side, a little bit cooler than last night across the northern half of the uk particularly. but temperatures still above where we'd expect them to be. and then tomorrow morning, some wet weather clearing eastwards, then some sunshine, and then we will see more showers or longer spells of rain racing in from the west through the day. it will be quite windy, not quite as windy as today in the far northwest and a little cooler, too, highs of nine to 13. hello, this is bbc news, the headlines. "a crusader for freedom and equality" — a tribute to desmond tutu from south africa's president. the archbishop's daughter — the reverend nontombi naomi tutu — also spoke at his funeral: we say thank you, daddy. for the many ways you showed us love, for the many times you challenged us, for the many times you comforted us. leading uk figures in the battle against covid receive new year honours. professors chris whitty and jonathan van tam are knighted. drjenny harries and drjune raine are both made dames. how do i look? fabulous. absolutely fabulous for joanna lumley who is made a dame... whilst the outgoing james bond — daniel craig — is made a cmg. in sport, husband and wife jason and laura kenny are made a knight and a dame for services to cycling. further covid restrictions in england must be an "absolute last resort", according to health secretary, sajid javid. official celebrations were either muted or cancelled...but there were still fireworks to welcome in 2022, on the warmest new year's eve on record in the uk. now on bbc news...it�*s time for take me to the opera — with zeinab badawi i've been an opera fan for decades, and i'm on a mission to share my passion and introduce you to some of the big names today and superstars of tomorrow — and ask how they're responding to the changing world of opera. cecilia bartoli, the italian mezzo soprano who originally wanted to be a flamenco dancer, and brings flairand a female perspective. peruvian—born tenor juan diego florez, whose first ambition was to be a pop singer and brings rock—star appeal. two of the leading lights in opera — but how are they helping to define its future? we also meet a couple of rising stars — south african soprano masa bane cecilia rangwa nasha. she says opera needs greater diversity. and french tenor benjamin bernheim, who welcomes the use of technology, alongside the power of live performance. let me take you to the opera. i'm keen to askjuan diego florez and cecelia bartoli, two of the most loved and respected stars in opera today, about how they're trying to ensure that opera harnesses the power of innovation to secure its future. operatic singing. cecelia bartoli is unique in opera. she's a multi—award—winning singer, a music scholar, and the first female artistic director of the famous saltzberg whitsun festival in austria, where she's been performing for 30 years. cecelia's got that mystery quality that only very few singers have of complete charisma. when you see her on stage, you look at her, and it's very hard to look at anyone else. now, when you were a young girl, you wanted to become a flamenco dancer? a little bit! yes! but it was your mother, who herself was a soprano who recognised that you had real vocal talent and she became your voice teacher. what was it like to be taught by your own mother? to study with my mother was hard. my mother, she's definitely my mentor, my teacher. and she was also a guide of what to do and what not to do. i think this is also important. she was quite... i will not say severe. and this is what my mother taught me — study technique. cecelia bartoli's mother was absolutely critical l in the creation of her as an artist. and i think that you need somebody behind you. i and cecelia bartoli has her mother. cecelia has a special ability to bring back to life forgotten operatic gems from the baroque period of the 17th and 18th centuries. because of this, she's known as the queen of baroque. operatic singing. singing continues. cecelia has single—handedly popularised the music of the famous 18th—century italian castrato, farinelli. the castration process involved the removal of a boy's testicles to maintain the purity of his prepubescent voice. the voice of farinelli apparently was incredible. he had incredible range. he had such a flexible voice. at the same time, he was able to to sing very gently, very soft. he had this long breath, you know? and for me, it was fascinating. it as a challenge for women also, to sing, to perform music which was written for a man. the photo on the cover of this bestselling 2020 album depicted julia as a male — and she dedicated it to farinelli. cecelia bartoli is a real female trailblazer. in 2017, she was the first woman to sing solo with the papal choir at the sistine chapel. this was an amazing experience, because to sing in the sistine chapel — i mean, already the acoustic is magnificent, but then, being there, you are so inspired. it was really a unique moment in my life, in my career. in 2012, she took up her post as artistic director at the saltzberg whitsun festival. and in 2023, she will again be the first woman in that post at monte carlo opera. as artistic director, cecelia sees how technology rushed in to save the day during lnockdowns — making operatic in to save the day during lockdowns — making operatic performances available online for millions to enjoy. we had to start more with using technology and using streaming, for instance. during lockdowns, opera singers had to embrace new ways of performing. the popular peruvian—born tenor, juan diego florez, sang in an empty theatre at the state opera house, in vienna. such concerts were streamed and broadcast. could this become a permanent way of bringing opera to wider audiences? well, singing to the masses isjuan diego's blood. is injuan diego's blood. he first had his heart set on becoming a pop star. his father was a famous folk singer, and his mother ran a life music bar and his mother ran a live music bar in the peruvian capital, lima — wherejuan diego would often perform. i was young, i was a minor. but in the end, i was playing the whole night and making everybody dance until very late. i was singing peruvian music, my own songs. i was singing elvis presley, the beatles, salsa — everybody was dancing. so for me, it was a good school. we speak via video link. juan diego is at home in vienna, and i'm in london. halfway through, he gives me a rendition of "marechiare" — a popular 19th—century italian song. juan diego is a real example of how somebody can fall in love with opera unexpectedly. he became smitten when he joined the conservatory in lima. i got in, and then, i discovered classical music there. and i loved it. i loved what my voice could do. and then, i was asking everybody, "do you think i'm good? do you think i could be a tenor? i like this kind of singing, but i don't know if i'm good enough." after studying there for three years, juan dego left peru for the first time to train in the united states with the full support of his family. my mother was always so supportive. she is a strong woman, so she was, "yeah, you have to go. we'll do whatever it takes." so we sold the family car for $1,000, so i had the money to go to america to have aeroplane fare. juan diego blossomed in america and quickly drew attention from europe. in 1997, still in his early 20s, he visited italy's top opera house, la scala, in milan, and vowed he'd return as a soloist. i was still a student in philadelphia. and i visited la scala as a tourist. and i was there, enjoying the view of this magnificent theatre. and i said to the gods, "i will sing here in ten years." and i was singing there in less than ten months. juan diego florez was a big hit with audiences. and, soon after la scala, he appeared here at the royal opera house, in london. i've been lucky to see him perform here. he is especially popular for his performance in la fille du regiment, by donizetti. his lyric tenor voice, coupled with an impeccable technique, means he is master of the high note. he sings. they used to be called the money notes. - you had to sing those high c's — and if you didn't, the whole - performance was ruined. juan diego's status is one of the world's leading tenors has earned him great admiration. and he comes to the stage at the royal opera house to give masterclasses to aspiring opera stars. this high note is here, yeah? it's not here, it's not here. but it's not here either, it's in the middle. when you give a masterclass and hear different singers, you already know, when you have listened to them, who might become a superstar 01’ an opera singer. and you already know who won't. though he's based in europe, peru and latin america remain close to juan diego's heart. he even dressed in traditional inca costume at the bbc proms in london, and still uses his showmanship as a way to attract new audiences to opera. i think it's very important that more and more people come to the opera. i was singing pop music, i had a close contact with classical music, with opera, and i liked it immediately. and i didn't have a background. and i think, yeah, it's a beautiful art. and if more and more young people come to the theatre and enjoy that, it's a magical world. operatic singing. one opera singer who, likejuan diego florez, believes that opera should broaden its appeal, is the south african soprano, masabane cecilia rangwanasha. after extensive music studies and winning a string of singing competitions, she moved from south africa to europe to further her career. tipped to become a superstar, she says she grew up with no knowledge of opera. applause. i was in love with opera from the beginning, but i actually did not know that it was opera. i just thought it was music. cecilia, as friends and family call her, was born injohannesburg in 1993, and has come a long way in a short time. cecilia is a protege of the royal opera house, where i'm on the board of trustees. and i'm going in to meet herfor the first time. i was singing as a child. my mum said i was a singing baby — so i would, like, sing my name "ce—ce—lia" as i was growing up. and then ijoined the church choir, and ijoined the school choir. and i took part in the singing competitions. after an audition in 2019, she won a coveted place on the young artist programme here at the royal opera house. many hundreds apply, but only a handful are successful for each programme. the singers train with the very best — including the renowned music director of the royal opera house, sir antonio pappano. you've got to join the ideas because you're going, "da, da, da, da, da." you never really know whether singers will make that superstar status. but i think she's got a very good chance of going right to the top. getting to the top is tough. the opera world is highly competitive. injune 2021, cecilia took part in one of the most prestigious contests, the bbc�*s cardiff singer of the world, and appeared before the three judges at the finals. # lord have mercy, lord have mercy. # lord have mercy on me. # and i hope i'lljoin the band... is it your ambition to move people to tears with your performances? yes, you know, it makes me very happy to be... to make somebody cry? it makes you very happy to make somebody cry? to cry in a good way, to cry in a good way. because, you know, then you know that you have done something with your music. and i'm delighted to say that the winner of the 2021 cardiff singer of the world song prize is masabane cecilia rangwanasha. applause. cecelia's talent shines through — but it has not been an easy path for singers like her. black opera singers, mostly african—americans, are amongst some of the best—known names in opera history. but over the decades, performers of colour have faced major obstacles in securing big roles. particularly through the '505 and '605, when suddenly, . there was some real talent coming l out of church choirs around america. these amazing sopranos, like marian anderson, . who was a real pioneer — - she had to iron her own clothes before she went on stage, - because nobody would do it for her. it was seen as beneath - people to service somebody from that background. # a man who wishes she wasn't wearing slacks. # wasn't wearing slacks? # wasn't wearing slacks... cecilia would like to be seen as a role model for other black artists wanting to make it in opera. so i think, slowly but surely, we are going to have more people of colour singing in these big houses. and i think there's a future for young women like me, black women in opera. in the autumn of 2021, cecilia took a major step in her career — becoming house soloist at the swiss national opera in the capital, bern. next, i meet another young opera singer seen as a superstar in the making — french tenor benjamin bernheim. he also has strong ideas about the future of opera. operatic singing. when an opera singer is performing on stage, there are so many things they have to think about. the singing and breath control is, of course, paramount — but there are lots of other things they must get right. benjamin talks to me between performances at his home, in paris. we have a tonne of things to do on stage. we have to fall in love. we have to lose our beloved ones. we have to die. we have to get out of the stage, we have to fall, we have to get hurt, we have to get stabbed. we have so many things that we have to be ready for and convincing at. the person benjamin regards as his mentor is his former vocal coach, carrie—ann mathison. she accompanies him on the piano at a recital that was streamed live. carrie—ann is now artistic director at san francisco opera centre. benjamin has one of the most distinctive and beautiful voices that i have ever heard. somehow you can hear his soul through his voice. it's got this raw intensity, and yet incredibly flexible. benjamin's fan base is growing, and he keeps in touch with them through videos posted online. benjamin's from the next generation of superstars, but he's worried about the pressures of the internet age on opera singers. you know, today we don't have time any more. cell phones exist, internet exists, streaming exists. we are in a hurry — i am in a hurry. this is why i call the opera world "the opera business" sometimes — it's a jungle. opera is evolving with the times. willa younger generation of artists have to embrace changes in the way that opera is produced and enjoyed? technology is already providing new creative possibilities for opera and outdoor venues are now becoming more common. because of the restrictions, _ it's made people much more inventive about what an opera house can be. it doesn't have to be an enclosed traditional theatre. _ i think the developments in social media or the media platform is very, very great, because that means my family from south africa can see my shows. but there are also concerns that too much opera is being streamed. the big problem i see is that, if we give to the audience everywhere in the world all the content that we have for the price of a cup of coffee, it devalues our work. and i think it's very important not to make it expensive, but to not go too far in a direction where we are not going to be able to come back. i think the way in which the pandemic hit us, obviously so severely financially, meant that we had to embrace ways of doing things that were maybe not quite as expensive. and i think that some of those ways in which we do things — for example, building sets that perhaps aren't quite so extravagant — i do believe that both digital and the live experience can exist hand—in—hand. it's been a joy to meet four of the most exciting names in opera. and it seems there's a strong belief that innovation is making opera stronger, more popular, and diverse. and you know what? as somebody who cares about its future, i hope they're right. good afternoon, the new year has started as the old one ended with some exceptionally mild air across the uk, but many of us have had the chance to see a little bit of sunshine this new year's day. that was the scene earlier on for a weather watcher injohn o'groats the rest of the day remaining very mild, quite windy with rain for some, but not for all of us. low pressure in charge at the moment. you can see the swirl of cloud on the earlier satellite picture. close to the centre of that, though, that's where we've got some really strong and blustery winds, especially across parts of northern ireland and the far west of scotland. and those winds still feeding some mild air up from the south. but we're looking at gusts of 60 to 70 miles per hour, even a little stronger than that in the most exposed parts of western scotland. one band of rain pushing across the south east of england, some showers into scotland and parts of northern ireland, and top temperatures between 13 and 16 degrees as we head through this evening. tonight, that rain will cling on across the south east corner for a while, then some clear spells. but we see another pulse of wet weather pushing in across wales, the south west into the midlands and northern england, and some showery rain also into northern ireland and western scotland. another mild night for most, although a little bit cooler than it has been, especially across the northern half of the uk. tomorrow morning, then this clump of heavy rain will clear away eastwards. then we'll get to see some spells of sunshine. then some more wet weather will swing in across the southwest and into wales. and for northern ireland and scotland, we will see some showers breaking out into the afternoon. top temperatures, well, just a little down on today's values, still above where they should be for the time of year nine to 13 degrees. now, as we head into monday, it's quite an unsettled looking day. one frontal system moving close to the south of the uk, certainly bringing some rain across the channel islands, but perhaps fringing into southern parts of england as well. and then another frontal system bringing some rain southwards across scotland and into northern ireland. and behind that weather front quite a significant change because the winds start to come down from the north. so it will start to feel quite a lot colder, especially in northern scotland, where we could well see some wintry showers developing later in the day. and that does set us up for a chillier spell of weather as we move on into tuesday. these northerly winds rush southwards across all parts of the uk, a very different feel to things. it will feel significantly colder, some wintry showers in places. and we stick with that somewhat cooler feel as we head through the coming week. this is bbc news — these are the headlines. new year honours for leading figures in the battle against covid. professors chris whitty and jonathan van tam are knighted. drjenny harries and drjune raine are both made dames. no, darling, you don't need those. how do i look?— it's absolutely fabulous forjoanna lumley who is made a dame. whilst the outgoing james bond — daniel craig — is made a cmg. in sport, husband and wife jason and laura kenny are made a knight and a dame for services to cycling. the president of south africa pays tribute to desmond tutu as "the spiritual father of our new nation". and the archbishop's daughter also spoke movingly at his funeral...