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Live from Moscow
Eurovision Day 4: Slovenia, Hungary, Azerbaijan and Greece
Song 1: Slovenia
This morning’s rehearsals were kicked off by the Slovenian entry that combines classical music with a club beat. Love symphony is performed by Quartissimo feat. Martina.
The musicians are now standing inside golden mirror frames and the female soloist is standing hidden in the middle one. The mirror frame was not covered with paper in this rehearsal, but is expected to be so on the night. As a change from the previous version, the singing now comes in earlier in the song. The team also switched between the English and Slovenian languages throughout the rehearsal today, so the final decision of language used is probably still open. The male musicians now move more around the stage rather than being static as seen in the preview version.
Song 2: Hungary
Zoli Ádok performs the Hungarian entry called Dance with me. Appropriately the performance is based on a dance routine that would not look out of place in the various dance shows on TV. The projections are blue and golden and include white cubes. Zoli has three female dancers with him and two male backing singers support him from the side of the stage. They start off in a pose reminiscent of Kylie Minogue’s video Slow, and Zoli is lying on the floor with her dancers around him. They soon get up and get into a very energetic routine, involving loads of lifts and breaks and even high kicks, hand stands and a cartwheel. Despite all the movement the singer seems to be able to control his voice. All the dance seems natural and fun and supports this 70s disco inspired number perfectly.
Song 3: Azerbaijan
Azerbaijan, or the land of fire, has loads of flames in their stage backgrounds. Their song is called Always on my mind. Aysel and Arash start off back to back on a podium holding hands and are then joined by three dancers on the floor. A backing singer supports from the side. The pair also return briefly to the podium and some of the dancers rise there too. Arash has with him a traditional Azerbaijani string instrument as well. The mainly orange and red projections show several drums banging, loads of fire and flames and what looks like bubbling champagne. There are loads of real pyro flames at the front of the stage as well and some sparkles. This is another energetic performance full of dance and ethnic flavour.
Song 4: Greece
Sakis Rouvas returns to the Eurovision Song Contest after already taking part a few years ago. He performs another up-tempo number called This is our night. He is joined by four backing dancers/singers on the stage in Moscow. They all start off on a catwalk-like podium standing in a line. Sakis himself jumps down during the first chorus. He goes back up for the verse and repeats his jump down. They all are back on the now sideways podium on the instrumental break and do an interesting leaning dance routine. On one of the run-throughs this morning he also stumbles during this complex routine, but that is what rehearsals are for. The backdrops are colourful and full of neon signs. Greece delivers another energetic performance of this clubby number. There is now lunch break in the rehearsals.
Related polls
- Norway: Vote for your favourite song in the final of Melodi Grand Prix
- Azerbaijan: Vote for your favourite act in the final of Milli Seçim Turu
- Hungary: Vote for your favourite act in the final of A Dal
- Iceland: Vote for your favourite song in the final of Songvakeppni Sjonvarpsins
- Malta: Vote for your favourite act in the final of Malta Eurovision Song Contest 2012
- Hungary: Vote for your favourite act in the second semifinal of A Dal
- Norway: Vote for your favourite song in the third semifinal of Melodi Grand Prix
- Sweden: Vote for your favourite act in the first semifinal of Melodifestivalen
- Malta: Vote for your favourite act in the semifinal of Malta Eurovision Song Contest 2012
- Bulgaria: Vote for your favourite act in the Bulgarian national final 2012
- Latvia: Vote for your favourite act in the final of Eirodziesma 2012
- Belarus: Vote for your favourite act in the final of EuroFest 2012
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Sakis is so overated and certainly doesnt manage to live up to such high expectations. Makes you cringe to watch his awful dance routine and the song is so cold and very basic.
I LOVED Azerbaijan's stage&dance and everything. Even though the song is not so good at all, I think their energy will help them to end up in top 5. WOW!
SLOVENIA - I love the song, but I've always hated that Martina stays hidden during most of the song. I mean, the trick itself looks cool on stage, but she stays hidden for too long, if you ask me. Other than that, I think they were pretty good on stage.
HUNGARY - the song itself is average. It's not bad, but it's not outstanding either and it's always been perfectly clear that only good performance can pull it through the final. I think they just might make it with this one. The dance was awesome and Zoli does a really good job both singing and dancing. Well done, it was pleasant to watch an average entry transform into something decent.
AZERBAIJAN - I didn't like the stage act at all. It's so flamboyant, it almost borders with cheapness. But then again, I've always found that this entry is the most overrated one this year.
GREECE - the problem with this song from the very beginning is that we all expected SO MUCH from Sakis that no matter what song he represented Greece with, we would have found it lacking. Same goes for his stage act. We're all expecting something extraordinary that we don't seem to recognize a good act anymore. In my opinion, this rehearsal was a very decent one.
the greek performance looks cheap..!!
Azerbajian..mm.. to much chorus..i liked the old version..
Hungary .not so bad. I thought i was going to be really bad but i was wrong..
Slovenia..mm where is the lyric??? and this will is the part when i will go to the bathroom..
Azerbaijan - - - - love it!!!!!
Greece - I though he was actually ok!
The others were just boring!
Slovenia - still too long an intro... lose interest - then the song/vocal is just nothing. Poor
Hungary - Terrible. Awful sound. They went for looks over talent.
Azerbaijan - Repetitive. Notice not as many people complain about this being repetitive like they do the UK and this is worse!! She is good but he is useless. Still it should do well thanks to its sound and neighbours.
Greece - LOL - that man really can NOT dance!! It is just uncomfortable to watch - makes me cringe. The singing? That is pretty poor too. Poor. Very poor.
I think Sakis has more to give....!!!
I cant beleive that greece will have so poor performance!!!
Morgan S. Trouillet
I agree with you about Azerbaijan's "Always" ... it is MY most favourite song at first AND every listen!!!! Furthermore, it will be the song... everyone 
will need to beat!!!!
Too quick to judge?
"Just wait and see"
You will hear the real performance of Greece's 
S A K I S ... very soon. This was just a 1st rehearsal on the magnificent NEW stage in Moscow. Minor details in sound and lights will be taken care of. Don't worry!!!!
Stay tuned...
Futhermore, S A K I S will do great
and he is very lucky to have Alex Panagi on his team!!!
@ Layla Al-Magnuna
Alex Panagi is a great vocal coach and is just that ... a back-up singer.
He vocally assisted at 7 ESCs even though he tried to be Cyprus's representative a few times (incl. this year).
The last time Cyprus actually sent a back-up singer turned singer (she was up-to-then Britney Spears's back-up singer) at the ESC 2006 Athens, Annet Artani gave one of the most SPLENDID vocal performances ever heard in Eurovision till then, but somehow she was overlooked and did not qualify(?) for the Final.
cyprus will win
Alex Panayi ( reprecent Cyprus before ) is the back singer for Greece, he was also back singer for Helena Paparizou in 2005
Sakis was SHIT.Its really bad.The accent is worst of all, and the song is bad.He is way overrated.
Azerbaijan is very good vocally bad in stage presence still I like this song.
Hungary well Zoli has to improve his vocals for the semi,the dans is great and very hard to do.Very good choreography
Slovenia was average in all things.
Sakis is GREAT! He'll surely amaze europe once more!
every year the winning song is that looks stronger in eurovision win market betting odds after rehearsals. for example in 2002 bookmakers started to take winner latvia seriously only after rehearsals. In 2003 turkey reached second position in bookmakers only after rehearsals. In 2004 ukraine became hot favourite during rehearsals. In 2005 hungary lost ground as hot favourite this time. And finally in 2007 serbia became the second favourite in bookmakers only the last week.
This year so far after first rehearsal no change in top 3 (norway greece turkey) but the winner of the first rehearsal is of couse BOSNIA is fourth now and very close to turkey it was out of top ten a month ago. But of course is too early we have one week to watch rehearsals.
this year ESC is a disaster !
pale and sad
though her song isn't the best in her repertoir Patricia Kaas deserves to win
Hungary, Slovenia, Greece, Azerbaijan, Armenia, Norway, Turkey, Sweden, etc ... they all simply suck this year !
@Anita,
Usually the nordic countries never change anything of the national selection, even the clothes. For the general audience of Eurovision, the live performance the big night is the first one, so the inclusion of changes is not relevant.
What u saw from Sakis in his first rehearshal is nothing.Wait and see how the whole perfomance will look like 
Hey guys I believe we have been to crul with many of the 1st rehearsals and as the word says "1st Rehearsals, that is two words combination 1st and rehearsals". None of the first rehearsals was absolutely fabulous..But none honestly..
Now I dissagree what I've read here about Norway, although I was kinda dissapointed from the fact that Alexander didn't change the routine not even a tiny bit, I found the background extremely clever to make it look like a fairytale as the kids are the ones with the mobiles and who are usually voting..Remember Lordi those cute big monsters????
As far as Sakis is concerned, again we need to stay objective and not say things cos we are scared that he might win it. Voice: Yes he doesn't have the greatest voice I also agree, but it was more than obvious that he was holding back as he did on the rehearsals at 2004, he was nearly whispering.. I've seen a few other live performances and he can definitely sing.. Now he did have a few accidents but I'm sure they will work them out.. Now, I've also heard that he didn't revealed a lot, like the laser and the lighting effects he is creating with his hands at the beginning when he is short of drawing letters etc, i will be crazy if it would be dark and I will see him dancing like that he is HOT.. And Also I didn't see any lighting box or any lights at all.. Maybe the whole thing today was just a big experiment.. I strongly believe that this year it will be between Sakis, Alexander or one of the ballads, UK or Malta...
Can we please wait and don't get disappointed so easily with the first sound check? Good luck to all XX
The best for me was Hungary despite the singer has to improve his vocal performance. Azerbaijan did it well. About Sakis, it is a shame to day but I am afraid that he will reach the final hardly.
The singer from Azerbaian dance like a clown )
Slovenia:nice though theres nothing much to practise lol coreography is a bit non sense but i like it
Hungary:he was so bad at the start got better towards the end but this will ot save him on the big night i guess
Azerbaijan:u like the energy between them at start but then they look like "hey we r a great duo,we r so cute,come join us"
i have no words for live performance esp Aysel iz amazing but she shouldnt dance really
Greece:aww another bad dance.i love Sakis n the song.gives the whole energy of the song to us on stage.i never had a doubt about live performance n its ok but again please dont dance.
plus im scared therell be a new athens fall
GREECE ,NORWAY,SWITZERLAND,SWEDEN,SPA IN top 5
turkey, azerbaijan, spain and greece are the best,
at least for me, good luck everybody =)
Greece's song is cheap cheap cheap.
Like a night in a REALLY bad nightclub!
And his English accent is atrocious!
Whatever... Hmmm. How fun when you talk about your beloved Sakis... Perfect?
A very good dancer, an ok song - and not a very good singer...
There are other entries much stronger this year - entries that Alexander have lots more reason to fear.
I just dont get Slovenia and dont think much of it. This doesnt deserve to qualify.
Hungary was worse. This is a no show for the final.
Azerbaijan was very gd and is a conteneder to win. Well Done!
Greece - Very energetic, good vocals this will do well.
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