If more than 60 percent of the audience votes for a vocalist

Viewers will get the final say. Judges - they include composer and songwriter Gao Xiaosong and singer Cai Guoqing - are more like mentors, who offer guidance to competitors.

"Although we've replicated most aspects of the original show, we've altered the stage design," Liu says.

In the second phase, the audience will be divided onstage into three sections, with 100 people from three generations in every section, with their backs to the singers.

If more than 60 percent of the audience votes for a vocalist, their section of the stage swivels around to face the singer. The competitor can continue if all three sections turn around to face him (her).

"The stage is larger and more flexible," Liu says.

Such rules identify a singer who can cater to different age groups' tastes, he says.

The winner will be recruited by a music executive and get the chance to perform at the opening ceremony of this year's Nanning International Folk Song Art Festival.

The concept is also used by Yunnan Satellite TV's recently launched Perfect Voice.

It hopes to capitalize on the novelty and fairness of judging contestants solely on their singing.

The show's director Peng Ying insists the format wasn't inspired by foreign shows but, rather, developed out of a quest for impartiality.