Four days into the two week long party, and all delegations competing in the two semi finals have now rehearsed and spoken to the press. Today saw the remainder of the countries in the second semi-final take to the stage and the conference room.
The Netherlands – Sieneke – Ik Ben Verliefd (Sha-La-Lie)
Sieneke did not appear at the Dutch conference until the end, and that was only for photos. She has been having problems with her throat and the doctor has advised her rest her voice. The head of delegation said that they were happy with the rehearsal.
Romania – Paula Seling & Ovi – Playing With Fire
As gimmicks go, it wasn’t bad. Paula and Ovi entered the conference with fire leaping from their hands. Romanian national and Norwegian resident, Ovi said that overall things were good, but there are a few details to be ironed out with the cameras. The transparent double piano used by Paula and Ovi was designed by her husband. Paula told the press about the theme of the song, a fight between a boy and his girl.
Slovenia – Ansambel Žlindra & Kalamari – Narodnozabavni Rock
The group members only met each other after the song had been written and arranged. The main man on vocals said, "The song is about enjoying life in the world, no matter that we are all very different people, let’s bring something different to the Eurovision Song Contest, and show our energy on stage."
They were asked which countries they thought would be most likely to vote for them, "All of those who can’t vote for us any more, like Germany, Austria who don’t compete, maybe we will get some from Switzerland!!"
Ireland – Niamh Kavanagh – It’s For You
Inevitably, Niamh was asked about her winning appearance in the 1993 contest. She replied, "In essence, the work is the same now, but there are more people here. It’s a nice thing that there are more entries now, it makes my part as an artist more comfortable," In essence, the work is the same now, but there are more people here. It’s a nice thing that there are more entries now, it makes my part as an artist more comfortable," she added that she has returned to the contest because of the song.
Bulgaria – Miro – Angel Si Ti
Miro gave a masterclass on how to win friends and influence people when he asked the conference host “how are you?” in Norwegian. Speaking mostly in Bulgarian with the help of a translator, Miro recounted his surprise and delight at winning the Bulgarian final with such a large vote, 50%. He also announced that he will sing Angel Si Ti in both Bulgarian and English.
Cyprus – Jon Lilygreen & The Islanders – Life Looks Better In Spring
The Cypriot performers have been assembled from many places. Jon told everyone, “We’re quite an international mix of people. The composer and lyricist is from Cyprus and within the team we have members from England, Wales and Norway also. We didn’t plan it this way originally. Nasos the composer communicated by internet with our producer Jon Gregory, he produced the song and made it in to a single, then sent it back to promote. After that came the decision to enter for the Eurovision Song Contest for Cyprus, and then of course we were approved for the final and had to put the band together."
The song was described as a love song about the effects that time has on people, how it changes them and that the start of new things brings optimism.
Croatia – Feminnem – Lako Je Sve
Were the girls happy with the rehearsal? “Everything was perfect.” Naturally, they were asked about what would be different this time from their first appearance in the contest for Bosnia in 2005. They believe they are more mature than they were the, and that they are closer to the song this time. They have recorded a song with Miro, the Bulgarian singer, which will be released later in the year.
Georgia – Sofia Nizharadze – Shine
The topic of Georgia’s withdrawal from last year’s contest was raised. The head of delegation didn’t really want to talk about it, saying that the main thing is that Georgia is back this year and it’s all about the music, not politics. They were happy with their rehearsal.
Turkey – maNga – We Could Be the Same
It would be fair to say that the Turkish group were happy with their rehearsal, "This was probably the most professional rehearsal we’ve ever had." For the song, they said they always mix musical styles, and for their Eurovision song, they have mixed rock, traditional Turkish sounds and hip-hop, adding "This is the biggest contest that we know of. It’s a great place for us to be to express our music and represent our nation. To us, this is not just a contest and competition, it’s a festival."
Referring to the female backing dancer, they said that the idea is that she is a cyber character who wants to be like humans.
