:03:01 > 0:03:05and he said to us that "We're going to establish a competition
0:03:05 > 0:03:08"in Cardiff, would you be interested in that?"
0:03:08 > 0:03:12And I remember that we were two countries, Belgium and myself,
0:03:12 > 0:03:16who immediately said yes, we are in. And that's how it started.
0:03:18 > 0:03:21Broadcasters from 18 countries sent singers to Cardiff.
0:03:22 > 0:03:25For me to be invited to a BBC singing competition
0:03:25 > 0:03:28was like a lottery win for a young singer.
0:03:28 > 0:03:30It was like a dream.
0:03:30 > 0:03:34I was just excited about everything.
0:03:35 > 0:03:41I was 18, and I'd just really started taking singing seriously.
0:03:41 > 0:03:43Thought in terms of making a career out of it.
0:03:43 > 0:03:47And I was chosen, and off I went.
0:03:47 > 0:03:52Chaired by legendary Welsh baritone Sir Geraint Evans,
0:03:52 > 0:03:54an international panel of singers
0:03:54 > 0:03:56and industry professionals was assembled.
0:03:57 > 0:04:01And so Cardiff Singer of the World was born.
0:04:01 > 0:04:03You never know what to expect with a new competition.
0:04:03 > 0:04:07But there had been a lot of, a lot of thought put into this one.
0:04:07 > 0:04:09There was a lot of excitement,
0:04:09 > 0:04:11a lot of talk had been going on for a couple of years
0:04:11 > 0:04:14leading up to the actual event.
0:04:14 > 0:04:17So, you know, the air was kind of full of the feeling that this
0:04:17 > 0:04:20was going to be an important new televised competition.
0:04:20 > 0:04:27# The deeps have music soft and low... #
0:04:27 > 0:04:29From the start, the competition
0:04:29 > 0:04:32set out to find the opera stars of the future.
0:04:32 > 0:04:36The entrants included an 18-year-old mezzo-soprano from Ireland
0:04:36 > 0:04:38named Patricia Bardon.
0:04:38 > 0:04:40I didn't have any expectations.
0:04:40 > 0:04:43I was completely naive, for sure.
0:04:43 > 0:04:44Perhaps even...
0:04:46 > 0:04:50One of the first times I'd sung with a symphony orchestra, easily.
0:04:55 > 0:05:00What we weren't sure about was what allowance we would have to make
0:05:00 > 0:05:03for experience versus promise.
0:05:03 > 0:05:06In fact, it didn't work out that way, because it was the youngest voices,
0:05:06 > 0:05:11as it turned out, who had the most extraordinary artistic maturity.
0:05:19 > 0:05:21Donna Anna.
0:05:21 > 0:05:25Oh, my God. I was so bold.
0:05:26 > 0:05:29It's a question of showing your potential.
0:05:29 > 0:05:31Maybe singing an aria
0:05:31 > 0:05:34that you wouldn't be ready to sing the whole part,
0:05:34 > 0:05:39but showing the way your voice might develop in the future.
0:05:43 > 0:05:49The entire role would have killed me, but I didn't know that.
0:05:49 > 0:05:53Luckily, I only needed to sing the aria, and I won!
0:05:57 > 0:06:01Karita just had it all, even at that age.
0:06:01 > 0:06:05She had a poise, she had an exquisite voice.
0:06:13 > 0:06:16You could see already the talent and the energy
0:06:16 > 0:06:18and personality were there.
0:06:18 > 0:06:20Although I think she would admit
0:06:20 > 0:06:25that she wasn't a fully formed singer when she won it,
0:06:25 > 0:06:28she turned out to be
0:06:28 > 0:06:31one of the outstanding singers of our age.
0:06:31 > 0:06:33APPLAUSE
0:06:33 > 0:06:37Karita Mattila's win helped Cardiff Singer declare itself to the world.
0:06:39 > 0:06:43The competition was a huge success, and would return two years later.
0:06:50 > 0:06:53Then, the title went to the American baritone David Malis.
0:06:55 > 0:07:01He was followed in 1987 by Italian coloratura soprano Valeria Esposito.
0:07:12 > 0:07:15But it was another performance that year
0:07:15 > 0:07:17that started the competition organisers thinking.
0:07:21 > 0:07:25The performance of "Lieder", or "art song", alongside operatic arias
0:07:25 > 0:07:28had been part of the competition since it started, but a performance
0:07:28 > 0:07:33by Finland's Soile Isokoski helped convince the organisers that
0:07:33 > 0:07:37a separate Lieder prize should be awarded at the next competition.
0:07:39 > 0:07:42What couldn't have been predicted was the drama
0:07:42 > 0:07:45that would unfold during the 1989 Final.
0:07:47 > 0:07:50Local boy Bryn Terfel was up against unknown Russian
0:07:50 > 0:07:55Dmitri Hvorostovsky in what became a battle between two baritones.
0:07:55 > 0:08:00Everyone talks about Dmitri Hvorostovsky and Bryn Terfel.
0:08:00 > 0:08:01That evening was incredible.
0:08:01 > 0:08:06You had two absolutely outstanding talents.
0:08:06 > 0:08:07I mean, they were so young.
0:08:07 > 0:08:09Those were giant talents.
0:08:09 > 0:08:11It was really a remarkable occasion,
0:08:11 > 0:08:14and I felt it was a moment of history.
0:08:17 > 0:08:21APPLAUSE I'm sitting with Elisabeth Soderstrom,
0:08:21 > 0:08:24the great Swedish soprano, and on stage
0:08:24 > 0:08:27comes this Russian baritone looking sensational.
0:08:27 > 0:08:30And I look over at Elisabeth, and on her pad of paper,
0:08:30 > 0:08:32she puts an exclamation point as soon as he walks out.
0:08:43 > 0:08:47By the time he'd finished, her page was full of exclamation points.
0:08:47 > 0:08:49This first time of hearing that voice,
0:08:49 > 0:08:52singing a piece which suited him really well,
0:08:52 > 0:08:54was a real thrill.
0:08:54 > 0:08:56MUSIC: "Eri tu che macchiavi" by Verdi
0:08:58 > 0:09:01The way Dmitri handled the Verdi
0:09:01 > 0:09:03was masterly for a young boy.
0:09:03 > 0:09:05I mean, quite unbelievable.
0:09:07 > 0:09:11What Hvorostovsky had and still has
0:09:11 > 0:09:17is that wonderful velvety Russian sound
0:09:17 > 0:09:20that can spin long lines in Verdi
0:09:20 > 0:09:23and give the sort of dark brooding quality to Tchaikovsky.
0:09:23 > 0:09:29Dmitri had incredible star quality, which he still has, but so did Bryn.
0:09:34 > 0:09:38He was brimming with talent in a most extraordinary way.
0:09:38 > 0:09:40It wasn't as refined quite yet.
0:09:41 > 0:09:45He has the hard to quantify but easy to recognise
0:09:45 > 0:09:48qualities of a superstar singer.
0:09:48 > 0:09:51He has extraordinary dramatic intensity,
0:09:51 > 0:09:54theatrical charisma, he makes audiences love him.
0:09:54 > 0:09:58And he had that from the first day, I imagine, that he opened his mouth.
0:10:07 > 0:10:09The thing that always amazes me
0:10:09 > 0:10:14about Bryn is the focus on the delivery of the text.
0:10:14 > 0:10:18The way that he performs the meaning of every single phrase that
0:10:18 > 0:10:23he sings with extraordinary intensity and nuance.
0:10:23 > 0:10:27When you hear Bryn singing Wagner, particularly, and you get
0:10:27 > 0:10:29the intensity of delivery,
0:10:29 > 0:10:32you realise what a precious thing that is.
0:10:35 > 0:10:40I think I gave Dmitri a 9.85 and Bryn a 9.8.
0:10:40 > 0:10:43It was so close that it was a hair.
0:10:45 > 0:10:49The winner is Dmitri Hvorostovsky.
0:10:49 > 0:10:52APPLAUSE
0:10:52 > 0:10:54Bryn may have been pipped at the post by Dmitri,
0:10:54 > 0:10:58but it was a battle that has become part of Cardiff Singer folklore.
0:11:03 > 0:11:06To have those two baritones competing in '89
0:11:06 > 0:11:10was sure to put Cardiff Singer on the map.
0:11:12 > 0:11:161989 was a remarkable year for Cardiff Singer, Dmitri taking
0:11:16 > 0:11:19the main prize and Bryn establishing the credentials of
0:11:19 > 0:11:22the Lieder Prize in its first year.
0:11:22 > 0:11:26It's continued as a highly valued part of Cardiff Singer ever since.
0:11:30 > 0:11:34It's a much more refined atmosphere of making music when
0:11:34 > 0:11:39you have the intimacy of a piano and just the singer standing there.
0:11:39 > 0:11:41There's nowhere to hide.
0:11:43 > 0:11:47It gives a different aspect of the singer's art, really.
0:11:47 > 0:11:50It's the same voice, but it's a different approach.
0:11:50 > 0:11:53# Heart
0:11:53 > 0:12:02# We will forget him... #
0:12:02 > 0:12:05Song needs a different sort of communication.
0:12:05 > 0:12:08You have a different interaction working with piano than with
0:12:08 > 0:12:11full orchestra and that is a very intimate relationship.
0:12:11 > 0:12:16# Ah-oh... #
0:12:16 > 0:12:19You've no costumes, you've no set to hide behind.
0:12:19 > 0:12:22It's all you, it's the words, it's the text.
0:12:28 > 0:12:32It's a different animal. You can be a lot more subtle with it.
0:12:32 > 0:12:34You can add a lot more colours
0:12:34 > 0:12:37because you're not singing over a full orchestration.
0:12:37 > 0:12:40The world of arias tends to be exploring emotional extremes -
0:12:40 > 0:12:43I'm so terribly happy, I'm so terribly sad.
0:12:43 > 0:12:46My lover has just died, I'm about to die.
0:12:46 > 0:12:50Song is often about less extreme things than that.
0:12:50 > 0:12:52SHE SINGS
0:12:57 > 0:12:58It's a part of me.
0:12:58 > 0:13:02I'm doing both concerts and recitals and opera,
0:13:02 > 0:13:06so it's natural to do both.
0:13:06 > 0:13:13I think it's fantastic that Cardiff Singer has this separate song prize.
0:13:13 > 0:13:18An opera singer should study and sing a song repertory
0:13:18 > 0:13:22because the attention to musical nuance
0:13:22 > 0:13:26and colouring that you need to work on in miniature in a song
0:13:26 > 0:13:32is what also helps make special a performance in opera.
0:13:34 > 0:13:37Song repertoire presents very specific challenges
0:13:37 > 0:13:39for the singer and in some instances it puts
0:13:39 > 0:13:42the accompanist under enormous pressure too.
0:13:42 > 0:13:44Ingrid Surgenor played for me and that was wonderful.
0:13:44 > 0:13:48This was the first time we had done something major together
0:13:48 > 0:13:49and then, of course,
0:13:49 > 0:13:53what did I do but say I was going to be singing Schubert's Erlkonig,
0:13:53 > 0:13:56which is a graveyard for many, many accompanists.
0:13:59 > 0:14:03It's a difficult piece, it's like running a marathon.
0:14:03 > 0:14:06You've got to do a lot of warming up beforehand.
0:14:06 > 0:14:09It doesn't just happen just like that. It's really complicated.
0:14:12 > 0:14:15Their performance must have impressed the jury that year
0:14:15 > 0:14:19as Neal walked away with 1991's Lieder Prize title.
0:14:21 > 0:14:24The main prize that year went to Australian Lisa Gasteen,
0:14:24 > 0:14:28who went on to become one of opera's great Wagnerian sopranos.
0:14:30 > 0:14:32The Brits have never done specially well in winning
0:14:32 > 0:14:37the main prize at Cardiff, but have been dazzling in the song prize,
0:14:37 > 0:14:39where they are second to none.
0:14:39 > 0:14:43We had, famously, Bryn, but also from Wales, Neal Davies.
0:14:43 > 0:14:47Chris Maltman representing the baritones of England. Andrew Kennedy.
0:14:47 > 0:14:48Elizabeth Watts is a soprano.
0:14:48 > 0:14:51Then I think we can count as an honorary Brit Ailish Tynan,
0:14:51 > 0:14:55representing Ireland, but I think we have to include her in this.
0:14:55 > 0:14:57Very popular choice indeed.
0:15:04 > 0:15:08In a move to improve the overall standard of the competition,
0:15:08 > 0:15:121993 saw the introduction of worldwide auditions.
0:15:12 > 0:15:14No longer would singers be selected for Cardiff
0:15:14 > 0:15:16by their country's broadcaster.
0:15:16 > 0:15:20It would also be the first year that the competition would be
0:15:20 > 0:15:23won by a singer that didn't win their round.
0:15:23 > 0:15:28Inger Dam-Jensen. APPLAUSE
0:15:28 > 0:15:31I was really, really surprised and I'm sure everybody could
0:15:31 > 0:15:35look at me and see that it was how I felt at that time.
0:15:36 > 0:15:40- Listen to that crowd! - She was absolutely fantastic.
0:15:40 > 0:15:45- You have to hand it to her. - I was in a kind of shock afterwards.
0:15:45 > 0:15:48Winning that competition changed my life, I would say,
0:15:48 > 0:15:50and it changed my career.
0:15:50 > 0:15:54I had to make some choices which way I wanted to go.
0:15:55 > 0:15:59Ten years after Inger's win, Finnish baritone Tommi Hakala,
0:15:59 > 0:16:02also not a winner of his round, took the main prize.
0:16:09 > 0:16:12The next couple of months were like crazy, actually.
0:16:12 > 0:16:17I don't think I have ever given that much interviews in my life.
0:16:17 > 0:16:24This news that I won that competition was brought in everywhere here
0:16:24 > 0:16:28and then came invitations to auditions. The next two,
0:16:28 > 0:16:30three years were quite fast, full-booked.
0:16:32 > 0:16:34Both singers returned home to take lead roles
0:16:34 > 0:16:37at their national opera houses.
0:16:37 > 0:16:40There are two different ways of running operas -
0:16:40 > 0:16:43buying all the soloists for that production
0:16:43 > 0:16:46and then the other soloists for the next and so on.
0:16:46 > 0:16:51Or then there are these houses where they have a fixed ensemble,
0:16:51 > 0:16:56so that means you have every kind of voices in the house regularly, monthly paid.
0:16:57 > 0:16:59This is my fifth season
0:16:59 > 0:17:01here in the ensemble of the Finnish National Opera.
0:17:01 > 0:17:06One of the reasons were that I could extend my repertoire a little bit,
0:17:06 > 0:17:13getting the shorter, but heavy Wagner roles and more heavy Verdi stuff.
0:17:13 > 0:17:15It's been very good experience.
0:17:19 > 0:17:22After her win in Cardiff, Inger Dam-Jensen returned to Copenhagen
0:17:22 > 0:17:25to develop her career with the Royal Danish Opera.
0:17:28 > 0:17:34I was really lucky to get all the roles which were perfect for me
0:17:34 > 0:17:36to begin my career.
0:17:37 > 0:17:41I have a contract with the Danish National Opera.
0:17:41 > 0:17:42It's 15 performances,
0:17:42 > 0:17:46which means about two or three productions a year.
0:17:47 > 0:17:49In her time in Denmark, Inger has taken on a long list
0:17:49 > 0:17:53of operatic roles and has also become a sought-after
0:17:53 > 0:17:56performer on concert stages around the world.
0:17:57 > 0:18:00I love concerts and I do that as much as I can.
0:18:00 > 0:18:04It's shorter periods and I can be with my children here,
0:18:04 > 0:18:06so that's a good combination for me.
0:18:08 > 0:18:10Both Inger and Tommi continue to perform
0:18:10 > 0:18:13both in their home countries and internationally.
0:18:22 > 0:18:25The success of Nordic singers in Cardiff continued in 1995
0:18:25 > 0:18:28when Sweden's Katarina Karneus won over the jury
0:18:28 > 0:18:31and the St David's Hall audience.
0:18:34 > 0:18:36The prize went further afield in '97.
0:18:39 > 0:18:43With China becoming a hothouse for operatic talent,
0:18:43 > 0:18:48it was no surprise when Guang Yang became their first Cardiff Singer winner.
0:18:49 > 0:18:541999 saw the title back in European hands, the prize going to
0:18:54 > 0:18:56German soprano Anja Harteros -
0:18:56 > 0:18:58now one of the world's biggest stars.
0:19:07 > 0:19:092001 was another year for firsts.
0:19:09 > 0:19:12Romania's Marius Brenciu became the first winner
0:19:12 > 0:19:15of both the main prize and the song prize
0:19:15 > 0:19:18and also the first tenor to lift the trophy.
0:19:27 > 0:19:31The 20th anniversary of the competition, in 2003,
0:19:31 > 0:19:33was marked by some major changes.
0:19:33 > 0:19:36The Lieder Prize was renamed the Song Prize,
0:19:36 > 0:19:39and established as an event in its own right.
0:19:39 > 0:19:42Then there was a new audience prize, offering those at home
0:19:42 > 0:19:45and in the hall a chance to pick their favourite from the week.
0:19:47 > 0:19:51Chilean soprano Angela Marambio took home the inaugural award.
0:19:54 > 0:19:58And long-serving jury member Dame Joan Sutherland was honoured
0:19:58 > 0:20:02with a new title, that of the competition's first patron.
0:20:02 > 0:20:06A role she would continue in until her death in 2010.
0:20:14 > 0:20:192005 saw Nicole Cabell wow the jury to become
0:20:19 > 0:20:22only the second American to claim the Cardiff Singer title.
0:20:28 > 0:20:31BBC Cardiff Singer of the World really launched my career.
0:20:31 > 0:20:35Right afterwards, it was just a tidal wave of attention and media,
0:20:35 > 0:20:39and roles being offered, both appropriate and inappropriate!
0:20:45 > 0:20:47The pressures that came after the competition
0:20:47 > 0:20:50were probably the most difficult psychologically.
0:20:50 > 0:20:54It was not only a choice between what roles do I sing,
0:20:54 > 0:20:55but how often do I sing?
0:20:55 > 0:21:00Joan Sutherland gave me the advice, "Don't do too much, too soon."
0:21:00 > 0:21:03But every once in awhile I did just a little bit too much.
0:21:03 > 0:21:07It got to me, I needed more time for vacation, for rest.
0:21:07 > 0:21:10And ultimately, for preparation.
0:21:10 > 0:21:12And this is what kills us young singers, right?
0:21:12 > 0:21:16We need time to really put a role in our voice.
0:21:20 > 0:21:24Nicole has graced the stages of many of the world's leading opera houses,
0:21:24 > 0:21:28including her debut in 2008 at New York's Metropolitan Opera,
0:21:28 > 0:21:31the holy grail for all American opera singers.
0:21:33 > 0:21:38Singing at the Metropolitan Opera, a huge check off of my bucket list!
0:21:38 > 0:21:41You know, I can always tell my grandchildren,
0:21:41 > 0:21:44if I retire tomorrow, that I've sung at the Met.
0:21:44 > 0:21:46More than once! SHE LAUGHS
0:21:56 > 0:21:58It's very important for the Met to have a good relationship
0:21:58 > 0:22:00with the Cardiff competition.
0:22:00 > 0:22:02We want new talent, we want to discover new talent,
0:22:02 > 0:22:04we want other people to discover new talent
0:22:04 > 0:22:06and then seize upon their discovery.
0:22:06 > 0:22:10There are very few stars who have the superstar quality
0:22:10 > 0:22:12that really makes audiences want to buy tickets
0:22:12 > 0:22:14to go to an opera performance,
0:22:14 > 0:22:17and we need singers who have that star power.
0:22:19 > 0:22:21The next Cardiff Singer winner to show his star power
0:22:21 > 0:22:24and eventually find his way onto the Met stage
0:22:24 > 0:22:27was Chinese bass baritone Shenyang.
0:22:36 > 0:22:39'As a stage animal, he was unready.
0:22:39 > 0:22:43'You don't immediately see him walking on stage
0:22:43 > 0:22:45'and singing the great roles.'
0:22:45 > 0:22:49But he was very much to my mind a worthy young winner,
0:22:49 > 0:22:55in that this bass should come up with such a mature sound.
0:23:03 > 0:23:07Soon after his victory in Cardiff, Shenyang was invited to New York
0:23:07 > 0:23:12to attend both the Juilliard School and the Met's young artist program.
0:23:12 > 0:23:14He did have a lot of filling in to do
0:23:14 > 0:23:18in terms of languages, repertoire work, dramatic work.
0:23:18 > 0:23:20That was all quite new to him.
0:23:20 > 0:23:24Certain vocal categories like coloratura sopranos,
0:23:24 > 0:23:26lyric mezzos, they can really get ready quite early.
0:23:26 > 0:23:30In Shenyang's case, since he's a bass, he was in his early 20s,
0:23:30 > 0:23:33it's almost impossible to really cast a bass in those years.
0:23:33 > 0:23:36So the fact that we could put him on stage in major roles here,
0:23:36 > 0:23:38that was a terrific training ground for him,
0:23:38 > 0:23:40where he could really grow, and develop safely
0:23:40 > 0:23:42and not have the pressure of having to get out
0:23:42 > 0:23:44and make a living in those years.
0:23:44 > 0:23:47In fact, by the time that training was over,
0:23:47 > 0:23:49only about his second year out of Cardiff,
0:23:49 > 0:23:51he was singing Masetto on the Met stage.
0:23:57 > 0:24:01If Shenyang's victory in 2007 was all about raw talent
0:24:01 > 0:24:04and potential, 2009's winning performance showed that
0:24:04 > 0:24:08Ekaterina Scherbachenko was fully formed and ready to go.
0:24:10 > 0:24:13At 32, she'd already performed several major roles
0:24:13 > 0:24:14in her native Russia.
0:24:14 > 0:24:17Her win in Cardiff helped launch her onto the international stage,
0:24:17 > 0:24:20with performances at the Met, London's Royal Opera House
0:24:20 > 0:24:22and La Scala, Milan.
0:24:26 > 0:24:30In 2011, the competition's new patron, Dame Kiri Te Kanawa,
0:24:30 > 0:24:34was on the jury to witness 24-year-old Moldovan soprano
0:24:34 > 0:24:37Valentina Nafornita's winning performance.
0:24:46 > 0:24:49'Professionally, I was really at the beginning.'
0:24:49 > 0:24:55It's quite a big deal to sing in front of these personalities.
0:24:55 > 0:24:59They are huge names. It was challenging, of course, for me.
0:24:59 > 0:25:04I really gave everything that I had at that moment.
0:25:08 > 0:25:12Valentina won both the audience prize and the main prize,
0:25:12 > 0:25:15becoming the youngest winner in the competition's history.
0:25:16 > 0:25:22My father and my mother, they never felt that joy that they felt then.
0:25:22 > 0:25:26I mean, my sister was calling me, and she was asking me,
0:25:26 > 0:25:29"What, you are the Singer of the World now? You are?
0:25:29 > 0:25:31"Oh, God, I cannot believe it!"
0:25:31 > 0:25:34I mean, for them, of course, this was the most excited moment.
0:25:38 > 0:25:40Valentina would start her career
0:25:40 > 0:25:43at one of the world's most important opera houses -
0:25:43 > 0:25:45the Vienna State Opera.
0:25:47 > 0:25:50It's an amazing opera house, and for me, like a beginner,
0:25:50 > 0:25:55it's a fantastic opportunity to be here and perform on the stage.
0:25:56 > 0:26:00We have really the who's-who of the big names of the opera world.
0:26:00 > 0:26:03We perform 50 different operas every year,
0:26:03 > 0:26:05and it gives many opportunities
0:26:05 > 0:26:09for the young singers to show what they're able to do.
0:26:15 > 0:26:18When somebody like Valentina wins a very important competition,
0:26:18 > 0:26:21everyone wants her to sing main roles.
0:26:21 > 0:26:22And of course, she was too young.
0:26:22 > 0:26:26And here, we can spend time just to help them to grow up.
0:26:28 > 0:26:30'This year, I sang Marzelline from Fidelio.
0:26:30 > 0:26:34'I sang Musetta from La Boheme, beautiful.'
0:26:34 > 0:26:41Also I had a very great opportunity to sing at the Vienna Ball.
0:26:49 > 0:26:52It's live transmitted to four million people,
0:26:52 > 0:26:55watching that programme, in Austria, Germany and Switzerland.
0:26:55 > 0:26:58For her it was a great opportunity to be more well known.
0:27:01 > 0:27:05I want to learn, many, many parts that are really for my voice,
0:27:05 > 0:27:08for my age now, and to really sing it and enjoy it now, you know?
0:27:08 > 0:27:13I really want to go with this kind of repertoire and after, we will see.
0:27:13 > 0:27:16So I am very happy, very happy.
0:27:16 > 0:27:20The search for a singer to follow in Valentina's footsteps
0:27:20 > 0:27:24as the next BBC Cardiff Singer of the World started last year.
0:27:26 > 0:27:29More than 420 entrants submitted DVDs.
0:27:29 > 0:27:32As a result, 52 singers were shortlisted.
0:27:32 > 0:27:35They were auditioned at nine locations around the world.
0:27:37 > 0:27:41These are singers who are already well on their way
0:27:41 > 0:27:44to being good, professional singers.
0:27:44 > 0:27:46They're people who are already working,
0:27:46 > 0:27:48they've come out of young artist programmes.
0:27:48 > 0:27:50They're really on the cusp.
0:27:53 > 0:27:55We've had a lot of spine-tingling moments.
0:27:55 > 0:27:57There are ones as soon as they open their mouth,
0:27:57 > 0:27:59you know there's something very special there.
0:27:59 > 0:28:01And it is quite thrilling.
0:28:06 > 0:28:10What they're doing is trying to advance their careers enormously
0:28:10 > 0:28:12by getting that fantastic global moment.
0:28:16 > 0:28:19Cardiff is the glittering prize.
0:28:19 > 0:28:22It's the one that gives you that incredible push forward.
0:28:26 > 0:28:29A competition like Cardiff, that is widely recognised,
0:28:29 > 0:28:34it's played a very valuable role in the operatic landscape.
0:28:34 > 0:28:36Cardiff Singer is like being handed
0:28:36 > 0:28:40the best possible catalogue of available talent.
0:28:41 > 0:28:44Over 30 years, Cardiff has shown that there is no limit
0:28:44 > 0:28:47to the range of vocal talent.
0:28:47 > 0:28:50That wonderful singers come from each corner of the globe.
0:28:51 > 0:28:54This year, we've got somebody from Egypt for the first time.
0:28:54 > 0:28:57People from the Far East, the Koreans, the Chinese.
0:28:57 > 0:29:00It's really a very big canvas.
0:29:00 > 0:29:03This competition has gone on really from strength to strength,
0:29:03 > 0:29:06and it will always be a magnet for people
0:29:06 > 0:29:09who are looking for the future generation of star singers.
0:29:24 > 0:29:27Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd