The Konkors Kanzunetta Indipendenza has been well adapted not only to promote the best in local talent but also the language with the competition remaining the only particular background for Maltese, one of the main items which many can identify to be heritage. The pace of the festival went smoothly except for a small minor glitch during one of the latter entries which prompted an immediate restart and ultimately a great response from the audience. The Established Category featured performances from twenty acts in total with a variety of genres well represented whilst the Teenage Category features a total of four entries this time round because of a tie in third place in the second phase of competition which was televised through the programme Indifest as hosted by Ronald Briffa and Christine Haber who were also the comperes for the evening. In the end, the winners of each respective category were agreed upon by the jury panel made up of Mike Spiteri, Ludwig Galea, Mandy Micallef Grimaud and Matthew Calleja. 

It is important to point out that the introduction of the mychoice.pn award was a welcome addition with the online voting racking in multitude of votes from all over the country whilst the tele-voting has always kept things on edge. The top three results were resoundingly met with applause especially as Domenique with the track Tama u Kuraġġ composed by Philip Vella and penned by Cher Vella was the first announced in third place, followed by Marilena Gauci and her song Bl-Ikbar Serjetà composed by Philip Vella and penned by Joe Chircop and then finally a content and surprised Deborah C with the anthemic Jekk Nużaw Moħħna penned by Joe Chircop to the music of Mark Spiteri Lucas. In the meantime, when it comes to the teenage category, the jury played a pivotal role in selecting the track Bil-Bnadar F'Idejna composed by Miriam Christine and penned by Joe Chircop therefore making Joe Chircop, one of the most decorated men in the competition alongside Mark Spiteri Lucas who together also went onto tele-voting with Deborah C and the aforementioned Jekk Nużaw Moħħna as well as the mychoice.pn award which went to Roseanne Cordina with the track Id-Demm ta' Raymond composed by Mark Spiteri Lucas and penned by Paul Ellul. Below you can note the full result, an escflashmalta.com exclusive.

Teenage Category

01. Bil-Bnadar F'Idejna - Sarah Bonnici (Miriam Christine / Joe Chircop) - 208 points

02. Ħbieb ta' Veru - Maria u Justine (Kaya / Christopher Azzopardi) - 192 points

03. Il-Libertà - Antoine u Kayleigh (Ray Agius / Michael Vella Haber / Evelyn Saliba La Rosa) - 176 points

04. X'Qaltli L-Arzella - Antonella Rapa (Mark Spiteri Lucas / Joe Friggieri) - 164 points

Established Category

01. Jekk Nużaw Moħħna - Deborah C (Mark Spiteri Lucas / Joe Chircop) - 388 points

02. Bl-Ikbar Serjetà - Marilena Gauci (Philip Vella / Joe Chircop) - 368 points

03. Tama u Kuraġġ - Domenique (Philip Vella / Cher Vella) - 337 points

04. Id-Demm ta' Raymond - Roseann Cordina (Mark Spiteri Lucas / Paul Ellul) - 314 points

05. Mhux L-Ewwel Darba - Neville, Ivan u Claire (Augusto Cardinali / Giovann Attard) - 304 points

06. Indipendenti - Danica Muscat (Philip Vella / Cher Vella) - 294 points

07. Kemm Xtaqt - Laura Bruno (Frederick Camilleri) - 292 points

08. Dell L-Istilel - Rachel Verzin (Dominic Cini / Stephen Baldacchino) - 282 points

09. Ħalluni - Kylie Coleiro (Philip Vella / Joe Chircop) - 275 points 

10. Għidli Int - Julie Pomorski (Augusto Cardinali) - 274 points

11. Missjoni Impossibli? - Ishmael Grech (Philip Vella / Rita Pace) - 271 points

12. Se Nibda Jien - Dario u Grecia (Dario Bezzina / Rita Pace) - 256 points

13. Mill-Bidu Nett - Francesca Scerri (Elton Zarb / Rita Pace) - 237 points

14. Tagħna L-Isbaħ Żmien - Esilana (Ray Agius / Alfred C Sant) - 229 points

15. Dan Mhux Tmiem - Corinne Caruana (Mark Scicluna / Rita Pace) - 225 points

16. Id F'Id - Simone Gauci (Renato Briffa / Keith Zammit) - 221 points

17. Rebbiħin - Francesca Sciberras (Miriam Christine / Celestina Sciberras) - 205 points

18. Abjad u Iswed - Stephanie Zammit (Philip Vella / Gerard James Borg) - 189 points

19. Kburin Bik - Christian Azzopardi (Philip Vella / Joe Chircop) - 177 points

20. Flimkien - Kristen Camilleri (Philip Vella / Cher Vella) - 176 points

escflashmalta.com had the opportunity like in the past two years to speak to the winning artist and composer of the track, this year being none other than Deborah C and Mark Spiteri Lucas respectively. The Gozitan singer who is currently reading for a Bachelor of Arts Degree at the University of Malta is extremely happy with the victory stating she indeed 'did not expect it' and ultimately adding that it was even more positive to note that the 'jury and the public agreed unanimously' on the track which they have worked hard to present. She thanked all of the people who supported her from Gozo and Malta as well as her entourage for making this a possibility. Speaking to the composer of the track, he told us that since 2001, he has managed to finish on top on 'five different occasions' making this his 'third victory in six years'. He notes that it was a combination of teamwork which saw to the fact to break records in the Konkors Kanzunetta Indipendenza making this the first entry 'to win both the public and jury vote within the same year'. The editorial board would like to congratulate all of the respective winners and better luck next time to all those who tried and did not succeed this time round.

Source: Konkors Kanzunetta Indipendenza, escflashmalta.com

Mike Spiteri, Lawrence Gray, Amber, Annabelle Debono, Miriam Christine, Ira Losco, Tarcisio Barbara, Claudette Buttigieg and Kaya could all note to have at least one thing in common and that is being winners of the elite Konkors Kanzunetta Indipendenza which has been organized by Media.Link Communications for a numerous number of years, noting that this years' edition will be the twenty-first in total and fifteenth consecutive one as a matter of fact. The committee behind the competition led by Mark Azzopardi and including members of the escflashmalta.com editorial team have worked hard to include a number of innovations in the past two years noting the beginning of a seating area which would definitely keep the audience at bay as well as the official preview videos for each track to help aid in terms of promotion. There is stiff competition this evening, featuring twenty acts that will be leading the way in the Established Category and another four acts who will compete in the Teenage Category as revealed last week on Indifest as shown on NET Television.

The Konkors Kanzunetta Indipendenza will be hosted on The Granaries in Floriana by Christine Haber and Ronald Briffa and will be featuring guest performances by Mike Spiteri who returns as last years' winner as well as Kurt Calleja and his band who represented Malta in this years' Eurovision Song Contest albeit never managing to make it through to the final stage of the Konkors Kanzunetta Indipendenza. In the meantime, it has to be noted that there will be a number of awards that will be given out this evening including the online voting which has been ongoing through mychoice.pn, the tele-voting through the clips which have been put online and on NET Television throughout the summer and also the jury voting as chosen by Media.Link Communications. The latter two will be important for both categories with a separate award for the Established Category for each and a combined vote for the Teenage Category which will feature 60% Jury and 40% Tele-Voting. escflashmalta.com would like to wish everyone the best of luck and invite the people to attend or tune into NET Television at 20:30 CET to watch the proceedings unravel live.

Teenage Category

01. Bil-Bnadar F'Idejna - Sarah Bonnici (Miriam Christine / Joe Chircop)

02. Ħbieb ta' Veru - Maria u Justine (Kaya / Christopher Azzopardi)

03. Il-Libertà - Antoine u Kayleigh (Ray Agius / Michael Vella Haber / Evelyn Saliba La Rosa)

04. X'Qaltli L-Arzella - Antonella Rapa (Mark Spiteri Lucas / Joe Friggieri)

Established Category

01. Flimkien - Kristen Camilleri (Philip Vella / Cher Vella)

02. Tagħna L-Isbaħ Żmien - Esilana (Ray Agius / Alfred C Sant)

03. Rebbiħin - Francesca Sciberras (Miriam Christine / Celestina Sciberras)

04. Id F'Id - Simone Gauci (Renato Briffa / Keith Zammit) 

05. Abjad u Iswed - Stephanie Zammit (Philip Vella / Gerard James Borg)

06. Kburin Bik - Christian Azzopardi (Philip Vella / Joe Chircop)

07. Indipendenti - Danica Muscat (Philip Vella / Cher Vella)

08. Missjoni Impossibli? - Ishmael Grech (Philip Vella / Rita Pace)

09. Jekk Nużaw Moħħna - Deborah C (Mark Spiteri Lucas / Joe Chircop)

10. Kemm Xtaqt - Laura Bruno (Frederick Camilleri)

11. Se Nibda Jien - Dario u Grecia (Dario Bezzina / Rita Pace)

12. Mhux L-Ewwel Darba - Neville, Ivan u Claire (Augusto Cardinali / Giovann Attard)

13. Dan Mhux Tmiem - Corinne Caruana (Mark Scicluna / Rita Pace)

14. Mill-Bidu Nett - Francesca Scerri (Elton Zarb / Rita Pace)

15. Bl-Ikbar Serjetà - Marilena Gauci (Philip Vella / Joe Chircop)

16. Dell L-Istilel - Rachel Verzin (Dominic Cini / Stephen Baldacchino)

17. Għidli Int - Julie Pomorski (Augusto Cardinali)

18. Ħalluni - Kylie Coleiro (Philip Vella / Joe Chircop)

19. Tama u Kuraġġ - Domenique (Philip Vella / Cher Vella)

20. Id-Demm ta' Raymond - Roseann Cordina (Mark Spiteri Lucas / Paul Ellul)

Source: Konkors Kanzunetta Indipendenza, My Choice, escflashmalta.com

One of the most prominent dates on the local music calender is surely the one which features the Konkors Kanzunetta Indipendenza, which is somewhat known as the largest competition in the country to feature original songs in the Maltese language. The annual spectacle is organized by Media.Link Communications has always provided a lot of entertainment for those watching noting that most of the artists to have competed have somewhat gained a name for themselves and are ultimately even achieving a respectable status in foreign waters. The standard of the competition has always been maintained at an extremely high level and this year is no different noting that all of the finalists were picked through internal auditions in front of musically trained professionals as well as people with vast years of experience within the music industry. Nevertheless, the key to success for both an artist and a competition is promotion and henceforth, for yet another year, Media.Link Communications along with the Committee of the Konkors Kanzunetta Indipendenza have carefully divulged a programme which gives exposure to each of the respective finalists. 

The 2012 edition of the Konkors Kanzunetta Indipendenza features a host of talent noting that there are a number of newcomers as well as individuals who have been rightfully earning their place in the local music industry. Apart from meeting three (3) people each week, two (2) from the Established Category and one (1) from the Teenage Category, there are also a number of weekly special guests. In fact, last week, the programme had the honour of meeting up with none other than Christabelle and Lyndsay who have been dominating the local music charts in recent months. In the meantime, NET Television and their professional crew have been busy recording all of the songs, preview videos, which were uploaded through viral website, YouTube but nevertheless, we encourage you to follow Indifest and escflashmalta.com to to get to know the people in the competition better.

Ira Losco, Lawrence Gray, Mike Spiteri, Claudette Pace, Claudia Faniello, Miriam Christine, Eleanor Cassar, Mark Tonna and Annabelle have one thing in common and that is that they all have managed to win the Konkors Kanzunetta Indipendenza in the past couple of years noting that they have represented the local music scene with the best possible tracks possible featuring a mixture of beautiful lyrics to compliment serenading music. Seeing such high profiles artists winning the competition is very intriguing and noting that most of them were newcomers to the local music scene, going onto win other showcases such as the Malta Eurovision Song Contest following their appearances here. The Konkors Kanzunetta Indipendenza remains to be one of the most significant dates in terms of the music calender because it remains to be a major force in terms of representing the Maltese language, an element that ultimately speaks volumes about the heritage of any country. escflashmalta.com is proud to be covering this years' edition of the Konkors Kanzunetta Indipendenza for the third year running as we give all of the finalists the exposure they deserve in the long run. The fourth entry to be analysed is the one entitled 'Għidli Int' written by Augusto Cardinali and performed by none other than Julie Pomorski.

In my opinion, this has to be the most complex and different from all of the track competing in this years' edition of the competition noting that it speaks about this person who has not always done the right thing in life, hoping to turn back time and review every wrong decision taken up.  Life is never easy and the cards that are dealt to a person might not always live up to the expectations that many are led to believe and that is why, extra courage has to be summed up in order for the right path to be chosen. Turning to a friend will always help and although in this case, the friend might be more of a self-explanatory figure, one would definitely understand the whole concept. The track easily translates into 'You Tell Me' hence why there is a somewhat secondary figure in the track itself. The songwriter of this song is Augusto Cardinali, an individual whose work in the field of music needs no introduction noting that he has took part in the Konkors Kanzunetta Indipendenza on a number of occasions with his best result coming a couple of years ago thanks to Claire Caruana whose song Arpeġġ finished in third position. Normally, he co-writes with Giovann Attard and they do have a track together but he is flying solo with this one actually.

Moving onto the performer of the track, what an astonishing return from someone who looked to be one of the most dominant figures in the local music scene just a couple of years back. Julie Pomorski first came to prominence when she won the Għanja tal-Poplu competition seven years ago in 2005 with a track entitled Żewġ Qagħqiet which was composed and penned by the same Augusto Cardinali. Trust is an important issue with a number of performers and it seems that she has continuously worked with the individual noting that her success in the Maltese language has always come with him. Just two years following her victory in the competition, she returned to a much more successful music showcase noting that she entered the Malta Song for Europe for the very first time with the song Look At Me written by the popular Philip Vella, who wrote the music to five Eurovision entries for Malta from 2000 till 2008. Julie has come a long way since then noting that even her performances have drastically improved. She has been busy dealing with a number of things in the past couple of years but this is promising to be a comeback, one which will get her back into the field. Just a gentle reminder that the song that she will be performing in the Konkors Kanzunetta Indipendenza bears the name Għidli Int and will be performed later into the night within position eighteen. You can see the official video of the song just below and stay tuned to escflashmalta.com as well as the page of the Konkors Kanzunetta Indipendenza for more updates in the coming days.

Source: escflashmalta.com, Konkors Kanzunetta Indipendenza