Day 4: new sun troubles, a Swedish circle and many more

Today is the day of the stage again. Today the EBU has made an official statement about it: “During the technical tests in Turin, the production team has experienced challenges with how long it takes to adjust the “sun” to different positions in the time between the different performances. Together with the host station RAI it was therefore decided that the sun will remain in the same position during all 40 songs, to ensure a fair competition for all participating countries.”. What position that is, is still being discussed. So to be continued again. It is certain that a number of countries now have to make changes in their staging.

Meanwhile, 9 countries rehearsed for their performance in the second semifinal.

IRELAND: Brooke takes the stage in a bright blue suit. During her performance she is assisted by four dancers. They start the song lying on the floor! Ireland uses many floor projections. Brooke is also praised by Eurovision.tv for her strong voice. Pyrotechnics are used at the end of her performance.

NORTH MACEDONIA: Andrea stands alone on the podium for North Macedonia. She sings her song completely wrapped in black leather. In her performance she uses the lifting bridges over the water. Shadows of hands are visible on the LED screens. The sun is not only orange but also white and blue.

ESTONIA: Stefan starts his performance on the B stage. He is accompanied only by his guitar. Later in the song, he goes wild: then he uses the entire stage to present his performance. The two cowboys from the national final stayed home.

ROMANIA: WRS from Romania wears glittering wetlook trousers. He also wears a red blouse, but according to Eurovision tradition, that goes off. He turns out to be wearing a sleeveless shirt with glitter underneath. There is a lot of dancing. As a result, the Romanian likely gets a lot of attention from the crowd.

POLAND: The Polish competitor Ochman is also in black, he wears a black suit. He is assisted by four dancers, who seem to represent some kind of water spirits. Flashing light effects can be seen during the performance. The waterfall on the stage is also used… what else could we expect with a song about a river?

MONTENEGRO: Vladana has her entire performance on the B stage. She wears a blue dress during her performance. The background is also blue, with splashes of white as graphics. Vladana mainly remains in one place.

BELGIUM: The Belgian Jérémie Makiese impressed with his song. Jérémie is flanked by four dancers. He himself wears blue-grey trousers, a black shirt and a silver jacket, while the dancers wear black jackets. At the end of the act all the light falls on Jérémie, who is standing on a platform on which flames are projected.

SWEDEN: Cornelia Jakobs ranks high among the bookmakers. As the Swedes always do, Cornelia Jakobs also puts on the same act as during the national final Melodifestivalen. The starry sky at the beginning, the large, first green and then red, circular plate right behind Cornelia, even the silver-black clothing and the bare feet are the same.

CZECH REPUBLIC: The Czech group We Are Domi is the last to rehearse today. The group uses a lot of light, which makes you feel like you’re in a disco. Funny effect: the ‘sun’ on stage looks like a vinyl album here. Eurovision.tv mentions the cello-string guitar: the guitarist made it himself.

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History

Austria in the Eurovision Song Contest, part 4

This year’s Eurovision Song Contest has been won by Austria. It was the 57th Austrian entry. Reason for us to go back to all the Austrian entries in history! For the fourth episode, we will look back at the early eighties. Austria returned to having a national final. Marty Brem and Gary Lux both took part twice. Austria 1980 – Blue Danube – “Du bist Musik” By 1980 Austria was back with “Du bist Musik”, performed by the group Blue Danube. Composer-lyricist Klaus-Peter Sattler wrote this German-language entry. The song is a love ballad comparing a beloved to music, name-dropping famous composers and dances. Blue Danube was a five-member ensemble formed just for Eurovision. Notably the group included singer Marty Brem. He would represent Austria again the following year. Conducted by Richard Österreicher, “Du bist Musik” opened the night’s show and scored 64 points for 8th place out of 19. Austria 1981 – Marty Brem – “Wenn du da bist” Marty Brem was part of Blue Danube in 1980. The singer returned solo for Austria in 1981. “Wenn du da bist” (“When You’re Here”) was composed and written by Werner Böhmler, and again Richard Österreicher conducted the orchestra. For the first time since 1963, the song was chosen through a national final. Brem was the only contestant. He sang three songs. “Wenn du da bist” is a romantic ballad with a slightly jazzy, complex composition. Unfortunately, it finished in 17th place (20 points) at the contest. Marty Brem’s performance featured an energetic stage show with flamboyant costumed dancers. The Austrian singer was frontman of a band called “Marty and the Bomfriz” at the time. After Eurovision, Brem pivoted to working in music journalism and the record industry. 1982 – Mess “Sonntag” Twelve songs competed in Austria’s 1982 national final. The duo Mess won with “Sonntag” (“Sunday”), an upbeat pop track full of early-’80s Europop charm. Both members, Michael Scheickl (also known as “Fritz”) and Elisabeth “Lizzi” Engstler, had also entered the competition as solo artists. Michael Scheickl (credited as “Michael Mell”) composed the song, while Rudolf Leve wrote the lyrics. Mess brought joyful energy to the stage with their lively, danceable performance. “Sonntag” celebrated the carefree feeling of a Sunday, wrapped in a catchy, cheerful style. The song earned 57 points and placed 9th out of 18 countries. Formed specifically for Eurovision, Mess disbanded soon after. Engstler, just 21 at the time, later built a successful career as a television presenter for Austria’s ORF network. 1983 – Westend “Hurricane” In 1983, Austria chose the pop group Westend to perform “Hurricane”, selecting them from 12 finalists that included Waterloo (ESC 1976). Band member Peter Vieweger composed the song, while Heli Deinboek and Heinz Nessizius wrote the lyrics. Sung in German, “Hurricane” delivers an upbeat synth-pop sound with Schlager influences, using a whirlwind metaphor to capture the chaos of lost love. The entry scored 53 points and finished in a tie for 9th place. Westend featured five members, including Gary Lux—whose role stood out. Lux went on to represent Austria at Eurovision six times during the 1980s, both as a solo performer and backing vocalist. “Hurricane” earned Austria a solid mid-table result and later became a beloved ’80s Eurovision memory. 1984 – Anita “Einfach weg” Twelve songs battled for the ticket to Luxembourg, with Gary Lux finishing as runner-up. Austria chose Anita Spanner, known simply as Anita, for the 1984 Eurovision Song Contest with “Einfach weg” (“Simply Gone”). Brigitte Seuberth composed the track, and Walter Müller wrote the lyrics. This energetic pop song featured a catchy melody and a synth-driven arrangement typical of the mid-80s. Despite strong expectations, Austria landed in 19th (last) place with just 5 points. Ironically, the song found huge success at home. It climbed to #1 on the Austrian singles chart and stayed in the Top 20 for ten weeks. Anita, a newcomer and surprise national final winner, took the stage in Luxembourg backed by vocalists including Gary Lux. Although “Einfach weg” didn’t resonate internationally, its popularity in Austria turned it into an iconic Austropop hit of the decade. 1985 – Gary Lux “Kinder dieser Welt” By 1985, Gary Lux had become a familiar face for Austria at Eurovision. Having been in Westend (1983) and a backing singer in 1984, Lux took center stage with “Kinder dieser Welt” (“Children of this World”) in Gothenburg. He was internally selected for the contest. His uplifting song was a pop anthem calling for hope and joy for children around the globe. It was written by prominent lyricist Michael Kunze and composed by the British duo Mick Jackson and Geoff Bastow. “Kinder dieser Welt” earned 60 points and secured 8th place for Austria out of 19 entries. The entry affirmed Gary Lux’s status as one of Austria’s most frequent Eurovision participants.

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History
Martijn

Austria in the Eurovision Song Contest, part 4

This year’s Eurovision Song Contest has been won by Austria. It was the 57th Austrian entry. Reason for us to go back to all the Austrian entries in history! For the fourth episode, we will look back at the early eighties. Austria returned to having a national final. Marty Brem and Gary Lux both took part twice. Austria 1980 – Blue Danube – “Du bist Musik” By 1980 Austria was back with “Du bist Musik”, performed by the group Blue Danube. Composer-lyricist Klaus-Peter Sattler wrote this German-language entry. The song is a love ballad comparing a beloved to music, name-dropping famous composers and dances. Blue Danube was a five-member ensemble formed just for Eurovision. Notably the group included singer Marty Brem. He would represent Austria again the following year. Conducted by Richard Österreicher, “Du bist Musik” opened the night’s show and scored 64 points for 8th place out of 19. Austria 1981 – Marty Brem – “Wenn du da bist” Marty Brem was part of Blue Danube in 1980. The singer returned solo for Austria in 1981. “Wenn du da bist” (“When You’re Here”) was composed and written by Werner Böhmler, and again Richard Österreicher conducted the orchestra. For the first time since 1963, the song was chosen through a national final. Brem was the only contestant. He sang three songs. “Wenn du da bist” is a romantic ballad with a slightly jazzy, complex composition. Unfortunately, it finished in 17th place (20 points) at the contest. Marty Brem’s performance featured an energetic stage show with flamboyant costumed dancers. The Austrian singer was frontman of a band called “Marty and the Bomfriz” at the time. After Eurovision, Brem pivoted to working in music journalism and the record industry. 1982 – Mess “Sonntag” Twelve songs competed in Austria’s 1982 national final. The duo Mess won with “Sonntag” (“Sunday”), an upbeat pop track full of early-’80s Europop charm. Both members, Michael Scheickl (also known as “Fritz”) and Elisabeth “Lizzi” Engstler, had also entered the competition as solo artists. Michael Scheickl (credited as “Michael Mell”) composed the song, while Rudolf Leve wrote the lyrics. Mess brought joyful energy to the stage with their lively, danceable performance. “Sonntag” celebrated the carefree feeling of a Sunday, wrapped in a catchy, cheerful style. The song earned 57 points and placed 9th out of 18 countries. Formed specifically for Eurovision, Mess disbanded soon after. Engstler, just 21 at the time, later built a successful career as a television presenter for Austria’s ORF network. 1983 – Westend “Hurricane” In 1983, Austria chose the pop group Westend to perform “Hurricane”, selecting them from 12 finalists that included Waterloo (ESC 1976). Band member Peter Vieweger composed the song, while Heli Deinboek and Heinz Nessizius wrote the lyrics. Sung in German, “Hurricane” delivers an upbeat synth-pop sound with Schlager influences, using a whirlwind metaphor to capture the chaos of lost love. The entry scored 53 points and finished in a tie for 9th place. Westend featured five members, including Gary Lux—whose role stood out. Lux went on to represent Austria at Eurovision six times during the 1980s, both as a solo performer and backing vocalist. “Hurricane” earned Austria a solid mid-table result and later became a beloved ’80s Eurovision memory. 1984 – Anita “Einfach weg” Twelve songs battled for the ticket to Luxembourg, with Gary Lux finishing as runner-up. Austria chose Anita Spanner, known simply as Anita, for the 1984 Eurovision Song Contest with “Einfach weg” (“Simply Gone”). Brigitte Seuberth composed the track, and Walter Müller wrote the lyrics. This energetic pop song featured a catchy melody and a synth-driven arrangement typical of the mid-80s. Despite strong expectations, Austria landed in 19th (last) place with just 5 points. Ironically, the song found huge success at home. It climbed to #1 on the Austrian singles chart and stayed in the Top 20 for ten weeks. Anita, a newcomer and surprise national final winner, took the stage in Luxembourg backed by vocalists including Gary Lux. Although “Einfach weg” didn’t resonate internationally, its popularity in Austria turned it into an iconic Austropop hit of the decade. 1985 – Gary Lux “Kinder dieser Welt” By 1985, Gary Lux had become a familiar face for Austria at Eurovision. Having been in Westend (1983) and a backing singer in 1984, Lux took center stage with “Kinder dieser Welt” (“Children of this World”) in Gothenburg. He was internally selected for the contest. His uplifting song was a pop anthem calling for hope and joy for children around the globe. It was written by prominent lyricist Michael Kunze and composed by the British duo Mick Jackson and Geoff Bastow. “Kinder dieser Welt” earned 60 points and secured 8th place for Austria out of 19 entries. The entry affirmed Gary Lux’s status as one of Austria’s most frequent Eurovision participants.

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