During this week, Romania will be hosting the “Carpthian Star Festival” and Kaya’s students together with one student thought by Miriam Christine Borg, will be competing. The contest is divided into three sections; Section A involves singers between 7-10 years, in which 38 participants are competing and in which , and will be singing. 41 singers between 11 and 14 years will be competing in Section B. Three Maltese singers will be competing in this section; Maria , and Miriam Christine Borg’s student, . Section C involves 36 singers between 15 and 20 years, and will be contested by .

The mentioned young singers have previously represented Malta and gained high positions in other international festivals in Lithuania, Italy, America, Bulgaria, Egypt, Russia and others. The Romanian contest is split into four days, the last day the most awaited by the participants in which the results will be read out during a Gala Dinner. Kaya will be part of the jury but she will not give her votes to the Maltese participants. She will also be a special guest during this contest. This is a great way to expose local talent abroad. It is important to note that Kaya is one of the finalists of the Malta Eurovision Song Contest whilst Miriam Christine already did the honours of behalf of the nation in 1996.

Source: Press Release

1. Anna Blagova - You
2. German - Keep fight
3. Aura - Hands up
4. Aleksandra Gaiduk & Nataliya Baldina - Loveless
5. Gunesh - And morning will come
6. Anastasiya Vinnikova - Shining in twilight
7. The Champions - It's your time
8. Yan Zhenchak & Outerplain - A point of no return
9. Ekivoki - Number one
10. Victoria Aleshko - Dream
11. Alena Lanskaya - All my life
12. Uzari - The winner
13. Nuteki - Superheroes
14. Litesound - We are the heroes
15. Thriller - Message to the world

The final will then be taking place on the 28th January 2012. Earlier this year Belarus was represented by Anastasiya Vinnikova with the song 'I Love Belarus' which failed it to make it out of the semi-final stage. The best result for the country was back in 2007 when Dmitry Koldun and the song 'Work Your Magic' finished in the top ten. Keep following Escflashmalta for all the latest news about Belarus and the 2012 edition of the Eurovision Song Contest taking place in Baku, Azerbaijan.

Source: BTRC

“Min Imissu?, Malta’s first ever satirical TV show aired prime time on Television Malta, has already gained success after just 2 programmes. “Min Imissu?” comes from the producers of popular TV Series Deceduti and L-Evangelisti. It’s a unique comedy show where a variety of elements and characters are all blended together and juiced up with a solid dose of actuality, satire and good natured humour in a cabaret style show. In each programme, we meet a particular guest, who meets up all the different characters and who surely must be ready for any type of comment! Next Sunday’s guest will be none other than singer and presenter Andreana DeBattista, who happens to be the programme presenter but who seems to have been given a Christmas surprise in this week’s particular programme!

Andreana DeBattista happens to be Carlos DeBattista’s sister, who is one of Take2’s producers and she is ‘in charge’ to present the programme, which she has done really well and passionately during the past weeks. But in next Sunday’s programme, she’s going to be the ‘criticised’ one! Andreana’s particularity is her very smooth and thin voice, which makes stand out in the Maltese scene. Her voice adapts perfectly to jazzy music and smooth ballads. Her singing career led her to be a residence singer in various television programmes on the Maltese stations, and she participated numerous times in the Malta’s Eurosong, the latest being in 2010, with the girl trio “Foxy Federation”.

And with the Festive Season behind the door, in a recent article published on “The Times” in November, we got to know more the quite-shy character of Andreana, who told the readers that she doesn’t really believe in New Year’s Resolutions, although for 2012, Andreana dreams of being more organised, and of being the proud owner of a clean car, something she continuously struggles with. Andreana would also like to believe more in herself in the new year. Although she is a very success singer and also successful in other talents, Andreana is still not convinced, because she thinks that there there’s still much space for self-improvement, an attitude which perhaps we can all adopt in the light of a fresh year coming up.

So tune in tonight with the cast of “Min Imissu?”, this week featuring a great Maltese singer, Andreana DeBattista, at 20:30 for a hearty dose of sketch based comedy from Gordon Bonello, Manolita Ellul, Maruska Mallia and some new faces from week to week. It is surely the ideal programme to chase away the blues and set the audience in the right mood for the week ahead.

Source: The Times, Television Malta

Kurt Calleja started off his vocal training at a very young age and after 4 years of training under Mro.Brian Cefai, Kurt took a leap in his career and went to London. While he was there he performed in Clubs like Tiger Tiger and Host. The King's Arms and Bada Bing where amongst other places where he occasionally gave a performance. Back in Malta he started off as a backing vocalist on a television program and landed a solo on another television station.

From then on he has had gigs here and there and is still working very hard to achieve his greatest goal. The musical career of a local artist is not easy to gain prominence but then again there a number of showcases which can propel an individual to nationwide recognition. One of such events is surely the Malta Eurovision Song Contest within with the singer Kurt Calleja made his debut back in the year 2010 when alongside established veteran Priscilla Psaila, he made it into the finals with the song 'Waterfall' but earlier this year, he also reached the competition as a soloist with the song 'Over and Over' reaching the second runner-up position. He is working hard in order to prove the success of male artists here in the country and infact, this week, Kurt Calleja released the video for this years' entry composed by Johan J'Amtberg and penned by Kurt himself.

The song has continuously gained recognition on both local and international airwaves and with the support of Undo Productions, the team behind the track have just finished recording its video. The story-line of the video under the direction of Daniel Abdilla who has just won the 'People's Choice' award in a short movie festival in the United States of America features a love interest in the form of singer/actress Christine Haber. In the beginning, one can easily note a short roleplay in which Kurt will be admitting certain feelings and then just a couple of seconds, the song commences. The music video also includes a band who are recording the song alongside the main singer showing a brand new side of Kurt Calleja, one which the people would never notice. The video shows Kurt’s hopeless romantic side, which he himself admits of owning.

The launch was organized last Wednesday, at 2 22 lounge in Valletta, amongst friends and collegues. The singer would like to thank all of his team of sponsors starting with Mangano who provided all the clothes for all the scenes for: myself, Christine and the band; 2 22 lounge in Valletta. He would also like to thank Attard Bros. who provided him with a lavish apartment in Ghadira Malta to shoot some more scenes, Shasha for the make-up and Hairlab Hairdressing in Zebbug for the hairdos; and finally Anjelica Ellul of Comfort Zone Malta. Kurt would like to ask for a favor saying; “Please share it on your facebook walls because we need as many views as possible to push the Maltese name in productions abroad. As always, I thank you for the time, and your support means the world to us – God bless and lot’s of love”.

Kurt Calleja has also made it to the upcoming Maltese Eurovision Finals, which will be held on the 3rd and 4th February 2012, with the song, “This is the night”, once again written by Kurt himself and composed by Johan Jamtberg. On behalf of the editorial board of ESCflashmalta and all our followers, we would like to congratulate Kurt Calleja on the launch of this very professional music video and wish him all the very best for the upcoming Malta Eurovision 2012, for which he is surely starting off as a ‘favourite’.

Source: Facebook

The first semifinal of Festivali i Këngës 50, the Albanian national festival with which the country's Eurovision entry is usually chosen, has come to an end. Ten participants have managed to qualify for the final night, which is scheduled to be held on December 29th. Three hosts were appointed by the RTSH, the Albanian broadcaster, for tonight’s show; Nik Xhelilaj, Hygerta Sako and Enkeleida Zeko. You can find the evening qualifiers just below.

1. Gerta Mahmutaj - Pyete zemrën

2. Bashkim Alibali - Këngën time merr me vete

3. Endir dhe Stefi Prifti - Iluzion

4. Samanta Karavello - Zgojmë një tjetër ëndërr

5. Rudina Deliu - Më kërko

6. Rona Nishliu - Suus

7. Altin Goci - Kthethem prapë

8. Elton Deda - Kristal

9. Hersi Matmuja - Aty ku më le

10. Marjeta Billo - Vlen sa një jetë

This year’s edition is characterized by a fight between upcoming names in the Albanian scene against veterans in their country’s musical scene. This prestigious Albanian festival is being staged over a number of days, which incidentally, is celebrating its 50th Anniversary. The next semifinal is going to be held tonight, December 27th. This will be marking the ninth participation of the nation in the annual Eurovision Song Contest with their best result being the one achieved back on their debut when the singer Anjeza Shanini, one of the present day leading acts in Albania did the honour with the song 'The Image of You' which remains a favourite of many fans up to this present day. ESCflashmalta will be keeping you posted with all the latest news from Albania and the 2012 edition of the Eurovision Song Contest as it becomes known.

Source: RTSH

Following an open call for submissions last December from the Hungarian Television MTV and MTVA, a professional jury consisting of nine members( including musicians, radio and tv professionals) selected the 22 best songs out of more than 200 submissions , which get the chance to represent Hungary in this year’s Eurovision Song Contest. The channels m1 and Duna World will broadcast live the national semi finals on 28th January and 4th February and most important, the national final, which is scheduled for the 11th February where a total of 8 songs will compete for the Baku ticket.

The Hungarian Television and MTVA received 202 songs by 170 submitters for this year’s national selection. The professional jury picked the best twenty songs which will be performed in one of the two semi-finals and the final qualified eight songs will get a step closer  to represent Hungary in Baku this year. The live show series will be aired on the channels m1 and Duna World with the title "A Dal" ("The Song") on Saturdays between 28 January and 11 February, starting at 20:00 CET with a duration of 100 minutes. Besides the hopefuls, viewers get to see other star performances as well.

The live show tv-jury will have four members: Kati Wolf, Hungary's ESC representant of 2011, Jenő Csiszár, radio and tv presenter, Philip Rákay, programme director of m1 and Viktor Rakonczai, composer and former ESC contestant. In the semi-finals, the jury’s points will determine three qualifying songs whilst the last song to qualify will be determined by the televoting. 4 songs will qualify from each semi-final. Televoting will have its most important say in the final, where the winner will be selected with 100% televoting after a ‘semi-final’ in the final night between the 8 finalists. Finally, here are the chosen 22 songs; in an order depicting the arists, songwriters and then song titles.

1. Anti Fitness Club - Molnár Tamás: Lesz, Ami Lesz
2. Bebe and the Change - Vigh Arnold/Zsedényi Dániel: Fans Will Be Friends
3. Caramel - Molnár Ferenc Caramel: Vízió
4. Compact Disco - Pál Gábor, Sándor Attila, Walkó Csaba, Behnam Lotfi: Sound Of Our Hearts
5. Dancs Annamari - Dancs Annamari: Feel
6. Fábián Juli & Zoohacker - Palásti Kovács Zoltán / Fábián Julianna: Like A Child
7. Gallusz Niki-Vizy Márton - Vizy Márton/Vigh Kristóf: Európa, Egy A Szívünk
8. Gyurcsik Tibor - Szabó Zé/Johnny K. Palmer: Back In Place
9. Heinz Gabi - Naughty Monkeys: Learning To Let Go
10. Kállay-Saunders András Kállay-Saunders András, Szakos Krisztián, Burai Krisztián/Kállay-Saunders András: I Love You
11. Király Linda & Ben & Viktor - Pras Michel, Roy Hamilton, Linda Király: Untried
12. Kiss Gina - Jónás Barnabás/Kiss Gina: Chasing Dreams
13. Kökény Attila-Bencsik Tamara - Krajczár Péter, Pacsai Márk, Tabár István, Kökény Attila: Állítsd Meg Az Időt
14. Monsoon - Vödrös Márton/Johnny K. Palmer: Dance
15. Pély Barna-Pál Eszter-Pál István "Szalonna" - Pély Barna, Pál Eszter, Pál István/Fecske András István, Pély Barna: Open Your Heart
16. Puskás Péter - Molnár Gábor: Csillagok
17. Sophistic - Krajczár Péter/Juhász Orsolya, Rozman Alexandra, Schilling Kolos: Yeah OK!
18. Tolvai Renáta - Krajczár Péter, Pacsai Márk, Tabár István: Élek A Szemeidben
19. Tóth Gabi - Szabó Zé/Molnár Tamás : Nem Kell Végszó
20. Veres Mónika "Nika" - Molnár Imre, Chris Landon/Taryn Murphy: This Love

“I have been a Eurovision fan for as long as I can remember, and Sandra Kim was the great heroine. Finally, it is my turn to participate.” cheered Reidun Saether, who was announced by NRK as the next participant in the 2012 Melodi Grand Prix, through which Norway will decide the singer and the song for the Baku Eurovision Song Contest.

Saether, who is repeatedly referred to as “ the girl with the big voice”, said that her song gets her heart pumping and that “The song is real girl power and a love tribute at the same time. It is a song I really love to sing.” It was only this year that the Akershus girl has managed to participate in this kind of competition, after having been trying for years. Saether sees herself as “a perfect vocalist who is capable enough to sing high and low, weak and strong, without limiting herself.” The three people behind the text and music are Ovi, Thomas G (son) and Tommy Berre, who for years have proven that their musical compositions can be successful Norwegian-Romanian Ovi, managed to reach third place in the finals of 2010, while Swedish G (son) stood behind Carola’s hit “Invincible” and won with Guri Schanche in Norway back in 2007.

Source: NRK

Belarussian band Litesound are reported to have applied for EuroFest 2012, marking their sixth attempt to represent Belarus in the contest. Litesound are no strangers to the Eurovision fans and Belarussian public. They began their quest to represent the country back in 2006, with the song ‘My faith’, with which they classified in the 6th position in that year’s Eurofest.

In 2007, they were very close to qualify for the Eurovision Song Contest with the song “Summer Trip” with which they placed second in the televoting in an edition where only the act with the highest score and other two enries chosen by the jury had the right to proceed to the final. In 2008, Litesound took part in EuroFest with an entry titled “Do you believe”, failing once again to win the Belarussian ticket to Belgrade. The band's fourth and to date last appearance at the national final was in 2009, when they ended up on the 3rd place singing “Carry on” featuring Dakota.

They also participated in the “Musical Court” contest”, aired by broadcaster ONT and intended to select representative for Eurovision 2010. Litesound also participated in the contest Musical Court, aired by broadcaster ONT and intended to select the Belarussian representative for Eurovision 2010. Once the ONT got its EBU membership application denied, the contest lost its initial purpose and BTRC took over the Eurovision preparations. Litesound tried their luck again via the official broadcaster, but eventually 3+2 with their song “Butterflies” - made up of former contenders from “Musical Court” and “New Voices of Belarus”, went on to represent the country. Should Litesound be amongst the 25 shortlisted acts to participate in EuroFest 2012, they would be taking part in the Belarussian selection for the sixth time.

Other artists said to apply for this year's national selection in Belarus are and , which songs have already been published online. On November 25th, applications deadline will pass in Belarus. 15 acts and 30 songs will be selected to participate in the EuroFest semifinal on December 21st. Five acts will qualify for the final, to take place in the second half of January 2012.

Source: ESCtoday, Belta.by

Fifteen songs will compete in Söngvakeppni Sjónvarpsins 2012, the Icelandic selection for next year's Eurovision. They will be divided in 3 groups that will compete in three semifinals to be held in January. The grand final will take place on February 11th.

According to Icelandic public broadcaster RÚV, the Söngvakeppni Sjónvarpsins structure will remain the same as the one that has been in force for a few years now. There will be three semifinals, which are going to be held on January 14th, 21st and 28th. A so-called “reminder” show screening all the qualifying songs, will be aired on February 3rd, while the grand final is set for February 11th. The names of the composers has also been revealed at this stage and therefore you can see them below:

• Axel Árnason and Ingólfur Þórarinsson
• Árni Hjartarson
• Ellert H. Jóhannsson
• Gestur Guðnason
• Greta Salome Stefánsdóttir (two songs)
• Herbert Guðmundsson and Svanur Herbertsson
• Hilmar Hlíðberg Gunnarsson
• Magnús Hávarðarson
• María Björk Sverrisdóttir with Fredrik Randquist and Marcus Frenell
• Pétur Arnar Kristinsson
• Sveinn Rúnar Sigurðsson (three songs)
• Valgeir Skagfjörð

A total of 15 acts will battle to represent Iceland in the 2012 Eurovision Song Contest. Each semifinal will feature five entries. Two of them will go through the final thanks to televoting, thus the viewers will select six finalists. It is yet unknown if a jury will also select additional Icelandic qualifyers. This is an option being considered by RÚV at the moment. Earlier this year, Iceland was represented by Sjonni's Friends in Düsseldorf. The song “Coming home”, composed by Sigurjón Brinck, sadly, came 20th in the final.

Source: RÚV

Bulgaria’s national selection today has shortlisted its acts from thirty-three to twenty-two after six long auditioning hours held at the BNT studios. These chosen acts will go through the two semifinals, starting on January 14th. The jury (called 'Academy' in the Bulgarian selection) and the viewers via SMS voting will determine the 12 finalists that will fight for the ticket to Baku on a still-to-be-decided date, most probably in February. One should keep in mind that the nation of Bulgaria have only made it to the finals on just one occasion at the Eurovision Song Contest back in 2007 as they presented the song 'Water' performed by Elitsa & Stoyan.

The interest this year has also been remarkably impressive with the acts proposed by the large panel of judges seemingly agreeing on the artists. The broadcaster responsible for the pre-selection process are trying to select the best possible song for the annual music competition with an aim to reach the most positive result ever for the nation following a number of non-qualifications. These are the 22 qualifiers in Bulgaria, as rated today by the 'Academy':

1. Group 'New 5' - Chance for better life

2. Ivaylo Kolev - Searching for the words

3. Desislava (Dess) - Live is alive

4. Tsvetelin Atanasov-Elvisa ft. DZ - Love goes around

5. Sofi Marinova - Prosto lyubov

6. Steliyana Hristova - Putyat

7. Alex & 4Give - Dream

8. Margarita Hranova - Proshka

9. Todor Gadzhalov - Still love you

10. Viktoriya Dimitrova - Novo nebe

11. Svetozan Hristov - Keep me down

12. Group 'Better than grey' - Dream

13. Georgi Vurbanov - This is my green wave

14. Sonya Ivanova - Finalna lyubov

15. Rene Ranev - Alone

16. Teni Omede - Without you

17. Sunnie - Shut your mouth and do it

18. Vyara Pantaleeva - Vyara

19. Ivaylo Kolev - Ima li put

20. Simona Sivanio - Eternal

21. Monika Kirovska - You are my angel

22. Group 'Go Week' - The way you see the world

Source: BNT