The stage is set as 20 of the best young classical singers from around the globe gather in the Welsh capital, each hoping to take away the most coveted prize in opera: the title of BBC Cardiff Singer of the World 2019.

Josie d’Arby and Elin Manahan Thomas present this half-hour preview of the contest ahead of the opening round. They guide us through the events of the week to come - from the main competition to the Song Prize - and are joined by a host of famous faces from the music world, including competition patron Dame Kiri Te Kanawa and opera legends Renée Fleming and Bryn Terfel.

We meet some of the rising opera stars vying to win the coveted Cardiff Singer crown as well as the judges revealing what they will be looking for when they pick their champion. And we speak to previous winners about how the world-famous competition launched their careers, including Catriona Morison from Scotland who two years ago took both the Song Prize and Main Prize titles.

And 30 years since the famous ‘Battle of the Baritones’, leading figures from the opera world pay tribute to the late Dmitri Hvorostovsky, winner of the competition in 1989 and who passed away in 2017. Show less