The EBU today has announced the 43 countries that will be taken part in the 56th Eurovision Song Contest. They are as follows:

1. Albania (RTVSH)
2. Armenia (AMPTV)
3. Austria (ORF)
4. Azerbaijan (Ictimai TV)
5. Belarus (BTRC)
6. Belgium (RTBF)
7. Bosnia & Herzegovina (BHRT)
8. Bulgaria (BNT)
9. Croatia (HRT)
10. Cyprus (CyBC)
11. Denmark (DR)
12. Estonia (ERR)
13. Finland (YLE)
14. France (France TV)
15. FYR Macedonia (MKRTV)
16. Georgia (GEGT)
17. Germany (NDR/ARD) (Host Broadcaster)
18. Greece (ERT)
19. Hungary (MTV)
20. Iceland (RÚV)
21. Ireland (RTÉ)
22. Israel (IBA)
23. Italy (RAI)
24. Latvia (LTV)
25. Lithuania (LRT)
26. Malta (PBS)
27. Moldova (TRM)
28. The Netherlands (TROS)
29. Norway (NRK)
30. Poland (TVP)
31. Portugal (RTP)
32. Romania (TVR)
33. Russia (C1R)
34. San Marino (SMRTV)
35. Serbia (RTS)
36. Slovakia (STV)
37. Slovenia (RTVSLO)
38. Spain (RTVE)
39. Sweden (SVT)
40. Switzerland (SRG/SSR)
41. Turkey (TRT)
42. Ukraine (NTU)
43. United Kingdom (BBC)

43 is equal to the record set in 2008 for most entries to the contest.

The EBU have also confirmed that Italy will automatically be qualified for the final. This means the “Big Four” becomes the “Big Five”. They have also confirmed that the final will have 25 entries, 10 from each semi.

Its going to be a great year!

Related articles

• New Intro for Eurovision (escireland.com)
• Sweet Mother of God….NO! (escireland.com)
• Bella Italia makes a return! (escireland.com)
• Iceland – Is It True? Why Yes, Yes it is! (escireland.com)

Aurela Gaçe - “Kenga ime”

Albania Eurovision 2011 Aurela Gace – Kenga ime

It has a lot of potential.

Watch the Albanian Final live here now: http://www.livestream.com/tvkosova

Françesk Radi - Kemi dasëm’ o

Terrible Folksy song, not going anywhere.

Hersiana Matmuja – Me cilin rri ti dashuri

A nice ballad, could do well.

Goldi Halili - Në krahët tua

A very unpolished dance song, entertaining though. This is the type of song that Albania can transform into something good.

Marsida Saraci – “Vetëm s’jemi në botë”

I like this one, an upbeat ballad, could do well.
Besa Kokedhima – “E bukura dhe bisha”

What is she wearing? Looks like something an 80′s sci-fi villain would wear. It’s kind of Popera, the choir is very dramatic. It could be different enough to win, but there is something that doesn’t sit right with me

Miriam Cani & Alban Skenderaj – “Ende ka shpresë”

The Duet, very preppy looking guy, she is hopelessly out of tune. It’s nice but mbleh. It is very Balkan (I know I know), type of thing Croatia would send in.

Enkelejda Arifi – “Nje Dashuri”

Ah the “Ethnic entry”! And it’s actually kind of catchy, reminds me of Turkey, except from the 80′s. In fact it’s Boney-M meets 80′s Turkish Eurovision.

Aurela Gaçe - “Kenga ime”

An Albanian ballad sung in a very French style. Pretty ok. She has a good voice, could do very well, as the audience have gone crazy for her.

Maria Prifti – “Pasuri e pasurive”

Ballad rock, she is belting out the notes, it’s all too sameish for me.
Saimir Braho – “Shtegëtar i jetës time”

Oh a man on stage? What a difference. No wait soft pop from the Balkans, this guy ain’t going anywhere.
Dorian Nini - “Mirësevini ne Shqipëri”

It’s like Joe Duffy singing a modern pop song, I like it, I don’t know why but I do. I hope he does well.
Selami Kolonja – “Enderr Kosovoe”

ZZZZZZZZZZzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz – I’m off to get more beer
Xhejsi Jorgaqi – “Rastësi”

An odd Rock/pop song. Really nothing special.
Albi Xhepa & Sam Jaupaj – “Dritë”

Remember that song from the 5th Element? You know the Diva song with the blue lady, kind of similar, the only thing that is keep my interest though is the absolute ride of a singer.
Dorina Garuci – “Mirëmbrëma ëngjëlli im”

A well sung ballad, but again nothing special about it.
Kamela Islami – “Jetova per ty”

Oddly decent, with a bit of tweaking this could be a great pop ballad.
Orges Toçe - “Mari”

The “Jazz” entry. Oh look he is being alternative and awful at the same time.
Denis Hasa - “Mbi xhaketen time”

And last but not least comes the worst song of the night. All we can do is wait to see who wins.

Interval act:

Zomg It’s Juliana live on stage, fabliss! She is giving it everything, but the audience look like they are going to be shot for showing emotion.

Now another song in the interval act – it’s a group of Albanian singers (includnig Juliana), some look like previous winners doing a Medley.

Result Time:

It looks like they can afford a greenroom this year, but not a working sound system. – OMG 18 voters – kill me now………

The counting is being done by mouse on a projector screen in front of the audience.

The preppy twink and out of tune woman take an early lead. I may update again later, this could take a while.

Aurela Gaçe has won it!

The Logo introduced in 2004 which has the "heart" at the centre for National Flags to be displayed

Tonight Albania becomes the first country to broadcast the new intro for the Eurovision Song Contest. It will be shown before the fist semi-final of Festivali i Kenges 2010 which takes place tonight on RTSH at 20:30CET.

The intro was designed by Sascha Verwiebe a German graphic designer who has previously worked for German ZDF, Danish TV2, Deutsche Bahn, Microsoft and others.

The EBU wish to raise the profile of the “heart” logo that they introduced in 2004. This year the use of the intro will be voluntary but from 2012 all National Finals must use this as their intro.

It has now been distributed to all participating member states to use with their national flag in the “heart” so expect to see it a lot in the run up to Düsseldorf!

Yohanna has been confirmed as coming back for the Icelandic final. Personally I think this will make her a super favorite like Hera last year, but at the same time I’m not complaining

This is good news indeed, as she is a very talent singer who achieved a fantastic second place in Moscow last year.

Jóhanna was raised in Hafnarfjörður, Iceland and started performing on stage at the age of nine after participating in singing classes. Her first album, titled Jóhanna Guðrún 9 was released in 1998 contained mostly international pop hits that had been translated into the Icelandic language. “Torn”, “Genie in a Bottle” and “I’ll Be There” are just a few of the songs that Jóhanna covered. She then went on to release one more album in addition to a Christmas album before stepping out of the spotlight. She also worked in Broadway theatre before winning Söngvakeppnin.

Jóhanna’s album Butterflies and Elvis marked her return to the spotlight in 2008. The album was released in Iceland and Sweden with her first single since “I Miss You”.

Jóhanna qualified for the Eurovision 2009 final after winning first place in the first semi-final. For the final in Moscow, she was joined on stage by backing-vocalists Friðrik Ómar (from Euroband fame), Erna Hrönn Ólafsdóttir (we presume will represent Iceland sometime in the future), and Hera Björk (Yay!). She came in second place behind Norway, with 218 points. Her debut song, “Is It True?” went on to become a top download on iTunes.

Yohanna was Iceland’s spokesperson at the Eurovision Song Contest 2010 revealing the results of the Icelandic voting.

You can see more about Yohanna and her music here.

RÚV announced that the official date of Söngvakeppnin 2011 is set for February 12. Of the 174 submissions 16 songwriters were chosen:

• Albert Guðmann Jónsson
• Arnar Ástráðsson
• Hallgrímur Óskarsson
• Haraldur Reynisson
• Ingvi Þór Kormáksson
• Jakob Jóhannsson
• Jógvan Hansen / Vignir Snær Vigfússon
• Jóhannes Kári Kristinsson
• María Björk Sverrisdóttir
• Matthías Stefánsson
• Orri Harðarson / Tómas Hermannsson
• Pétur Örn Guðmundsson
• Ragnar Hermannsson / Sigurjón Brink

Yohanna will be singing the song by María Björk Sverrisdóttir

Given the time of year I think it’s time for a Christmas themed post here on ESCIreland!

And after a quick search on youtube, I found a video of Yohanna (who represented Iceland in 2009) performing “Ó, helga nótt” (O, holy night) at “Jólatónleikar Fíladelfíu 2009″ in Reykjavík:

And here she is performing “Silent Night”

Moving on to Sweden, I have found Shirley Clamp who is signing “Do They Know It’s Christmas”

And finally even though it was meant for an advert, Måns Zelmerlöw & Agnes Carlsson do a nice duet of “All I Want For Christmas.”

If you are ware of any other Christmas themed songs, please let us know!

There are 3 certainties in this world, Death, Taxes and Estonia entering the Eurovision every year. And this year is no different, ERR announced the entries for Eesti Laul 2011.

20 hopefuls have been picked from the hundreds entered.

• All & Now – Performed by Rolf Roosalu – Written by Rolf Roosalu, Liis Lass
• Baby Had You – Victoria – Viktoriya Suslova, Stanislav Bulganin
• Be My Saturday Night – Noorkuu – Mart Vainu
• Don’t Want Anything - Jana Kask – Jakko Maltis, Jana Kask
• Hoppa-Pa-Rei! - Ithaka Maria – Ithaka Maria Rahula, Peeter Pruuli
• I Wanna Meet Bob Dylan – Outloudz – Stig Rästa, Fred Krieger
• Ilusad Inimesed – Laika Virgin ft Fredy Schmidt – Andero Nimmer, Indrek Ups, Jarek Kasar, Fredy Schmidt
• Jagatud Öö – Uku Suviste – Rein Rannap, Indrek Hirv
• Kes Ei Tantsi, On Politsei - Elmayonesa – Nicolas Behler, Nora Reitel, Helen Heinmäe
• Lapsed Ja Lennukid - Ans. Andur – Madis Aesma, Mihkel Kirss, Gert Pajuväli, Madis Kirss
• Lubadus – Kait Tamra – Kait Tamra
• Meeting The Wolf – Janne Saar – Janne Saar, Carola Madis
• My Melody – Sofia Rubina – Sofia Rubina, Talis Paide
• Rahu, Ainult Rahu – Sõpruse Puiestee and Merili Varik – Allan Vainola, Mait Vaik
• Rockefeller Street - Getter Jaani – Sven Lõhmus
• Smile – Mid – Markus Robam
• St. Cabah – Shirubi Ikazuchi – Silvi Pilt
• The Storm – Mimicry – Paul Lepasson, Timmo Linnas, Kene Vernik, Jaanus Telvar
• Valss – Jaan Pehk – Jaan Pehk
• Veel On Aega – Marilyn Jurman, Karl Kanter – Marilyn Jurman, Karl K

Several names are well known, and a number of artists have already have taken part in the Estonian national selection for the Eurovision Song Contest – Mimicry (2010), Rolf Roosalu (2010, 2009, 2008), Ithaka Maria (Co-wrote the Estonian entry in 1998, and participated in the Estonian selection in 2003, 2004, 2009), Noorkuu (2006), Stig Rästa & Fred Krieger (2009), Rein Rannap (2008), Janne Saar (2009), Sofia Rubina (2006), Jaan Pehk (2009), Jarek Kasar (2009).

Also participating is the winner of the 2008 Estonian version of Pop Idol – Jana Kask – as well as Sven Lõhmus, the composer of the most successful Estonian entry in the last 5 years - Rändajad in 2009 – which finished 6th. Uku Suviste has also become one of the most popular singers in Estonia, after doing very well at the New Wave song contest in Latvia.

2 semi finals will be held this year on the 12th and 19th of February with the national final being on the 26th of February.

Lo Stivale has applied to come back to the Eurovision it was reported last week. While they have until the end of the year to confim for definite it is pretty likely that they will indeed stick with it this time.

Italy pulled out after the ’97 competition stating “It wasn’t a singing competition anymore”. Despite strong international requests Italy have declined to return ever since.

In 2008 San Marino entered the competition in what we can assume was Italy testing the waters, as RAI are a major stakeholder in the local TV station. We can only assume they were less than impressed with the last place San Marino received, good new though they are making a come back this year. Presumably just to give Italy 12 points in the final…

The same year Svante Stanos, then organiser of the ESC, announced that if Italy wanted to come back then they would be part of the “Big 5″, skipping the semis altogether, as they were already such a big contributor to the EBU. Following that after Germany’s win this year questions were asked about the final and the amount of entrants, would one of the semis allow an extra entra in one, as one of the “Big 4″ had won it there would be only 4 automatic entrants to the final – normally the “Big 4″ and the winner, the EBU said that the closest runner up would get an automatic qualification to the final instead to make up the number – queue Turkeys key to the final (not like they needed it at all).  2 months later they say this is no longer the case and they will have to rethink this strategy, within a few days RAI announces that their X-Factor winner will not be entering San Remo this year (think of an Italian ESC, which was the inspiration for the ESC), rumors then started to spread about Italy’s comeback.

In what we can only consider to be renewed interest on RAI’s behalf following Germany’s win this year, proving that it is a singing competition (while Lena has her detractors she still won a singing competition to get to Oslo) and that it’s not all about the new countries anymore, Italy have submitted their application to join again.

But what does this mean for the voting? Does having one extra country actually make a difference at the end of the day?

One can only assume that it will most certainly help Switzerland’s and San Marino’s chances in the Semis, maybe Malta as well. With the large amount of Romanians in the country then they can expect to receive a few points as well.

Every vote counts after all, as we found out this year when several countries missed out on a final position by 2-3 points.

Traditionally the Italian Jury has given the most points to:

Rank	Country	Points
1	France	97
2	Ireland	93
3	United Kingdom	84
4	Spain	81
5	Switzerland	68

Hopefully good news for Ireland as well

So will their X-factor winner actually be their entrant? Will Italy pull out before the deadline? Only time can tell.

NDR have announced who our hosts will be for Dusseldorf. Anke Engelke (Token Frenchie), Judith Rakers (German Hottie) and surprise surprise Stefan Raab, Mr German Eurovision himself,.

Here is the bio that was released for each of them.

Anke Engelke was born in Montreal, Canada and is tri-lingual (German, English, French). She has been a steady figure on German television since she was 12. She is mainly an actress and comedienne, but she has also presented lots of shows for several big German TV channels, like the Berlinale. She has been singing in a soulband for 20 years now and revealed that she is a big ABBA fan since they won the Eurovision Song Contest in 1974. In a first comment, Anke said that is very honoured to be one of the hosts of the 2011 Eurovision Song Contest.

Judith Rakers is one of the faces of ARD’s Tagesschau – the most important news show on German television. On NDR, she presents 3 Nach 9, a talkshow. She has also been involved in NDR’s Hamburg Journal and has been working for the radio, too. She is excited to be one of the presenters’ team for the 2011 Eurovision Song Contest and it is a dream coming true for her.

Stefan Raab is no stranger to Eurovision Song Contest fans as he wrote the German entries in 1998, 2000 – which he performed himself – and 2004. Furthermore, he is the mentor of Lena who won the contest this year for Germany. Stefan is mostly working for private channel ProSieben presenting several entertainment shows. He says that presenting the Eurovision Song Contest is the biggest highlight in his contest career.

According to Breakingnews.ie anyway.

Jedward have set their sights on a place in next year’s Eurovision Song Contest.

The eccentric twins – who rose to fame after appearing in the 2009 series of ‘The X Factor’ – are reportedly in talks to represent their home nation of Ireland in the annual singing competition.

John Grimes – joined in the duo by his brother Edward – said: “We’re going to win it for Ireland. We’re actually serious. We’re in talks.”

Meanwhile, the pair’s manager and ‘X Factor’ judge Louis Walsh thinks Jedward have the necessary “attitude” to win Eurovision.

He added to the Daily Star newspaper: “I’m sure they could win – they have the attitude.”

However, the troublesome twins will probably be giving their usual outlandish stage routines a miss, after Edward was rushed to hospital in July after mistiming a jump and falling awkwardly while performing at ‘T4 On The Beach’.

An onlooker said at the time: “Edward tried to carry on. They might have been absolutely awful but you can’t fault Edward’s commitment. You wouldn’t get that kind of courage from some so-called rock bands.”