I'm going to say something that could be not agree-able, so please remember it's just my two cents.
A New Journey, and I mean the tour, not the DVD, as well as the previous tour and the IOH tour, did not have dancers. It didn't give all that space to the pipers and the drummers (who are terrific, just to be clear, we know it). It mainly had the five girls performing. And it worked perfectly, many fans consider it the best CW production ever. I think that a fifth girl is something very very important to have for various reasons.
First of all, the voices. Three is beautiful, but four is even better: a fourth voice is crucial when it comes to harmonies and I personally hear the difference between the old CW group songs and the newer songs, it's quite clear. Danny Boy is a perfect example, and it's not surprising that for the Emerald version they chose to include the violin: without the fourth voice, that arrangement needed something else. Other songs gave me the same impression.
Second reason: a fifth girl means at least two more solos in the show and the possibility to have complete ensemble numbers but also non-complete ensemble numbers, which means that the girls get a little more comfortable.
Third reason: an additional voice means more variety and more dinamics in the show as well as in the CDs tracklists. That is a fact.
Fourth reason: until 2009, CW had Orla who was a singer but also a harpist. That, in my opinion added a lot to the show because her songs with the harp were a vey special moment. Basically, almost every girl who's been with CW can play at least one instrument: I personally would love, for instance, a song from Lynn with her playing the guitar. It's something that the show needs and I think it could work better with five girls than with four. I know, we had three years of Lisa L with the spoons, and I love it, but I think you got my point.
Fifth reason: the original concept of the show was five girls and it was for six years. There must have been a reason for that. I don't know the reason why they have chose to have four girls from that year, but I can imagine it's strictly economic, not artistic. And I think that if they cut the dancing, the additional dresses and other things, they would have the money to pay a fifth member just like they had in the past.
It may sound like a rant but I'm being very rational in this. I honestly think that the 5 girls lineup was a crucial part of CW and I'm not the only one, from what I read here
