The editorial team of escflashmalta.com has somewhat been busy with bringing you the latest news from the world of the Eurovision Song Contest in recent days whilst also letting you select your favourite entries in both semi-finals as well as selecting the best song in the final. At the end of the voting for the final, the decision was unanimous and the favourite for victory was none other than Italy whose entry L'Essenziale performed by Marco Mengoni will definitely be scoring high with both the Maltese Jury and Tele-Vote if past voting patterns are anything to go by. More than 500 unique votes in just a couple of hours made such a selection although thousands had correctly predicted seven (7) and eight (8) out of ten (10) qualifiers during the semi-final stage.

L'Essenziale, co-written by Marco Mengoni, Roberto Caslino and Francesco de Benedettis is one of the most successful entries in this years' edition of the Eurovision Song Contest having peaked at number #1 in Italy for more than two months whilst also entering the charts in Belgium and Switzerland. Following his victory at the Sanremo competition, Mengoni saw the heights of his profile rise to the extent of a superstar by appearing on several A-List shows and private events apart from making the cover of every magazine possible.  The song, a typical Italian ballad will have surely scored a lot of points with the jury noting that back in 2011, it was Italy who had won the Jury Vote when represented by Raphael Gualazzi and his entry Madness of Love (Follia D'Amore).

• 1st: Italy
• 2nd: Romania
• 3rd: Malta
• 4th: Hungary
• 5th: Denmark

Many will surely be surprised at the top five of the poll even though the numbers clearly deteriorate towards the end with the bulk picked up mostly by the top three as is to be expected when the poll is open for just a couple of hours. Romania who are being represented by Cezar and his entry It's My Life are somewhat a strange selection for the second place although it is rather well known that they will do much better than expected and most likely score mid-table this evening. In third place comes Gianluca whose smile has changed the perception of many. Tomorrow co-written by Dean Muscat and Boris Cezek seems highly placed to get the nations' best result from comments by the foreign media and many do hope for the best. Stay tuned to escflashmalta.com for all of the latest news. 

In years gone by, the running order of the voting process was scheduled in the same manner in which the performances took place but nevertheless, the system was altered a couple of years back when the juries gained their voting priveledges back, and which now undoubtely decide half of the respective result. The European Broadcasting Union would like to make the best possible showcase for the millions of viewers watching all over the world including; China and Australia and therefore, where possible, changes in the leaderboard will be implemented just to create an exciting feeling for all to enjoy.

Valletta, the capital city of Malta will be the backdrop for the voting this evening with the spokesperson being none other than Emma Hickey, otherwise known as Jeremy's love interest in the music video for Tomorrow, which is the entry representing the country in the international music showcase. The song which is co-written by Dean Muscat and Boris Cezek with vocals provided by Gianluca got through to the final round following an initial qualification phase held on Thursday. Malta was announced as the ninth country following what seemed to a nerve wracking situation. This evening, during the final of the Eurovision Song Contest, Malta will be performing in position number #9.

1. San Marino (John Kennedy O'Connor)
2. Sweden (Yohio)
3. Albania (Andri Xhahu)
4. Netherlands (Cornald Maas)
5. Austria (Kati Bellowitsch)
6. United Kingdom (Scott Mills)
7. Israel (Ofer Nachshon)
8. Serbia (Maja Nikolic)
9. Ukraine (Matias)
10. Hungary (Éva Novodomszky)
11. Romania (Sonia Argint)
12. Moldova (Olivia Furtuna)
13. Azerbaijan (Tamilla Shirinova)
14. Norway (Tooji)
15. Armenia (Andre)
16. Italy (Federica Gentile)
17. Finland (Kristiina Wheeler)
18. Spain (Inés Paz)
19. Belarus (Darya Domracheva)
20. Latvia (Anmary)
21. Bulgaria (Joana Dragneva)
22. Belgium (Barbara Louys)
23. Russia (Alsou)
24. Malta (Emma Hickey)
25. Estonia (Rolf Roosalu)
26. Germany (Lena)
27. Iceland (Maria Sigrun Hilmarsdottir)
28. France (Marine Vignes)
29. Greece (Andriana Magania)
30. Ireland (Nicky Byrne)
31. Denmark (Sofie Lassen-Kalhke)
32. Montenegro (Ivana Sebek)
33. Slovenia (Andrea F)
34. Georgia (Liza Tsiklauri)
35. F.Y.R. Macedonia (Dimitar Atanasovski)
36. Cyprus (Loukas Hamatsos)
37. Croatia (Uršula Tolj)
38. Switzerland (Mélanie Freymond)
39. Lithuania (Ignas Krupavicius)

All of the participating countries in this years' Eurovision Song Contest will be casting their votes, half of them as decided by a panel of professional experts and the other half by the million of people watching in their homes. As one could denote from the list above, there are a number of well known individuals who will be reading out the points of their country, amongst them being; Tooji (Norway), Anmary (Latvia), Lena (Germany), Alsou (Russia) and of course, the most famous one being Nicky Bryne of the former group, Westlife for Ireland. Speculation is running high that Italy did extremely well with the juries last night as opposed to Denmark who might have not scored one of the top results. This is yet to be seen. Stay tuned to escflashmalta.com for more of the latest news.

Source: eurovision.tv

Good Evening! Malmo, Sweden is playing host to this years' edition of the Eurovision Song Contest and in the past couple of days, thirty-three (33) participating nations had to compete for twenty (20) elite spots in the final round of the prestigious competition leaving thirteen (13) in the lurch. This evening is relatively important considering that juries in all of the participating countries will be selecting their favourites and of course, awarding half of the points which will be allocated tomorrow. It is important to denote that Malta will be competing in the final round for the second consecutive year after the qualification of Gianluca and his entry Tomorrow from the second semi-final which took place last night. We wish him the very best of luck this evening.

escflashmalta.com thanks to Juergen Boernig, the Head of Press is currently also processing a couple of video interviews with artists who will be representing their country at the Eurovision Song Contest. As a matter of fact, stay tuned on our YouTube Page for all of the latest. In the meantime, you may also have a look at our photo gallery whilst staying up to date through both our pages on Facebook and Twitter. Coverage of the Final of the Eurovision Song Contest will be led by Antoine Farrugia, Senior Editor for escflashmalta.com alongside special guests; Lauren White who has most recently signed a Publishing Deal with Universal Music Group and Brooke, winner of the Best Solo Artist at the Malta Music Awards earlier this year. 

The Show (Part 1)

SVT, host broadcaster of this years' Eurovision Song Contest should be commended on such an astonishing production and the acts selected for the opening and the interval have provided great entertainment. It's like the Olympics as the bridge is lowered and all of the finalists are in a procession like poise promoting themselves prior to the start of the actual show. Once more, Petra Mede is clad in an original Jean Paul Gaultier creation and despite not being black as worn last night, it seems to be pretty pink!

France

Amandine Bourgeois is clad in a beautiful black dress which seems to have come out of the 1920s era when charleston had been popular. The backdrop is stunning and has to be one of the most elaborate to be honest with graphic designs in the form of a wallpaper but lit within the beat. Amandine is joined on stage by two female backing vocalists and this has a lot of sass and thus coming across beautifully on screen. This has to be an intriguing openinng number and whilst, it would not have been my choice to open, it definitely gets the attention of many. She throws the microphone stand to the floor with anger. Stunning vocals, will earn a lot of points from the jury for being artistic. 

Lithuania

'I have to tell you something', how are you even competing in the final? Andrius Pojavis is lacking charm but nevertheless, managed to turn it on during the semi-final performance. This is a generic pop track which had managed to get my attention during the national final but has literally wilted. Andrius is wearing the same outfit from the semi-finals and is also joined on stage by the same team of backing vocalists. The backdrop is purple and there is nothing really wrong with this except that it is pretty boring. This is definitely a candidate for last year for singing number #2 and for being dull!

Moldova

Pasha Parfeni, the representative for Moldova last year is back on stage playing the piano and dancers are spread out across the stage for what is a pretty elaborate choreography. The staging is kept dark but nevertheless is lit up as the night sky appears. Aliona Moon is terrified this evening but nevertheless, it is defnitely not showing in the vocals. This is one of the songs which has a gimmick through the dress which changes colour and unites with the backdrop at times. Mid-way through the song and then throughout the bridge, Aliona rises to the higher point of the stage and this looks astonishing. Whoa! Impressive, I think that this will be receiving a lot of points tonight!

Finland

Krista Siegfrids is back on the stage of the Eurovision Song Contest and is performing her very own Las Vegas number which features a wedding which has to be re-thought. This track has been the centre of a controversy due to the fact that the lead vocalist ends up kissing one of the backing dancers. As a matter of fact, there are both backing dancers and backing vocalists on stage, clad as groomsmen and bridesmaids respectively. This is coming across beautifully on screen and Krista is definitely a good vocalist. Well, this is going to pick up tele-votes but I am not too sure about jury votes!

Spain

Ohh! Despite wearing black in the opening number held on the bridge earlier this evening, she is now clad in a flowing yellow dress. The beginning of the song on the flute is just wonderful and as we turn to the main stage, there is Raquel joined by the boys of ESDM and she is barefoot performing the song in the best possible way. I must say that this is an absolutely wonderful song but for some reason this presentation is just not working at all and the vocals are rather disappointing. I had been saying that this will not be competing for one of the last couple of spots but unfortunately, I have to say otherwise. I am not sure this will be picking up a lot of jury votes but it do a France 2012. 

Belgium

Roberto Bellarosa was one of the surprise qualifiers in the first semi-final and it seems that being clad in a suit and seen by millions of people has helped the artist garner recognition. Roberto is really performing well this evening for some reason and that could be just because the semi-final performance is out of the way. He is moving across the stage and is showing stage presence. The backdrop is featuring the title of the song and it has to be said that even I am thumping along to this one despite not thinking it would make it out of the semi-final stage. Roberto will be picking up a couple of points tonight but he will not be setting the scoreboard on fire.

Estonia

This has to be one of the most wonderful ballads competing in this years' edition of the Eurovision Song Contest with Birgit wearing the same white gown she was in the semi-final. She is a brilliant vocalist and has always a stunning repertoire of notes. Despite being in Estonia, it manages to capture the essence of many and this should easily do well. Whilst it might not be setting the tele-votes on fire, it should pick up a lot of votes this evening. I am predicting a mid-table result for this one. Well done to Birgit! Sometimes, I am left speechless and this is definitely one of those times!

Belarus

Following Estonia, Belarus just sounds terrible to be honest. Alyona Lanskaya walks out of the disco ball wearing a sparkling silvery dress. She is joined on stage by two dancers and three backing vocalists and whilst this might not be the typical jury favourite, it will definitely pick up some votes to finish mid-table. The vocals this evening are quite disappointing though and it seems that she is very nervous. Nevertheless, due to the strategic positioning of Belarus, this could manage to get Paelinck best result. Alyona Lanskaya needed to nail it this evening and I do not think she did. 

Malta

Gianluca takes to the stage in his white shirt, bright orange trousers and black waistcoat. He is joined on stage by two female backing vocalists, a drummer, a ukelele player, and a guitarist. This came through the second semi-final last night after being announced ninth. The vocals this evening are easily resembling the ones of last night. The backdrop featuring the lyrics of the song is definitely not in the way and aids the performance getting the public to sing a long. The public are very much engaged in this performance and this is coming across really well. He was somewhat nervous at some points but nevertheless, worked through them brilliantly! Malta should at least get a mid-table result.

Russia

Pink! but nevertheless, not anywhere close to the dress worn by the hostess because this is lighter and extremely salmon like. She is joined on stage by four backing vocalists and the staging has not changed a bit noting that there are balls on the stage and at the end of the performance is also seemingly throwing some balls into the audience. Dina Garipova is one of the most brilliant vocalists in the competition but I cannot believe I am saying this but she has just missed the high note and the juries will definitely penalise it for that. It might have just ruined her chances of victory. 

Germany

Nathalie Horler feeds off the crowd and is definitely pleasing the public. Many people have stated that this track might be too similar to Euphoria but nevertheless, the group Cascada invented this type of music in recent years. She is definitely enjoying this performance and comes down the flight of stairs, takes to the catwalk in stunning fashion. I am definitely not ruling out a return to Germany for next years' edition of the Eurovision Song Contest. Call me a fan, but wow, that was amazing!

Armenia

Eyebrows! That is definitely the focus of this performance. Armenia definitely qualified thanks to the power of the Rock voters or rather, the fans of Tony Iommi of Black Sabbath who co-wrote the song. The performance is nothing out of this world noting that it is just a typical band who are spreading out a message. Armenia did not take part in last years' edition of the Eurovision Song Contest for political reasons but are definitely excited to return in the final. Vocals are on key and are sounding pretty well. Nevertheless, this will do better than expected but won't be in the top ten. 

BREAK

The Netherlands

Anouk, one of the most competent performers in this years' edition of the Eurovision Song Contest takes to the stage for the final having managed to take The Netherlands through for the first time in eight years. She is wearing a dark outfit, the same within the semi-final. Initial reports were that she was supposed to start on the main stage but is giving the satellite stage another go. The lights are still in her eyes unfortunately but she is creating this mystical element by keeping them closed. The vocals are mesmerizing as expected from Anouk and I seriously believe that with a strong jury vote this evening along with a decent tele-vote that it could finish in the top ten. 

Romania

Cezar had to be one of the most intriguing acts to compete in the semi-final stage last night and took Romania through to the final keeping their perfect record in tact despite maybe not settling in with the typical voter at home. The fact that the jury had to vote on vocal prowess, original and an overall performance might have helped him solidify that vote and indeed, this will most likely get a mid-table result due to the juries this evening. Vocally, Cezar is stunning and he is indeed one of the up and coming tenors in his country. The staging is beyond over the top but I will keep to the comments above. 

United Kingdom

In the beginning, Bonnie Tyler had some vocal issues but nevertheless, she is a legend and does pick up after the first minute. This is a feel good country ballad and Bonnie does somewhat still have a vocal prowess that people might have to watch out for. There is a good round of applause in the press centre and the hall in the arena went relatively mad. Believe In Me will not be getting the top ten result that the United Kingdom would like to be honest but I am sure that her fanbase will enjoy this performance and vote for her tomorrow night to give her a mid-table result. 

Sweden

The host country of this years' Eurovision Song Contest has selected a song by virtue of an international panel of judges noting that You was not the choice of the public. Robin Stjernberg is wearing a white outfit and he is joined by several dancers and this choreography is just out of this world and whilst it looks a little bit squashed in the opening rehearsals, it has definitely come across well. The vocals need to be perfect for this performance and wait for it, they definitely are. Sweden will most likely be heading for another top ten result, meaning it would be the third one in a row and a continuation of positive history.

Hungary

Alan Montonaro, who was guest blogging for the Times of Malta absolutely enjoyed this performance last night and Alex is actually enjoying his performance ever so slightly this evening despite not showing it too much. There is no emotion for the performer but nevertheless, the look is very much translating well on screens. I had this as a qualifier last night and it is definitely giving everyone in the hall and the press centre an extremely good feeling. The vocals are fine and the song is just beautiful. Well done Hungary, this could be the best result for quite some time. There is a lot of applause for this one and considering the commercial sales, I would say this is picking up a lot of tele-votes.

Denmark

The pied piper has just started playing the flute and the audience has just gone mad. The crowd is definitely enjoying this performance. Emmelie de Forest is wearing the same white dress which she was wearing within the semi-final and is joined by drummers and backing vocalists. Many people have this down as their winner for this years' edition of the Eurovision Song Contest but I am not too sure it will manage to. The vocals are good this evening and will definitely get a potentially strong vote by the juries but should this win, it will do thanks to the backing of the public. The pyro curtain has just been used towards the end. 

Iceland

Eythor Ingi is one of the best male vocalists in this years' competition and has decided to stay with his black suit for the performance. The staging is kept really dark in order to accompany the mood of the song, which definitely reflects on personal experiences. Mid-way through the song, four male backing vocalists come onto the stage. Eythor Ingi has a stunning vocal range and he is definitely showing the jury this evening that he is more than competent to carry off practically the phone book. Stunning! Iceland deserve to finish in the top ten. This gets a huge reaction in both the press centre and the hall. 

Azerbaijan

Farid Mammadov is one of the worst performers when it comes to nerves but has the best ability in the competition to handle them because his vocals are stunning as always. This will definitely win a lot of points in the staging and originality sections which the juries have to assess this evening. The man in the glass box is managing to keep up this evening as was the case last night whilst the female dancer comes along and adds to the drama. Whilst this is coming in a difficult part of the draw following Denmark and Iceland, this is still going to competing for points and will be taking most of the typical points which Turkey normally gets considering their absence. 

Greece

There is a lot of commotion in the press centre for this performance especially due to the fact that this is following two ballads and a mid-tempo song. Greece are bringing about the only ethnic song in the competition and this is musically stunning. I am not too sure about the choice of lyrics but as soon as you start bopping along, you would lose the lyrics and just love the music. The boys are definitely good looking as been said by many and therefore will be getting that type of vote as well during the final tomorrow night. This is an extremely polished performance. I have no clue how this one will do but it could finish in the top ten.

Ukraine

According to the Betting Odds, this is still the third favourite to win this years' edition of the Eurovision Song Contest and I understand why because Zlata has one of the most powerful female voices in the competition. The initial walk with the giant is just silly though and might have come across as too much of a circus act during the semi-final. Zlata is wearing the cream/white outfit that she was wearing in the semi-final and seems that she will be sticking to this. Whoa! This part of the final is quite difficult and I am somewhat even more convinced that Denmark might not win. 

Italy

Marco Mengoni, the Italian hearthrob who stole the show at Sanremo earlier this year. He is wearing a teal suit as seen in this afternoons' rehearsal video and whilst this might not look great on the same video below, it comes across beautifully on the cameras. This is definitely going to pick up a lot of votes with the juries this evening considering that Sanremo is somewhat riddles with juries. He is definitely trying to play with his vocals and it seems that the performance is far too emotional. The vocals are just stunning and he manages to impress. I am sure that the juries will give this an extremely high position.

Norway

The magnificient Italy is followed by Norway who is represented by Margaret Berger. This is the second favourite for victory and clad in a tight white dress, this performance is far more convincing that the one that she gave in the semi-final in terms of vocals. The camera shots are good but it would have been better if they managed to recreate the feel of the Melodi Grand Prix. Berger is trying to convince the public. She does receive a lot of applause in both the press centre and the audience. It sounded strong tonight and it could derail Denmark. Norway have definitely managed to win over ample support in a couple of days. 

Georgia

Sophie and Nodi take to the stage in one of the final performances of the evening. This is track co-written by Thomas G:son who actually wrote the winning entry last year. They are both clad in formal attire this evening as has been the case throughout all of the rehearsals. The choreography is as cheesy as the song to be honest. The vocals are good or rather better than they were in the semi-finals but I believe that nerves have been getting the best of her mostly. Georgia will not be finishing in the top five though as previously expected. Massive applause in the arena for this one though. 

Ireland

Fire! Stunning end to this years' edition of the Eurovision Song Contest. I might not have been the biggest fan of Ireland when it was chosen to represent the nation. Ryan Dolan is still clad in casual clothing and the rest of his team is going about the shirtless look apart from the female backing vocalists. Ryan is a good vocalist but this is not the best rehearsal that he has had and will definitely suffer with the juries. Nevertheless, following the ballad that comes forward from Georgia, I would not expect this to do badly and whilst it would not be troubling the top ten, a mid-table position is very much possible. This is applauded well in the press centre. 

The Show (Part 2)

Petra Mede, our funny hostess for this years' edition of the Eurovision Song Contest is back on stage with the same dire outfit she started out with and says that the competition is actually over but time to turn to the public at home who will be decidnig half of the vote. A recap of the performances is currently being shown on screen and remember that Malta will be singing in position number #9. That's it from us this evening as we focus on the actual final tomorrow night. I have a sneaky feeling that the jury vote will be going towards Italy and The Netherlands. The interval act which will not be shown on Television Malta will include Carola and Sarah Dawn Finer.

In recent years, the Eurovision Song Contest has been regaining prestige with music labels across the continent due to the fact that exposure is guaranteed especially for those who make it through to the final and therefore get to be seen by millions of people across the world. Malta, for the second consecutive year will be participating tomorrow evening with all of the success definitely merited to Anton Attard, Head of Delegation for Malta who has redesigned the selection procedure from the initial stages in order to attract the foreign whilst keeping the product genuine and local. 

Tomorrow, co-written by Boris Cezek and Dean Muscat with vocals provided by Gianluca is a track which has a happy go lucky feeling and the charm and grace of the lead vocalist has been essential towards the success of the semi-final last night. Commercial success is not easy to achieve and whilst This is the Night did managed to have such positive acclaim, it was only after the final rather than the semi-final. Tomorrow has entered the iTunes Charts in several countries, with the most predominant though being The Netherlands where he peaked at #55 as well as Norway where he managed to climb to number #80 apart from managing positions #2 and #3 in Malta. Stay tuned to escflashmalta.com for amore of the latest news as soon as it becomes available. 

Source: esctracker

escflashmalta.com has somewhat been focusing on the participation of Malta in the Eurovision Song Contest in the past couple of days as expected but nevertheless, we are proud to announce the exclusive launch of a brand new single entitled Superhero by Jean Claude Vancell. 'Quirky, subdued and reserved', the track will be hitting the radio stations in the next couple of days as Jean Claude Vancell continues to prepare for a couple of new releases in 2013. The message of the song is rather intriguing as it looks at the unspoken thoughts of a stalker, and a new found obsession for the stalker's love interest narrated by Vancell.

The track is also a stepping stone for Jean Claude, marking the launch of his first solo music video. With a self-written storyline, artistic direction by Monica Farrugia and photographic direction by Alistair Farrugia, the video is a small journey into the stalker's world. The video also features Michelle Mifsud. Jean Claude's summer will be as busy as ever as he takes the stage as one of the singers of Akustika's summer concert to be held in August, together with solo appearances and new releases. For more information about the release of the single, we encourage you to visit the official website of Jean Claude Vancell whilst the single can also be downloaded for free only for a limited period through this website. Stay tuned to escflashmalta.com for more news about local artists, even those who are part of the editorial team.

Source: Press Release

The official website of the Eurovision Song Contest has just revealed the running order of the final of the prestigious event following an executive meeting between members of the Host Broadcaster and the European Broadcasting Union. Following a number of disappointing years in which the same genres were placed alongside each other, the organising body thought best to decide the running order. It wasn't a completely free reign though as each country had to draw their own half of the draw in an allocation ceremony which for the 'Big Five' was held during the first press conference following their technical rehearsal. 

It is important to note that Sweden had drawn their position beforehand in order not to create any bias. This therefore gave the organisers some limitation over the second half of the draw especially after drawing number #16 in the final. Malta, who qualified from the second semi-final last night thanks to a marvelous performance by Gianluca and the rest of his team, including; Louise Ann, Samaria, Kenny D'Ugo, Christopher Tate and Gabriel Cassar, has been drawn in position number #9 following an allocation to the first half of the draw. The allocation took place during the press conference held after the semi-final stage of the competition which saw to the qualification of Iceland, Finland, Norway, Armenia, Hungary, Azerbaijan, Greece, Georgia and Romania.

1. France
2. Lithuania
3. Moldova
4. Finland
5. Spain
6. Belgium
7. Estonia
8. Belarus
9. Malta
10. Russia
11. Germany
12. Armenia
13. The Netherlands
14. Romania
15. United Kingdom
16. Sweden
17. Hungary
18. Denmark
19. Iceland
20. Azerbaijan
21. Greece
22. Ukraine
23. Italy
24. Norway
25. Georgia
26. Ireland

In the press conference following the semi-final, Gianluca who was accompanied by Anton Attard, Head of Delegation for Malta insisted that the position in the running order was secondary to him and the rest of the team noting that the performance is always more important. During the second semi-final, Malta had to perform in slot number #6 following an advert break and despite many saying that this could be detrimental, it did not prove to be the case. The editorial team of escflashmalta.com would like to extend congratulations to Gianluca and the rest of the delegation from Malta, a nation which has managed to qualify for two years in succession thanks to ample hard work and dedication from everyone involved.

Source: Eurovision.tv

Tomorrow, co-written by Boris Cezek and Dean Muscat with vocals provided by Gianluca has just qualified into the final of this years' edition of the Eurovision Song Contest following what has been described by foreign critics as a solid performance. Apart from a catchy tune which definitely got the crowd going in the arena, the whole team impressed the audience with their onstage charisma, one which has shined through every performance during the promotional tour as well as the rehearsals in the lead up to this evening. 

Gianluca who took to the stage following a promotional advert which aired on Television Malta as well as a break within the arena for a comic sketch by Lynda Woodruf (Sarah Dawn Finer). As soon as the envelopes were being called out, there were several gasps in the audience for the simple reason that people were not expecting countries such as Hungary and Armenia to qualify despite their impressive performances. Malta was called as the ninth qualifier in a random order and frankly, the same position that Kurt Calleja and his entry This is the Night was called. The running order for this evening will be drawn momentarily. escflashmalta.com will keep you updated with all of the latest news.

• Azerbaijan - Second Half
• Finland - First Half
• Iceland - Second Half
• Malta - First Half
• Greece - Second Half
• Armenia - Second Half
• Hungary - Second Half
• Norway - Second Half
• Georgia - Second Half
• Romania - Second Half

Source: eurovision.tv

Tonight! Malta will be taking part in the second semi-final of the Eurovision Song Contest following a series of technical and dress rehearsals, the last of which commencing later on this afternoon. The excitement for all of the seventeen participating countries is definitely high and considering the surprises that came about when announcing the qualifiers of the first semi-final, everyone is seemingly on edge to see which songs get through to the final stage. With the countries drawn from all across the continent, it will be hard to predict the full set of qualifiers because there might be someone who sneaks in unknowingly. A non-scientific analysis is seen below to hopefully predict the qualifers of the evening pertaining to two different factions. Remember that escflashmalta.com will be having a live report conducted by Antoine Farrugia and guest writers; Davinia and Christabelle. 

In recent weeks, escflashmalta.com has collaborated with a number of professional personnel from all across the world with vast knowledge about the music industry. The seventeen entries which will be competing in the second semi-final this evening were thoroughly analysed and graded both on an individual basis and also within the context of a competition. The latter scoring system was taken and added to the result of the public poll to create ten qualifers based on the system used at the Eurovision Song Contest which gives 50% weighing to the public and another 50% weighing to a professional jury. We are glad to reveal the results of the qualifiers according to this result in alphabetical order. The system was explained in order to answer any queries with regards to why countries may be missing from the poll on the right hand side of the screen which has now been closed.

• Azerbaijan
• Finland
• Georgia
• Hungary
• Iceland
• Malta
• Norway
• Romania
• San Marino
• Switzerland

There was a general consensus between the public and the professional panel of experts on eight tracks in total whilst noting that both factions predicted a song each which the other did not, leaving a song out in the process which had received the same type of result. In the meantime, out of the six (6) non-qualifiers predicted, both sides agreed on a total of four (4) entries and awarded them no points. escflashmalta.com would like to denote that this is not the opinion of the website with each of the professional panel as well as the public casting their personal votes. In the second semi-final the panel consisted of Stano Simor, Sharon Vaughn and Martin Isherwood. Stay tuned to our portal in the coming hours for more of the latest news. Remember that Malta will be competing in the second semi-final. All shows will be shown on TVM with commentary by Rodney Gauci and Gordon Bonello.

Source: escflashmalta.com, eurovision.tv