It looks like we have our second name out of the Big Five for Düsseldorf! As we already knew, defending champion Lena Meyer-Landrut will be representing her homeland again this year (her new album "Good News" will be released in February, with all of the songs considered for her participation on it). Today we got news of France's choice for the ESC: 21-year-old tenor Amaury Vassili. Here's a clip of one of his earlier live performances (details on his song for Eurovision have not been released yet).
Vassili, despite his young age, is already an accomplished performer; he has released three successful albums that have made some significant impact on the charts in France and Wallonia (the French-speaking portion of Belgium). His style tends more towards "popera", and while his song has yet to be announced, it's more than likely that he'll stay in this general genre. One minor caveat: Amaury tends to sing in either Italian or English, and France, more than any other nation, tends to be a stickler for their language to be featured in their Eurovision entries. (Some ESC fans might remember the uproar back in 2008 when Sebastien Tellier wanted to sing "Divine" entirely in English; the French Parliament basically forced him to include at least a few lines in French!) We'll see what Amaury decides to do when his song is presented to the public.
More after the jump!
Thursday, January 27, 2011
Monday, January 24, 2011
The Weekend Update, 1/23
Another day, another update...Semifinals have continued this weekend in Finland, Iceland, and Norway, and Croatia's preselection has kicked off, as well. There are also further updates from Azerbaijan, Portugal, Moldova, and Malta! And away we go...
Finland:
Three more acts have moved on to the Finnish Final after this Friday's semi. After a public vote, this week's winners are:
Paradise Oskar - "Da Da Dam" (Reminds me a bit of Belgium's Tom Dice from last year, don't you think? If Tom were a member of Greenpeace Suomi, this might have been the result.)
Milana Misic - "Sydämeni kaksi maata (Two Countries of my Heart)" (Milana is the daughter of a Croatian father and a Finnish mother who actually represented her nation fifty years ago in Finland's debut ESC entry.)
Father McKenzie - "Good Enough" (Yes, they're named for the character in "Eleanor Rigby"!)
Knocked out at this round of the competition were Jimi Constantine's "Party to Party" and Soma Manuchar's "Strong". An interesting point of trivia, courtesy of reader Stefanos in Finland: Soma's outfit was designed by Mert Otsamo, a finalist on the first season of "Muodin huipulle", the Finnish version of "Project Runway". According to Stefanos, "I liked his work on Muodin Huipulle more than I did Soma's outfit." I haven't seen any of Otsamo's work, but after seeing Soma's outfit, I'd be hard-pressed to imagine I'd disagree.
Next, we move on to Iceland:
It's been a week of highs and lows for Iceland this week. On Tuesday, we heard the sad and sudden news of the passing of Sigurjón Brink at the age of only 36. He was supposed to sing in the third semifinal next week, and it has been decided by both the network and his family that his entry, "Aftur Heim (Back Home)" would be performed as a tribute by a group of his friends and fellow musicians, and will therefore remain in the competition. Next week's semifinal heat is sure to be an emotional one.
In the second semifinal, which aired last night, we had five songs competing for two slots in the final. The victorious tunes were:
Yohanna - "Nótt (Night)" (As I mentioned last week, Yohanna came in second place back in the 2009 competition with "Is It True?" I try to stay as neutral and impartial as I can, especially during the preselection phase of the Eurovision year, but I honestly think that Yohanna might, in fact, be the personification of a Disney princess.)
Matthías Matthíasson & Erla Björg Káradóttir - "Eldgos (Eruption)" (I speak no Icelandic, but I'm pretty sure I recognized the word "Eyjafjallajökull" at the start of the song...is this a tribute to the epic volcano that covered half of Europe in ash last year? Any Icelandic readers wish to comment?)
We've got more news after the break!
Finland:
Three more acts have moved on to the Finnish Final after this Friday's semi. After a public vote, this week's winners are:
Paradise Oskar - "Da Da Dam" (Reminds me a bit of Belgium's Tom Dice from last year, don't you think? If Tom were a member of Greenpeace Suomi, this might have been the result.)
Milana Misic - "Sydämeni kaksi maata (Two Countries of my Heart)" (Milana is the daughter of a Croatian father and a Finnish mother who actually represented her nation fifty years ago in Finland's debut ESC entry.)
Father McKenzie - "Good Enough" (Yes, they're named for the character in "Eleanor Rigby"!)
Knocked out at this round of the competition were Jimi Constantine's "Party to Party" and Soma Manuchar's "Strong". An interesting point of trivia, courtesy of reader Stefanos in Finland: Soma's outfit was designed by Mert Otsamo, a finalist on the first season of "Muodin huipulle", the Finnish version of "Project Runway". According to Stefanos, "I liked his work on Muodin Huipulle more than I did Soma's outfit." I haven't seen any of Otsamo's work, but after seeing Soma's outfit, I'd be hard-pressed to imagine I'd disagree.
Next, we move on to Iceland:
It's been a week of highs and lows for Iceland this week. On Tuesday, we heard the sad and sudden news of the passing of Sigurjón Brink at the age of only 36. He was supposed to sing in the third semifinal next week, and it has been decided by both the network and his family that his entry, "Aftur Heim (Back Home)" would be performed as a tribute by a group of his friends and fellow musicians, and will therefore remain in the competition. Next week's semifinal heat is sure to be an emotional one.
In the second semifinal, which aired last night, we had five songs competing for two slots in the final. The victorious tunes were:
Yohanna - "Nótt (Night)" (As I mentioned last week, Yohanna came in second place back in the 2009 competition with "Is It True?" I try to stay as neutral and impartial as I can, especially during the preselection phase of the Eurovision year, but I honestly think that Yohanna might, in fact, be the personification of a Disney princess.)
Matthías Matthíasson & Erla Björg Káradóttir - "Eldgos (Eruption)" (I speak no Icelandic, but I'm pretty sure I recognized the word "Eyjafjallajökull" at the start of the song...is this a tribute to the epic volcano that covered half of Europe in ash last year? Any Icelandic readers wish to comment?)
We've got more news after the break!
Sunday, January 23, 2011
Reise Nach Düsseldorf: Altbier!
Hey, everyone!
Like I've mentioned before, 2011 will mark my first official in-person Eurovision experience. I'm incredibly excited to be working with my OGAE chapter (Rest of the World) and the chapter's official site, www.esckaz.com!
Anyway, as I'm preparing for my ESC trip, I thought I'd share the moment with you all. Starting today, and going through my trip to Germany, I'll be occasionally putting up videos of my own personal "Reise Nach Düsseldorf". It's nothing fancy or high tech at this point (what can I say...my experience with video editing is less than copious!), but I'm looking forward to being able to interact with my readers on a whole new level.
If you're either from Düsseldorf or will be joining me at Eurovision this year, let me know! How should I prepare myself for the trip? What are some of the local sights that I should take in? How about the best local restaurants to check out, or places to see and be seen? I've got two full weeks in North-Rhine-Westphalia...let's make it fantastic together!
Here's my first entry, where I test out the local brew...Altbier!
Again, major thanks go out to the Ale Jail in St. Paul (and their vinicultural counterpart next door, the Wine Thief), my local go-to-spot for hard-to-find beers from all over the world! If you're anywhere near the area, check them out! http://winethief.net/
Like I've mentioned before, 2011 will mark my first official in-person Eurovision experience. I'm incredibly excited to be working with my OGAE chapter (Rest of the World) and the chapter's official site, www.esckaz.com!
Anyway, as I'm preparing for my ESC trip, I thought I'd share the moment with you all. Starting today, and going through my trip to Germany, I'll be occasionally putting up videos of my own personal "Reise Nach Düsseldorf". It's nothing fancy or high tech at this point (what can I say...my experience with video editing is less than copious!), but I'm looking forward to being able to interact with my readers on a whole new level.
If you're either from Düsseldorf or will be joining me at Eurovision this year, let me know! How should I prepare myself for the trip? What are some of the local sights that I should take in? How about the best local restaurants to check out, or places to see and be seen? I've got two full weeks in North-Rhine-Westphalia...let's make it fantastic together!
Here's my first entry, where I test out the local brew...Altbier!
Again, major thanks go out to the Ale Jail in St. Paul (and their vinicultural counterpart next door, the Wine Thief), my local go-to-spot for hard-to-find beers from all over the world! If you're anywhere near the area, check them out! http://winethief.net/
Monday, January 17, 2011
An Open Letter to Slovakia
Dear Slovakia,
Seriously? You're toying with our emotions here! First you say you're out, then you're back in, then you're out again...and this morning, you shock Eurovision fans by having your name appear in the Semifinal Draw in Düsseldorf. The officials at Eurovision didn't say very much one way or another, leaving us all bewildered and more than a little confused. Now you say that it's just easier to send a performer to Germany than it would have been to pay the fine that the EBU would impose on you for a late withdrawal.
::sigh::
So, that's settled, then? You're in? Not going anywhere? We're at 43 nations again? We're all cool?
Please?
Love,
Samantha
(PS: If you end up doing an internal selection, please consider sending Tomáš Bezdeda...his songs for the 2009 and 2010 Slovak Preselections were quite good...you've nearly sent him to the ESC twice already, and if you're going to continue playing with my heart the way you have been, sending a cutie like Tomas would make me feel at least a little better.)
Seriously? You're toying with our emotions here! First you say you're out, then you're back in, then you're out again...and this morning, you shock Eurovision fans by having your name appear in the Semifinal Draw in Düsseldorf. The officials at Eurovision didn't say very much one way or another, leaving us all bewildered and more than a little confused. Now you say that it's just easier to send a performer to Germany than it would have been to pay the fine that the EBU would impose on you for a late withdrawal.
::sigh::
So, that's settled, then? You're in? Not going anywhere? We're at 43 nations again? We're all cool?
Please?
Love,
Samantha
(PS: If you end up doing an internal selection, please consider sending Tomáš Bezdeda...his songs for the 2009 and 2010 Slovak Preselections were quite good...you've nearly sent him to the ESC twice already, and if you're going to continue playing with my heart the way you have been, sending a cutie like Tomas would make me feel at least a little better.)
Sunday, January 16, 2011
The Weekend Update
Well, another weekend has come and gone, and while we don't have any new songs added to the roster of Official Eurovision entries, we had a lot of activity over the past few days in the realm of Preselections, especially from the Nordic region. Here's what went down up North!
Finland:
This Friday marked the first Semifinal in the Suomen Karsinta (Finnish Qualifier), with five songs battling it out for three places in the Final. And the winners are:
Johanna Iivanainen - Luojani Mun (My Lord)
Cardiant - Rapture in Time
Marko Maunuksela - Synkän Maan Tango (Troubled Country Tango)
So, in the three songs listed above, we've got a ballad, metal, and tango, and the rejected songs were pop and rock...you can't say that the Finns lack variety! We'll see five more songs next Friday.
We've got more after the break!
Finland:
This Friday marked the first Semifinal in the Suomen Karsinta (Finnish Qualifier), with five songs battling it out for three places in the Final. And the winners are:
Johanna Iivanainen - Luojani Mun (My Lord)
Cardiant - Rapture in Time
Marko Maunuksela - Synkän Maan Tango (Troubled Country Tango)
So, in the three songs listed above, we've got a ballad, metal, and tango, and the rejected songs were pop and rock...you can't say that the Finns lack variety! We'll see five more songs next Friday.
We've got more after the break!
Saturday, January 15, 2011
Eurovision 2011: Feel Your Heart Beat!
Ok, folks...this just got real!
Every year, the country that has the honor of hosting the Eurovision Song Contest gets to put their personal stamp on the event. Through branding and design, the nation has the opportunity to make Eurovision their own! Last year's theme for Oslo was "Share the Moment", which carried through not only in the advertising, but through the whole contest itself. The "postcards" used to introduce artists showed groups of fans gathering together in the nation's capital or largest city, and the interval act was described as the "World's Biggest Flash Mob", involving dancers throughout Europe, as well as in the Telenor Arena itself. It was incredibly sweet, and I felt like it really embraced the ideals that the ESC stands for.
The official logo and motto for the 2011 Contest has just been revealed:
According to the Eurovision.tv website, "The theme refers to the great emotions which music can evoke – and which belong to the distinctive character of the Eurovision Song Contest: enthusiasm, heart beating, excitement, love and passion. There are no limits to these emotions, there are no language barriers. The theme also refers to the fact that every song has its individual rhythm." It also alludes to Lena saying "I heart you!" to her fans and supporters during an interview...ain't she cute?
We also have the official confirmation of this year's hosts: Anke Engelke, Judith Rakers, and Stefan Raab. Anke is an experienced television and radio personality born in Canada, and Judith is a well-known news presenter and writer. As lovely as Anke and Judith may be, however, Stefan Raab may the true star of the show. He's basically the German Mister Eurovision (or, should I say Herr Eurovision?), as he wrote the songs performed in 1998 and 2004 (you can see him as the conductor and lead guitarist, respectively, in the two performances), performed the unforgettable song from 2000, and set up the popular (and obviously fruitful) preselection for 2010, "Ünser Star für Oslo (Our Star for Oslo)", the competition that picked Lena and "Satellite" to represent Germany. In Oslo, he acted as Lena's nearly-omnipresent mentor. Raab doesn't just sit at home and obsess about Eurovision all day long, however; this jack-of-all-trades also hosts the wildly successful "TV Total", a comedy/variety show. He's also the originator of the Bundesvision Song Contest (an all-German song competition), as well as the International Wok Racing Championship. I kid you not.
Between the 42 countries competing in this year's event, the obvious passion that Stefan Raab has for Eurovision, and his propensity towards the ridiculous and hilarious, I have a feeling that Düsseldorf 2011 will truly be one for the ages.
And I'm thrilled to say that I'll be there!
Every year, the country that has the honor of hosting the Eurovision Song Contest gets to put their personal stamp on the event. Through branding and design, the nation has the opportunity to make Eurovision their own! Last year's theme for Oslo was "Share the Moment", which carried through not only in the advertising, but through the whole contest itself. The "postcards" used to introduce artists showed groups of fans gathering together in the nation's capital or largest city, and the interval act was described as the "World's Biggest Flash Mob", involving dancers throughout Europe, as well as in the Telenor Arena itself. It was incredibly sweet, and I felt like it really embraced the ideals that the ESC stands for.
The official logo and motto for the 2011 Contest has just been revealed:
(Logo copyright of NDR)
According to the Eurovision.tv website, "The theme refers to the great emotions which music can evoke – and which belong to the distinctive character of the Eurovision Song Contest: enthusiasm, heart beating, excitement, love and passion. There are no limits to these emotions, there are no language barriers. The theme also refers to the fact that every song has its individual rhythm." It also alludes to Lena saying "I heart you!" to her fans and supporters during an interview...ain't she cute?
We also have the official confirmation of this year's hosts: Anke Engelke, Judith Rakers, and Stefan Raab. Anke is an experienced television and radio personality born in Canada, and Judith is a well-known news presenter and writer. As lovely as Anke and Judith may be, however, Stefan Raab may the true star of the show. He's basically the German Mister Eurovision (or, should I say Herr Eurovision?), as he wrote the songs performed in 1998 and 2004 (you can see him as the conductor and lead guitarist, respectively, in the two performances), performed the unforgettable song from 2000, and set up the popular (and obviously fruitful) preselection for 2010, "Ünser Star für Oslo (Our Star for Oslo)", the competition that picked Lena and "Satellite" to represent Germany. In Oslo, he acted as Lena's nearly-omnipresent mentor. Raab doesn't just sit at home and obsess about Eurovision all day long, however; this jack-of-all-trades also hosts the wildly successful "TV Total", a comedy/variety show. He's also the originator of the Bundesvision Song Contest (an all-German song competition), as well as the International Wok Racing Championship. I kid you not.
Between the 42 countries competing in this year's event, the obvious passion that Stefan Raab has for Eurovision, and his propensity towards the ridiculous and hilarious, I have a feeling that Düsseldorf 2011 will truly be one for the ages.
And I'm thrilled to say that I'll be there!
Sunday, January 9, 2011
RTVS is such a Slovak-tease!
Ok, Slovakia...make up your mind! After months of will-they-or-won't-they, the Central European nation proclaimed at the end of the year that they would be present in Düsseldorf, delighting Eurovision fans worldwide and making ESC 2011 the largest competition since 2008. Even though their results in Eurovision have been less than stellar over the years, the competition still has an approval rating of 87.5% among Slovak viewers. Suddenly, however, broadcaster RTVS announced that due to the after-effects of a major merger, Slovakia would be unable to afford their Eurovision participation without the help of a major sponsor. Despite the EBU's decision to grant the broadcaster extra time to cobble together the dough, a fairy godmother failed to appear, leaving Bratislava high and dry, and leaving a depressing, Czechoslovakia-shaped hole in the 2011 Eurovision Participation Map:
Well, Slovakia, the other 42 competing nations and I will miss you in Germany, and we hope you can get your ducks in a row for 2012. (And while we're at it, convince your neighbors in Prague to come back, too!)
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