The Voice (song)
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| The Voice | |
|---|---|
| Eurovision Song Contest 1996 entry | |
| Country | Republic of Ireland |
| Artist(s) | Eimear Quinn |
| Language | English |
| Composer(s) | Brendan Graham |
| Lyricist(s) | Brendan Graham |
| Place | 1st |
| Points | 162 |
| Lyrics | from the Diggiloo Thrush |
| Video Clip | ESC performance |
The Voice was the winner of the Eurovision Song Contest 1996, performed in English by Eimear Quinn representing Ireland. The music and lyrics were composed by Brendan Graham, who also composed the Irish winner from the 1994 Contest.The victory, which was Ireland's fourth in five years, was their seventh Contest victory, which remains a record for the most contests won by a single country.
Quinn was a student at the Cork School of Music when she was approached by RTÉ to represent Ireland at Eurovision. It placed first with 162 points, easily defeating the song I evighet by Elisabeth Andreassen of Norway. It was awarded the maximum douze points by seven countries: Turkey, Switzerland, Estonia, Slovenia, Netherlands, Poland and Bosnia and Herzegovina. The top song from the qualifying round, from Sweden collapsed to finish third in the final.
Lyrically, it is a very Celtic-inspired song, with the singer portraying herself as "the voice" which watches over the world, describing "her" effects on the natural world, such as the wind, the seasons, in a similar way to Mother Nature. It is of a folk style and is sung at a very high pitch. Quinn was accompanied by traditional Irish percussion, woodwind and string instruments.
The jury decision 1996 Contest was greeted with dismay amongst the public opinion of the audience, which began to leave the arena once the count had become a foregone conclusion. As a result of the differences between public and jury opinion, partial televoting was introduced for the following year's contest.
The song was performed seventeenth on the night (following Belgium's Lisa del Bo with Liefde Is Een Kaartspel and preceding Finland's Jasmine with Niin kaunis on taivas). At the close of voting, it had received 162 points, placing 1st in a field of 23.
Quinn again performed the song as an interval act during the Congratulations 50th anniversary concert in Copenhagen in 2005.
The song was succeeded as Contest winner in 1997 by Katrina and the Waves representing the United Kingdom with Love Shine A Light.
It was succeeded as Irish representative at the 1997 Contest by Marc Roberts with Mysterious Woman.
[edit] References
- Kennedy O'Connor, John (2005). The Eurovision Song Contest: The Official History.
- Lyrics from the Diggiloo Thrush
- YouTube footage of the ESC performance
