Denmark in the Eurovision Song Contest 1957

Eurovision Song Contest 1957
Country  Denmark
National selection
Selection process Dansk Melodi Grand Prix 1957
Selection date(s) 17 February 1957
Selected entrant Birthe Wilke
and Gustav Winckler
Selected song "Skibet skal sejle i nat"
Finals performance
Final result 3rd, 10 points
Denmark in the Eurovision Song Contest
1957 1958►

Denmark took part in the Eurovision Song Contest for the first time at the Eurovision Song Contest 1957, held in Frankfurt, Germany. The Danish entry was chosen during a national final called Dansk Melodi Grand Prix.

Dansk Melodi Grand Prix 1957 was held on February 17, 1957 at the Radiohouse in Copenhagen. The host was Volmer Sørensen

The country was represented by Birthe Wilke and Gustav Winckler with the song "Skibet skal sejle i nat", written by Erik Fiehn and Poul Sørensen. Denmark had wanted to take part in the first Eurovision Song Contest in 1956 but was disqualified because no entry was submitted right in time.

Dansk Melodi Grand Prix 1957

Dansk Melodi Grand Prix 1957
Date: 17 February 1957
Presenter: Volmer Sørensen
Venue: Radiohouse, Copenhagen
Voting: 10-person jury
Winner: Skibet skal sejle i nat performed by Birthe Wilke and Gustav Winckler

The first Dansk Melodi Grand Prix, Dansk Melodi Grand Prix 1957, was held in Copenhagen on February 17, 1957. The show was hosted by Volmer Sørensen. 117 songs had been submitted to the broadcaster and six of them were chosen for the national final. Two singers were competing in the selection - Birthe Wilke and Gustav Winckler. Both performed two songs as soloists and they also performed two songs as a duo. A jury of ten people selected the winner and only the top two were announced, which turned out to be the two duets. "Skibet skal sejle i nat" was the overall winner and would become Denmark's first entry in the Eurovision Song Contest.

Participants

# Artist Song Translation Songwriters Place
1 Birthe Wilke Chanson Ordinaire Ordinary Song Otto Francker -
2 Gustav Winckler Fata Morgana Mirage Sophus Brandeholt, Poul Christoffersen -
3 Birthe Wilke Hele Verden Venter På Vår The Whole World Is Waiting For Spring Eric Christiansen, Anni Weimar -
4 Birthe Wilke and Gustav Winckler Kærlighedens Cocktail The Cocktail of Love Otto Ligton, Carl Andersen 2nd
5 Gustav Winckler Længslernes Veje The Roads of Longing Eric Christiansen, Carl Andersen -
6 Birthe Wilke and Gustav Winckler Skibet skal sejle i nat The Ship Leaves Tonight Erik Fiehn, Poul Sørensen 1st

Releases

"Skibet skal sejle i nat" was recorded and released on an EP of the same title. The runner-up entry "Kærlighedens Cocktail" was included on this record too.[1] After the contest, Gustav Winkler has recorded a German version of the song ("Das Schiff Geht in See Heute Nacht") with Bibi Johns.[2] Winkler himself appeared as Gunnar Winkler on this record, the name under which he was popular in Germany in these days.

At Eurovision

Denmark was the first Scandinavian country in the competition. At the Eurovision Song Contest in Frankfurt, the Danish entry was visually one of the most impressive ones that year: to illustrate the content of the song, which is about a sailor who has to say goodbye to a woman he met and fell in love with during a shore leave,[3] Winkler was dressed up as a sailor and Wilke as a woman standing at the harbour wearing a coat with a purse in her hand. Furthermore, a tar vat was brought on stage to create a harbour atmosphere. The Danish entry was performed ninth (2nd last) on the night following France and preceding Switzerland. At the close of voting, Denmark had received ten points in total placing the country third among the ten participants. Denmark would remain the most successful debuting country in the Eurovision Song Contest until Poland finished second on its debut in 1994. However, Denmark has only received points from three of the other nine countries, most notably five points from the Netherlands.

Voting

Every country had a jury of ten people. Every jury member could give one point to his or her favourite song.

Points given

Points received

Sources

References

This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the Monday, March 02, 2015. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.