:00:06. > :00:09.orchestra, no conductor, just a singer and piano. Pure and simple.
:00:09. > :00:12.We'll be bringing you all the highlights of tonight's special
:00:12. > :00:15.competition. And last night the hall was buzzing as we got the
:00:15. > :00:19.announcement of who's made it through to Sunday's final. We'll
:00:19. > :00:29.give you a chance to hear them all. Which one has the star quality to be
:00:29. > :01:01.
:01:02. > :01:05.crowned BBC Cardiff Singer of the for our last programme of the week.
:01:05. > :01:10.Through there in the main hall the final of the Song Prize is just
:01:10. > :01:13.reaching its climax. We're being treated to a wonderful concert
:01:13. > :01:16.tonight. The Song Prize is a very delicate and intimate art form - the
:01:16. > :01:24.singers perform accompanied only by the piano, without the backing of an
:01:24. > :01:31.orchestra. Joining us, Welsh baritone Neal Davies, who won the
:01:31. > :01:35.Song Prize here in 1991. And soprano Catrin Wyn-Davies, who's been
:01:35. > :01:43.enjoying the concerts here throughout the week. Neal, what did
:01:43. > :01:47.winning this prize mean to you? Effectively, it launched my career.
:01:47. > :01:53.I came, having been a student, and I left and became a professional
:01:53. > :01:57.singer. Quite a beginning to a career. Catrin, you've been to all
:01:58. > :02:02.the Song Prize rounds. Are we in for a high standard? A very high
:02:02. > :02:05.standard. It will be a difficult choice tonight. How exciting. We'll
:02:05. > :02:08.bring you highlights of all tonight's singers and we hope to
:02:08. > :02:11.bring you the winner later in the programme. But first let's look
:02:11. > :02:14.ahead to what promises to be a great final on Sunday night. We all have
:02:14. > :02:18.our own favourites but it's the judges' decision that counts. So
:02:18. > :02:23.what are the qualities that make an opera star? Who better to ask than
:02:23. > :02:31.jury member and patron of the competition Dame Kiri Te Kanawa!
:02:31. > :02:36.Welcome back to Cardiff. Do you think we have found a new
:02:36. > :02:41.international opera star? I think we will. Device, the presentation, the
:02:41. > :02:45.frock, you consider the whole package or is it just the voice?
:02:45. > :02:52.whole package. If there is an amazing voice, you cannot go past
:02:52. > :02:56.that, or an interpretation that is mind-boggling, the audience does not
:02:56. > :03:01.even attempt to breathe. That is what you need to look for, that
:03:01. > :03:05.magic bit of dust going over the performance. As a Welshman, I look
:03:05. > :03:10.forward to this competition so much, and I relieve hope there will be a
:03:10. > :03:13.sizzling final. Are you looking forward to it? Very much. I know it
:03:13. > :03:18.will be a great evening because I have been looking forward to it for
:03:18. > :03:22.two years. I hope so. Thank you for joining us. A fantastic final in
:03:22. > :03:25.prospect, but who has that extra something to wow the judges? We
:03:25. > :03:33.asked tenor Wynne Evans to cast his expert eye on the five singers
:03:33. > :03:41.who've made it through. Last night, I could only manage forenames on my
:03:41. > :03:47.list. I could not decide who might fifth person should be. In my
:03:47. > :03:56.opinion, this man's voice is a bit Robert shows real potential of
:03:56. > :03:59.becoming something special. He is one of the younger singers in the
:03:59. > :04:04.competition, and has chosen some very challenging repertoire for the
:04:04. > :04:09.final. If he can recreate some more of those magical moments from round
:04:09. > :04:19.one, opera companies around the world will be calling him on Monday
:04:19. > :04:37.
:04:37. > :04:41.place for the Italian contestant. What does not always come across is
:04:41. > :04:49.the size of the singer's voice, and she filled the place with her
:04:49. > :04:53.exciting voice, and had me pinned to my seat. On Sunday night she will
:04:53. > :04:59.need to find a greater dynamic range in order to perform the more varied
:04:59. > :05:04.programme she has chosen. One thing is for certain, she is not short on
:05:04. > :05:13.expression or experience, having performed roles at one of the most
:05:13. > :05:23.famous opera houses in the world, last gal, in Milan. -- La Scala.
:05:23. > :05:24.
:05:24. > :05:29.Next into the final, the Argentina in -- Argentinian singer. At 31, she
:05:29. > :05:39.already has a wealth of experience which shows as soon as she steps
:05:39. > :05:54.
:05:54. > :05:58.audience particularly well. -- Daniela. She is not afraid to give
:05:59. > :06:08.the drama Centre stage, even if it is sometimes ahead of her vocal
:06:09. > :06:21.
:06:21. > :06:31.technique. That makes her an she possesses a rich and warm voice
:06:31. > :06:41.
:06:41. > :06:46.which is totally even throughout her jovial. Will her ability to keep
:06:46. > :06:50.calm at all times give her that extra edge to come out on top on
:06:50. > :06:55.Sunday night? Mezzo sopranos sometimes struggle at the top of the
:06:55. > :07:03.range, but she was hitting notes that some of the Sopranos in this
:07:03. > :07:13.competition would have died for. The last singer through to Sunday
:07:13. > :07:17.night's final is a Ukrainian. She has been an instant hit with the
:07:17. > :07:27.audiences in Cardiff, and with a voice that seems to do anything she
:07:27. > :07:45.
:07:45. > :07:48.asks of it. She had me melting in my of audience favourites, and if she
:07:48. > :07:58.can replicate the performance she gave earlier this week, we are in
:07:58. > :08:20.
:08:20. > :08:23.of steel to keep your composure singing in the final. I would not be
:08:23. > :08:29.standing in the middle of this stage on Sunday night for all the money in
:08:29. > :08:34.the world. Who will win? We will have to wait and see. I will be very
:08:34. > :08:39.happy to be sat in that audience, watching what promises to be a
:08:39. > :08:44.fantastic final. You can guarantee there will be some fantastic singing
:08:44. > :08:47.and you can watch the whole final in full on BBC Four from 7:30 p.m. On
:08:48. > :08:51.Sunday night. But there's also an award that you can vote for. It's
:08:51. > :08:53.the Dame Joan Sutherland Audience Prize and it doesn't have to go to
:08:54. > :08:56.one of the finalists. You can vote for your personal favourite
:08:57. > :09:00.throughout the week. If you need a reminder, performances from all 20
:09:00. > :09:10.singers are available for you to enjoy again on iPlayer and at the
:09:10. > :09:12.you can vote, together with full terms and conditions. Now on to
:09:12. > :09:22.tonight's Song Prize competition. First on stage tonight, soprano
:09:22. > :09:22.
:09:22. > :11:03.Apology for the loss of subtitles for 100 seconds
:11:03. > :11:07.Neal, how did she perform? She is one of these singers who instantly
:11:07. > :11:11.draws you into her singing. She started the programme are
:11:11. > :11:16.beautiful, soft song. Instantly we were with her. That wonderful
:11:16. > :11:22.contrast at the end, how wonderful to hear a Hungarian singer singing
:11:22. > :11:24.in her native language. They are not songs we hear very often, and I
:11:24. > :11:31.think she is an enchanting performer. She has got absolutely
:11:31. > :11:37.everything. She is one of the youngest singers, do you think she
:11:37. > :11:44.is the finished article? Not yet. If she could can her eyes down, it has
:11:44. > :11:50.been said before. -- calm. I absolutely adore this singer, I
:11:50. > :11:54.adored her when she opened her mouth. What a package. If Dame Kiri
:11:54. > :11:59.Te Kanawa was talking about a package, that is it. Audrey Hepburn
:11:59. > :12:09.with a beautiful voice. I thought she was brilliant. Next on stage
:12:09. > :12:09.
:12:09. > :13:23.Apology for the loss of subtitles for 100 seconds
:13:23. > :13:33.tonight, tenor Yuri Gorodetski from did Yuri Gorodetski impress you
:13:33. > :13:36.
:13:36. > :13:40.tonight? He is a mesmerising performer. He focuses the
:13:41. > :13:44.concentration from the moment the song begins until the end. Some
:13:44. > :13:51.songs were not quite there tonight that he has huge charisma,
:13:51. > :13:59.intelligence, musicality, and I find him enthralling. What did you make
:13:59. > :14:09.of him? I found him slightly on the melancholic side. I would have liked
:14:09. > :14:14.
:14:14. > :14:19.to have seen more of his young happy side. Even some of the Strauss songs
:14:19. > :14:26.and veered into getting rather slow. They did not have the underlying
:14:26. > :14:31.energy underneath that they need to bring them off. His first round was
:14:31. > :14:39.full of what was lacking tonight. I was in floods of tears. I was
:14:39. > :14:46.laughing, crying, smiling. Interesting, because the other night
:14:46. > :14:50.in the open prize he seems to miss those big note is on the night.
:14:50. > :14:57.did the same thing today as well. He has a wonderful soft quality in the
:14:57. > :15:06.top of the voice. Sometimes when he really goes for. Notes it loses some
:15:06. > :15:16.of the beauty. Our next singer is also one of the finalists. She is
:15:16. > :15:16.
:15:16. > :16:59.Apology for the loss of subtitles for 100 seconds
:16:59. > :17:09.class act. Do you agree? For me this is the standout voice of the whole
:17:09. > :17:11.
:17:11. > :17:18.competition. It is an extraordinary, burnished sound. It
:17:19. > :17:25.is such an exciting noise to hear. Why is everyone talking about Jamie
:17:25. > :17:34.Barton? She has a fabulous voice. She really came to life in the
:17:34. > :17:42.Rachmaninov. Can she get more? When she reaches those top notes they are
:17:42. > :17:48.just fantastic. Really exciting singer. I watched in rehearsal today
:17:48. > :17:58.and it seemed to pour out of her. It's just pours out of her. It is
:17:58. > :18:00.
:18:00. > :18:03.honest. You were saying about how she prepares in rehearsals. It is
:18:03. > :18:12.about making sure that you are going to become portable for the 18
:18:12. > :18:18.minutes that you stand there. have so much to think about. Not
:18:18. > :18:23.only the Song Prize, but also the main prize on Sunday. She is a
:18:23. > :18:28.lovely person as well. She is just normal. That comes over in her
:18:28. > :18:33.singing. There is a directness about her singing. She is one of those
:18:33. > :18:38.singers who draws you into her performance. Even when she is really
:18:38. > :18:45.going for it with those big-raisers, you never feel as if you are being
:18:45. > :18:52.just assaulted by a big sound. It is a generous, giving voice. And all
:18:52. > :18:58.the time you want more. Next a singer who perhaps did not do
:18:58. > :19:08.himself justice in the name last night. Ben Johnson. C if you can
:19:08. > :19:08.
:19:08. > :20:33.Apology for the loss of subtitles for 100 seconds
:20:33. > :20:43.# Because I don't suffer now I must # Forlorn yet the unit -- yet the
:20:43. > :20:56.
:20:56. > :21:01.imminent, grief has been the effect Song Prize final. You can see more
:21:01. > :21:06.of it tomorrow night on BBC Four. That was ten Ben Johnson from
:21:06. > :21:09.England. He is a lovely singer. The deeper format is best tonight?
:21:09. > :21:19.is clear from the performances that he has an established partnership
:21:19. > :21:26.
:21:26. > :21:36.with the youngest. -- with the piano player. He chose an intelligent and
:21:36. > :21:39.
:21:39. > :21:43.well thought out programme. A top-class programme. It must be very
:21:43. > :21:46.difficult. Last night he had not the best night on stage and to come back
:21:46. > :21:52.tonight and give a performance in the Song Prize final, how did he
:21:52. > :21:58.find that? If you are a professional you do it. He has Habitat week. He
:21:58. > :22:05.has rehearsed on Monday. He performed on Tuesday. Healy Hurst on
:22:05. > :22:08.Wednesday. He sang last night. He has been practising this afternoon
:22:08. > :22:14.and sang tonight. Sometimes you have to do that as a singer. I think he
:22:14. > :22:24.is a fabulous artist. Taking it in his stride. I must say tonight is
:22:24. > :22:24.
:22:24. > :23:58.Apology for the loss of subtitles for 100 seconds
:23:58. > :24:06.also through to the grand final. It glorious voice. She has got it all.
:24:06. > :24:11.She is ravishing. She looks great. She has got a fantastic technique
:24:11. > :24:21.and she uses her voice beautifully. The colours she brings leaves me
:24:21. > :24:24.
:24:24. > :24:29.speechless. She is a very special artist. How important is it to be
:24:29. > :24:34.the whole package in this competition? In the opera
:24:34. > :24:41.competition it is more important than in the song competition. It
:24:41. > :24:50.will not do her any harm that she looked as beautiful as she does. I
:24:50. > :25:00.can see the record producers lining up to get her face on the front of
:25:00. > :25:02.
:25:02. > :25:11.CDs. It is the complete package. There is the dichotomy between the
:25:11. > :25:16.little person and the big voice. uses it with such sensitivity. She
:25:16. > :25:24.knows when she had to open out. She is one of those singers that draws
:25:24. > :25:33.you into this very intimate world. Who do you think deserves to win the
:25:33. > :25:43.Song Prize final? It will be between the Ukrainian soprano and Jenny
:25:43. > :25:57.
:25:57. > :26:03.Barton of the US. Can you decide?I would choose Jamie Barton. I agree.
:26:03. > :26:13.I cannot decide. If I go with my heart it is Olena Tokar. I love
:26:13. > :26:15.
:26:15. > :26:21.Jamie Barton. If you were a judge who would you choose? For me it is
:26:21. > :26:31.Jamie Barton, but it does not matter about us. But we can go to Nicholas
:26:31. > :26:49.
:26:49. > :26:54.Payne on the cheer of the judges. And very elated Jamie Barton. That
:26:54. > :27:02.was not Nicholas Payne announcing the winner, that was Dame Kiri Te
:27:02. > :27:07.Kanawa. A fantastic performance from Jamie Barton.
:27:07. > :27:14.What is your reaction to that? thrilled because I thought she
:27:14. > :27:24.should win. That is the standout voice for me in the competition. If
:27:24. > :27:25.
:27:25. > :27:33.she sings well on Sunday she could scoop the double. I knew please?
:27:33. > :27:42.Yes, very pleased. That is it for tonight. We have had a brilliant
:27:42. > :27:46.time. We hope you have too. Banks to our guests. -- thanks to our guests.
:27:46. > :27:53.You can still have your say in the audience prize. Details are on our
:27:53. > :27:57.website. You can see the final in its entirety on Sunday night. I