In 2011, Glen Vella represented Malta at the Eurovision Song Contest with the track One Life composed by Paul Giordimaina and penned by Fleur Balzan. It was rather unfortunate not to see him qualify by a mere one point especially following such a brilliant performance on the night. Glen has increased his fanbase over the past couple of years and at the moment, he is in Sweden supporting Gianluca, this years' Maltese representative. Glen is a major fan of the Eurovision Song Contest and has gone on record stating that he would absolutely love to return to the competition in the future should the right track come along.

SVT, host broadcaster of the Eurovision Song Contest 2013 invited Glen Vella to attend the reception held last night in accordance with this years' competition. The festivities were incredible and Glen had the opportunity to meet quite a large number of fans with whom he also took the liberty of speaking to apart from posing for some pictures. This evening, as already mentioned on escflashmalta.com, Glen will be performing the EuroCafé in the Malmö City Centre alongside the likes of former winners; Bobbysocks and Linda Martin whilst there will also be the representatives of Armenia and Albania who are known for their rock numbers in the second semi-final. Stay tuned to escflashmalta.com for all of the latest news.

Source: Press Release

Cascada fronted by lead vocalist, Natalie Horler got another promotional activity settled as a performance of the song Glorious, the entry for the Eurovision Song Contest on behalf of Germany took place during this years' edition of the ECHO Awards which took place last night. In recent weeks, there has been a lot of talk over the general commercial disappointment regarding this years' national selection by nevertheless, the winning entry was as high as number #6 and is spending a fourth week in the top #50 which should definitely count as a positive element. That was only one of the several connections with the Eurovision Song Contest that evolved throughout the course of the evening.

Lena Meyer-Landrut, winner of the 2010 Eurovision Song Contest with the track Satellite is still going strong in her native Germany with both the album Stardust and the leading single of the same name managing to go up to number #2 in the charts. During the course of the gala, Lena was awarded with the accolade for Best Video whilst she gave a resounding performance of her latest track entitled Neon (Lonely People) which she had also performed during the national final earlier this year. In the meantime, last years' Eurovision Song Contest representative, Roman Lob was also awarded the Best Radio Single by the organising body for his song Standing Still which got Germany to eighth place at the annual event. Cascada will have to keep in mind that in the past three years, the country has managed top ten positions and thus, she might be feeling anxious but if last nights' performance is anything to go by, she seems very much prepared. Stay tuned to escflashmalta.com for all of the latest news.

Source: ECHO, Lina Schütze (Image)

It is quite apparent that the Eurovision Song Contest is being used as a launching platform for several artists with record labels banking on the exposure to push them to successful pastures and with countries gearing up to select their representative entries for the event taking place in Malmö, Sweden, more artists will move into the fray. Nevertheless, January is somewhat an intriguing month in which early stages of selections are set to take place with six countries having selected their entries for the competition during the month of December as 2013 was still drawing near. In the meantime, singer/songwriter Jean Claude Vancell is definitely going to be one of the key individuals during the upcoming months continuously providing you, the readers with the latest album reviews whilst also coming in as a special guest to analyze a couple of selection formats during the evenings. Following the reviews of the albums Heal and Sans Attendre by Loreen and Celine Dion respectively, another album has been carefully analysed, the one entitled Una Parte Di Me released by Amaury Vassili. What did Vancell think about it? Keep reading this post and find out.

In 2011, following another dismal result achieved by the United Kingdom at the Eurovision Song Contest, the British Broadcasting Corporation decided to take up some noteworthy advice and send an act which had already garnered fame and when the announcement took place, it was met with shock positive approval because the boy-band known as BLUE had accepted and ultimately presented a track entitled I Can which finished in eleventh place in Dusseldorf, Germany garnering major public support and doing dismally in the juries who slammed their vocal performance in the final dress rehearsal. Nevertheless, the group is still on the comeback trail and their most recent single entitled Hurt Lovers has just been released in Germany, which seems to be the new basis of their music campaign.

In recent months, the return of BLUE has been met with widespread approval and following top ten success in Germany, Switzerland and Austria, it seems that their campaign for success continues following their Eurovision Song Contest appearance. They have signed a record deal with Island Records, a subsidiary of Universal Music and have been recording their upcoming album entitled Roulette with a number of producers including none other than RedOne who has worked with the likes of Lady Gaga, Enrique Iglesias, Backstreet Boys, Akon and Nicole Scherzinger. Their latest single which is already out for release on iTunes has hit the number #1 spot in Germany where their basis is and this bodes well considering the early album release set for the 25th January 2013. It seems that the comeback of BLUE is being perfectly masterminded by their management. Stay tuned to escflashmalta.com for more news in the coming weeks.

Source: Official BLUE Twitter, iTunes

Glen Vella has notoriously earned himself the title of one of the leading male performers in the country over a period of time due hard work, dedication and pure loyalty to all of his followers. Since representing Malta in the 2011 edition of the Eurovision Song Contest held in Dusseldorf, he has gone onto release at least two follow up singles which have been given airplay on the leading commercial station in Malta, that being 89.7 Bay Radio and has earned a number of accolades within the nations' leading award ceremonies. Nevertheless, in these past couple of weeks, he has been touring quite a but noting visits to the Scandinavian country of Sweden and also the United Kingdom where two separate OGAE events were taking place. The performances which he gave in both showcases received rapturous applause and that continues to confirm his standing amongst the fans of the international community of the Eurovision Song Contest, who got to know him through the faith put in him by the Maltese public. The opportunities that have come with his representation are worth to be noted especially due to a number of collaborations which are seemingly taking place within each particular event.

The backdrop for the event in the United Kingdom was the Chancellors Hotel in Manchester and Glen Vella was one of the small number of guests invited to entertain the present audience. Another particular individual who garnered a lot of media attention was none other than the 1988 Eurovision Song Contest runner-up Scott Fitzgerald whom many will recall finishing just behind Celine Dion with his song Go by just a mere one point. Turning back the clock, it would have been quite intriguing to see how things could have been for the renowned female performer who has become a leading lady in the world music industry. Glen Vella and Scott Fitzgerald got on very well together because they had some elements in common, noting that the Maltese performed failed to qualify from the semi-final at the expense of Switzerland which managed to garner just one point more hence forth, Scott could somewhat sympathize with him over the result he had achieved. The two performers sung together a number of tracks including Save Your Kisses for Me by The Brotherhood of Man but there were a number of solo performances of several songs including This Is My Life and Popular amongst others. Glen continues to represent the country in the best possible manner. Have a look at his time in the United Kingdom below and stay tuned to escflashmalta.com for all of the latest news as soon as it becomes available. 

Source: Eurovision.tv, escflashmalta.com

Across the European continent and even further outside of the borders, it seems that the Maltese Islands have earned a respectable reputation for the sheer amount of vocal talent that tends to feature either annually or every now and then. There has been a progression with regards to the production of the songs that are being written for local artists and therefore, releases are now even earning rave reviews in foreign waters which have led to a number of performances abroad. Nevertheless, there is a lot of hype over the next edition of the Malta Eurovision Song Contest and whilst we have absolutely no clue on whether such young talent is submitting, a feature would definitely do the artist justice nevertheless especially after being a focal point earlier this year. In fact, the quiet girl with the big voice that I have deemed is none other than Ylenia Vella, whom many will remember as to having backed Kurt Calleja up vocally.

Ylenia Vella burst out onto the music scene at a relatively tender age submitting entries for the Malta Junior Eurosong competition and coming extremely close to being the Maltese representative in 2009 actually with her track My One True Passion finishing in second place behind Francesca & Mikaela with their entry Double Trouble which also reached a respectable top ten finish abroad. Despite the fact that Ylenia never managed to triumph and finished in second, third and fourth place, she decided to not let the experience mar her career and therefore, submitted an application to be part of the showcase Don't Stop Me Now which was set to air on Television Malta and hosted by none other than Eileen Montesin and Christine Haber. Following a number of weeks of performances, Ylenia was crowned the winner of the competition, a stepping stone for the young performer and a chance to be recognized by not only the masses but even a host of songwriters on the Maltese Islands. She got the chance to perform with Kurt Calleja in the Malta Eurovision Song Contest as a female backing vocalist but unfortunately, it seems that she was replaced by another voice as Ylenia had described with Amber later on stating that the decision was taken up by the Public Broadcasting Services and that Ylenia had a fantastic voice which will represent Malta in the Eurovision Song Contest in the future. It will be quite interesting to see whether this will happen anytime soon but whatever the decision of Ylenia Vella will be, she will always have the stupendous voice of an angel.

Source: escflashmalta.com

Glen Vella, one of the nations' most notable names in the local music industry both before and after representing Malta in the 2011 edition of the Eurovision Song Contest with the song One Life composed by Paul Giordimaina and penned by Fleur Balzan which had only failed to make it through to the finals by a mere one point. It has just come to the attention of the editorial board that in recent days, Glen was actually on the road promoting his music once more, this time in Sweden which will be playing host to the continental event in a couple of months time. In fact, the showcase organised by the OGAE Branch in Sweden took place in Harrys Katrineholm which is known to be quite a popular nightclub. Various local and foreign media outlets were covering the event and therefore, there was quite good exposure attributed to the event.

Glen Vella was one of the six acts which received the invite to appear in the event amongst; Lys Assia (Switzerland 1956, 1957, 1958), Joan Franka (Netherlands 2012), Sinplus (Switzerland 2012), Esther Hart (Netherlands 2003) and Birgitta Haudkal (Iceland 2003). During the evening, Glen took to the evening to perform a number of tracks starting with his Eurovision entry One Life before performing an acoustic version of Knockin' on a Heaven's Door in a duet with Joan Franka, which was very well enjoyed by the people present, so much so that the two are in contact to work together on a track in the very near future. Nevertheless, he followed with a cover of the track This Is My Life which represented Iceland back in 2008 and then ended the show by singing a medley of Swedish hits from the Eurovision Song Contest. Glen would like to wish all of the readers of this portal, a huge thanks for all the support shown throughout the years.

Glen has been on a high following his appearance at the continental event though being awarded the Best Male Artist at the ONE Tribute Awards before garnering a nomination for the same accolade at the Malta Music Awards last year. This year in the meantime, he has been busy with brand new single releases of Lie and Louder whilst also getting the opportunity to perform with longtime friend; Eleanor Cassar during her show, a Tribute to the great Whitney Houston. He is currently very busy preparing to leave for a performance in Italy with his Gospel Group Animae which also includes performers such as Annabelle Debono, Janice Mangion, Pamela, Nadine Axisa and Anna Azzopardi amongst others. We would like you to stay tuned to escflashmalta.com for all of the latest news about former representatives at the Eurovision Song Contest.

Source: Press Release

Despite the fact that they failed to win the X Factor back in 2009, finishing in a respectable fifth place ahead of acts which were thought to be finishing much higher, they have managed to carve out a successful career with Universal Music Ireland who have sought to push them to the limits with their music releases. One of the main key factors of their success in Europe has surely been led through two entries at the Eurovision Song Contest, first in 2011 with the song Lipstick finishing in eight place and then in 2012 with the song Waterline which could only manage nineteenth place. Nevertheless, their success continues with their most recent album Young Love charting at number #1 in Ireland, #8 in Estonia and #11 in Sweden and #22 in Finland amongst others. They have decided to release their third single off the record bearing the name Luminous.

Their most recent track is being officially released online through all digital platforms including iTunes for example as from Tuesday, 16th October 2012 although it did get an official release in Ireland just slightly before, 12th October 2012. The songwriters of this song are all Swedish; Sebastian Lundberg, Fredrik Häggstam, Johan Gustafson and Marlene Strand meaning that the sound is somewhat expected to be very much in their original vein. The music video shows the brothers in extremely different form than what many are used to but we will let you judge their appearance and their song. It is important to point out that whilst Jedward have not ruled out returning to the competition anytime in the next couple of years, they said that they could potentially return in the future. Stay tuned to escflashmalta.com in the coming weeks for more news about Eurostars and the 2013 Eurovision Song Contest.

Warner Music have been unequivocally important in promoting the Eurovision Song Contest as of late especially in France noting that the last two representatives of the aforementioned nation are signed to the music label. Turning the attention quickly on the 2011 entrant by the name of Amaury Vassili, it seems that the competition has done no harm in terms of music career with the youngest tenor in the world releasing two singles since his appearance and planning a brand new album which is out in stores within the next couple of months. In a recent interview in the French press, he described his music as lyrical pop but then again, when listening to the latest release from his upcoming compilation of tracks, one would realize how serious he is when it comes to covering music from well known composers.

In fact, the brand new album entitled Una Parte Di Me will be featuring classical compositions of Mozart, Chopin, Brahms and Tchaikovsky amongst others. The release date has been set for the 22nd October and there is a lot riding on this collection after his first two albums managed to rank in the top ten in France with Vincero peaking at number #9 and Cantero managing even one place better at #8. Amaury was the favourite to win the 2011 edition of the Eurovision Song Contest with the beautiful Sognu but it was not meant to be finishing in a disappointing fifteenth place after what many described as a good but not excellent performance of a difficult and challenging song. Stay tuned to escflashmalta.com in the coming days and weeks for more news as soon as it becomes available.

Source: Official Facebook Page

The British Broadcasting Corporation, which is also the representative member of the European Broadcasting Union for the United Kingdom was proud to present the last night of The Proms yesterday evening, which is of course the culmination of an eight-week season of daily classical music concerts as well as other events held during the year within the Royal Albert Hall in London. The stars of the show last night were none other than Nicola Benedetti and Joseph Calleja, who most recently gave a spectacular summer concert in his homecountry alongside the musical styling of Ronan Keating and Gigi D'Alessio. It was another triumphant success for the Maltese Tenor who continues to grasp the music context of classical music day by day and ultimately give riveting performances throughout the whole year.

Joseph Calleja has proudly represented his country in these past couple of years with numerous performances all around the world in some of the most prestigious venues including The Paris Opera House, The Sydney Opera House and also The Metropolitan Opera and so forth but this had to be the biggest television audience thus far noting that The Proms especially, the last night are somewhat broadcasted all over the realms of the Commonwealth and for the first time, also transmitted through the Public Broadcasting Services on both normal and High Definition Channels. As the Maltese tenor led the symphony with the song Rule Britannia, he wore a black shirt showcasing a cross of the Knights of the Order of St.John, which is very symbolic to the Maltese whilst wearing the Olympic Uniform used by the British athletes earlier this year during the Olympics held in London. At numerous times during the evening, the audience could not contain their excitement, singing along to the respective tracks and also stood up giving Calleja, standing ovations. It was truly a night to be proud to be Maltese and British at the very same time. Stay tuned to escflashmalta.com for all of the latest from within the local music scene.

Source: British Broadcasting Corporation