The geopolitics cannot be kept outside the Songfestival bubble

A world of difference. For example, Songfestival commentator Cornald Maas mentions the contrast between the current edition of the Eurovision Songfestival in Basel, Switzerland and last year’s fierce edition in Malmö in Sweden. That was « the last year ever, » said Maas, who has been presenting the event for many years and is also a member of the selection committee who selects the Dutch entry on behalf of AVROTROS.

The festival was in Malmö under high voltage Due to the participation of Israel, while countries found that the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) dropped large stitches at dealing with artists, with the disqualification of the Dutch entry Joost Klein as the low point.

The EBU promised improvement and took measures to get pressure from the boiler for participants. There is one Welfare Managerthere are spaces where nobody is allowed to film, not even artists themselves. Maas, on the Thursday afternoon prior to the second semifinal: « It is backstage a miracle of peace and safety. Even when the Israeli delegation rehearsed for the first time last week. »

The Dutch participant Claude (21) will be in the final on Saturday. Together with his family, he fled from Congo in 2013. The performance, which depicts his life course, is doing well with the betting offices: he is currently in fourth place, after Sweden, Austria and France. Maas: “He is very wise for his age. I think it is a miracle how he regards the world and how he involves others in his story. He is whole outgoingeveryone asks if they are enjoying themselves. « 

The EBU measures also help him, although not everything is going perfectly. When a short fragment came out of a vocal less strong rehearsal of Claude last week, unrest immediately arose. That certainly had an impact on him, says Maas: « It doesn’t help, especially if you are a young guest like him. But he goes into it with an open mind. »

On Saturday, Claude is the turn of the twelfth. After him comes one of the sensations of the festival, the Finnish Erika Vikman with ‘Ich Komme’. This edition is characterized by a large number of bombastic and hyperactive acts. Top favorite is Sweden with a tribute to the sauna. Maas: « We are not really awarded to us. More and more countries are pulling everything out of the closet to impress the audience. »

Exclude or not

Despite the more relaxed atmosphere and the airiness of many acts, the geopolitics cannot be kept outside the Songfestival bubble. The participation of Israel is very sensitive to various former participants, some broadcasters and some of the fans. The Swiss Songfestival winner of last year, Nemo, also thought that the country should have been excluded. The EBU points out that not the country, but the Israeli public broadcaster can send the candidate. And the broadcaster meets the conditions for participating. Critics point out, among other things, that Russia has been excluded from participation since the raid in Ukraine.

Israel qualified for the final on Thursday. That was in line with expectations: the country receives many voices from viewers. During the performance of singer Yuval Raphael, a survivor of the Hamas attack of October 7, 2023, some brewery sounded in the hall and some people turned their backs to the stage. At the last rehearsal of the semi -final, there was more noise: then a part of the audience was called hard with whistles brought, something that could be heard clearly from the nearby press room. Palestinian flags could also be seen in the audience. This is allowed, there is only a ban for artists to wave on stage and in the Green Room with flags other than their own country.

Modest demonstration

A day before the semi-final, about two hundred Pro-Palestinian demonstrators came together who are against Israel’s participation. They walked in a modest protest march through the center of the city and across the historic Mittler Brücke. One of the demonstrators, the 77-year-old Urs Hänggi, had brought a sign with the words « Thank You, Nemo, » referring to the Songfestival winner of 2024. Hänggi told him to be happy that the singer is so pronounced, « there is a nocide going. » Zione Schulthiss (79) ran near him. « Gaza is being starved and they are bombing. This cannot continue. I am also very sad that my government is not protesting against this. »

The younger protesters were less willing to speak to the media. Multiple demonstrators, however, pointed to the discrepancy in their eyes between the cheerful festival and the situation in Gaza. Demonstrant Peter, who does not want his last name and age in the newspaper, addressed the group before the mars started: « If Israel did not participate in the Songfestival, these people would also sing along, dance and share the culture of Basel with everyone. »

The chance of a victory for Israel is small, but something surprising can always happen, says Maas. « If the televoters go for it en masse and the professional jury also thinks: this is a nice song, then Israel can win. I believe that the articles of association can only organize the Songfestival if the conditions are such that safety can be guaranteed. In this case, I say with a sense of Understatement. »

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