1 thought on “Politics and nationalism at the Eurovision song contest”
It is interesting to see how the shadow of a super power fills the sky of optimism by the unwinding wings of a massive falcon! The song , sung with a lot of craftiness, is apparently simple and transparent- those not aware of the propaganda obsession of the Soviet genre won’t find much
to worry out of the performance. But, it might strike an alarm button for the Western milieu still weary of the Russian challenge. This can be taken as a very subtle patriotic song that is understanding of the challenges, tolerant of the unhappy phase yet optimistic of a future transcendence. The commitment and trust for the nation seems steadfast, although there is no attempt for self critic and only evasive references on the causes of this fall from the apex.
However, in such an international platform like Eurovision, music contests turn more into national political representation rather than objective cultural -assessment. However, Russian representative Lazarev had shown a wonderful balance of musical performance and great showmanship.
Jamala’s song on the other hand reverberated in pangs of pathos. Loss of homeland, loss of life and loss of close ones become central to the identity of such people whom the theme of her song 1944 addressed. People of today’s world may not know about the Crimean Tatars, but almost at every corner of this planet there are some such unfortunate people who had lost their roots for no fault of their own- her song thus could acquire a broader perspective , although originated from a particular historic issue. Use of the Arabic lyrics brought a highly emotive dimension to the musical representation of this song. But her recital was not so dramtic as Sergei, nor was she that well conversed with the articulation and expression- thus the recital as a whole sounds a bit monotonous and repetitive.
nationalismwatch 
It is interesting to see how the shadow of a super power fills the sky of optimism by the unwinding wings of a massive falcon! The song , sung with a lot of craftiness, is apparently simple and transparent- those not aware of the propaganda obsession of the Soviet genre won’t find much
to worry out of the performance. But, it might strike an alarm button for the Western milieu still weary of the Russian challenge. This can be taken as a very subtle patriotic song that is understanding of the challenges, tolerant of the unhappy phase yet optimistic of a future transcendence. The commitment and trust for the nation seems steadfast, although there is no attempt for self critic and only evasive references on the causes of this fall from the apex.
However, in such an international platform like Eurovision, music contests turn more into national political representation rather than objective cultural -assessment. However, Russian representative Lazarev had shown a wonderful balance of musical performance and great showmanship.
Jamala’s song on the other hand reverberated in pangs of pathos. Loss of homeland, loss of life and loss of close ones become central to the identity of such people whom the theme of her song 1944 addressed. People of today’s world may not know about the Crimean Tatars, but almost at every corner of this planet there are some such unfortunate people who had lost their roots for no fault of their own- her song thus could acquire a broader perspective , although originated from a particular historic issue. Use of the Arabic lyrics brought a highly emotive dimension to the musical representation of this song. But her recital was not so dramtic as Sergei, nor was she that well conversed with the articulation and expression- thus the recital as a whole sounds a bit monotonous and repetitive.