Israel Eurovision Through the Years

Israel Eurovision through the Years

The idea for the Eurovision contest began after a European torn continent lived on after World War II. “The Mission of Eurovision is to bring the nations of Europe together in harmony. And the effect of singing, little of which could be described as harmonious, is to pull them apart” (Lane 4.) It was decided that the first contest would be held in Lugano, Switzerland in the spring of 1956 with seven countries participating. From then on, the Eurovision has put on an annual competition with more countries participating every year. Over the years, the Eurovision has changed its format so many times that it has lead to people thinking its simply a “tacky” event today.

The Eurovision contest states that any country that falls within the European Broadcasting Area (EBA) may participate in the contest, and although Israel is not technically in Europe, by definition of the EBA which states: “The European Broadcasting Area is bounded on the west by the western boundary of Region 1, on the east by the meridian 40° East of Greenwich and on the south by the parallel 30° North so as to include the northern part of Saudi Arabia and that part of those countries bordering the Mediterranean within these limits. In addition, Iraq, Jordan and that part of the territory of Syrian Arab Republic, Turkey and Ukraine lying outside the above limits are included in the European Broadcasting Area.” Israel is aloud to participate in the annual event.

In 1973, Israel entered its first Eurovision competition, which was held in Luxembourg. The song entered was “Ey Sham” (שם אי) sung by Illanit, an Israeli born woman who moved to Brazil and back to Israel during her childhood. She took a lot of the Portuguese and Brazilian style and connected it to her musical talents. Illanit also performed for Israel in the Eurovision contest four years