EPAMia Nicolai and Dion Cooper during their performance at the Eurovision song contest
NOS Nieuws•vandaag, 10:44
AVROTROS will expand the selection committee that determines the Dutch Eurovision entry after the disappointing result at this year’s Eurovision song contest. This year it is also possible to submit a song for which a suitable artist will only be found later in consultation with the committee.
Songs can be submitted from now until September 30. It has not yet been announced who will sit on the extensive selection committee. Only the new head of the selection committee is already known: that will be Twan van de Nieuwenhuijzen, who has been involved in the organization for some time.
AVROTROS says that “the committee will be further expanded with new representatives from the music industry”. The committee now consists of Cornald Maas, Sander Lantinga, Carolien Borgers and Hila Noorzai. They stay. AVROTROS director Eric van Stade leaves the committee. Jan Smit left earlier this year.
Last year there was already a selection procedure in which everyone could mail one or more songs to AVROTROS, and that procedure therefore remains largely unchanged.
Little stage experience
The selection committee chose the last song festival for the song Burning Daylight. The song, which was co-written by former winner Duncan Laurence, stood head and shoulders above all other entries, according to the committee. But artists Mia Nicolai and Dion Cooper had never performed together and Nicolai, in particular, trained as an actress, had little stage experience.
The song also proved challenging for their voices. Substandard performances followed in the preparation and criticism of the duo, but also of the selection committee, increased. Shortly before leaving for the Eurovision song contest in Liverpool, it was decided to adjust the song: the song was raised one and a half tone so that it better matched the voice of the duo.
Slash out
The screams (which sounded out of tune before) were also replaced by more subdued and shorter endnotes. And a choir came to support them on stage, so that they themselves had to sing the second voice less often.
The final performance at the Eurovision song contest went well, but the duo did not advance to the final. As a result, criticism of the selection and the selection procedure continued. AVROTROS said it would evaluate the process and not rule out the return of the national song festival. The public can vote for an artist or song that will go to the Eurovision Song Contest on behalf of the Netherlands. Due to a lack of success in the past, AVROTROS had previously abandoned it.
The Eurovision Song Contest will be in Malmö next year because the Swedish Loreen won this year with the song Tattoo.
