Yesterday, I saw a Dutch film on a Middle-Eastern country, featuring the way people there organise music and entertainment contests. The only thing that participants are allowed to do by way of choreography, is to snap their fingers. Any form of outspoken excitement is banned. Women are not allowed to the stage at all.
Never mind what this image might make you think – the cultural difference is fascinating and definitely worth seeing.
In this sense, I was interested to read that Abulfas Garayev, Azerbaijan’s Culture and Tourism Minister, said that they are working more and more on the country’s joining the Eurovision Song Contest not later than 2008. For more information, visit http://en.apa.az/news.php?id=36706
Wonder where the boundaries of European music can be posed? Are we facing here the phenomenon of music that has no borders..? If Israel, Georgia, Moldova, and now Azerbaijan participate in a European music forum, shall we expect the US joining in shortly? Or Australia, where indeed Eurovision enjoys huge popularity. And why not? For one thing, last year Georgia’s ESC entrant Sopho with her Visionary Dream was amazing with the combination of ethnic and European, a blend between national folk and world-wide house music.
The ESC is not necessarily reserved for European countries only. The only thing that worries me is that in a couple of years, we’ll end up with 10 instead of 2 Semi-Finals.
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