LUXEMBOURG 2025

The Luxembourgish act and song was chosen on 25th January via the "Luxembourg Song Contest 2025". The winner was chosen by a 50/50 split of 8 international juries and online voting. Unlike last year, there was no head-to-head superfinal. Going to Basel will be Laura Thorn with the song "La poupée monte le son" (The doll turns up the volume)

Laura Thorn is a relative newcomer to the music scene although she has an extensive musical background. From a young age she has undertaken dance training as well as instruction in music theory, piano, cello, keyboard and chamber music. Laura completed her educational studies with a master’s degree in music theory, music pedagogy and pop singing from from Institut Royal Supérieur de Musique et de Pédagogie in Namur, Belgium. Currently, she teaches at the Esch sur Alzette Conservatoire de Musique.

The title and performance directly relate to Luxembourg's first win at Eurovision - France Gall's "Poupée de cire, poupée de son" - whose 60th anniversary this song celebrates. Footage of Gall's win is dispersed throughout the show. The backdrop is full of pinks and blues and childhood toys. Laura is joined on stage by 3 male dancers and later by 2 female dancers. The song is in two parts - firstly a verse-bridge-chorus which runs through twice. Laura is moved around the stage in a 'puppet-like' way by the male dancers. The effect is heightened as the men are dressed formally in maroon suits while Laura is dressed in a pink and white doll style. During the ending refrain, Laura removes the costume - becoming less 'the marionette' and more the knowing artiste. It then ends with a final chorus which contains a lot of vocalising rather than repeating the chorus word for word.

We begin with a full on orchestral hit which continues throughout the song. I like how this knowingly starts from where another song ended and unashamedly leans on that culture point. This nostalgia not only (re)introduces us to a Eurovision time gone by but also suggests a redemption song for the young girl who sung under pressure and coercion. Anything which makes the modern viewer delve into Gall's back catalogue is ALWAYS a good thing! However, the current show could come across as old-fashioned or gimmicky (one might argue that this is the point!) and the story may not get through to the viewer in the 3 mins. Therefore, they need to be more forceful with the message - which ever message they decide is the one that will best sell the song. The stage show feels complete but the dancing, the costumes and the camera angles could be amplified for the stage in Basel without needing to start from scratch. This entry is currently an over-complicated recipe; chef needs to work out what the main ingredient is, get rid of the dead weight and pare it down so that the audience can fully digest it.

ARTIST - Laura Thorn

SONG - La poupée monte le son

WRITING/PRODUCTION CREDITS - Julien Salvia, Ludovic-Alexandre Vidal

    

LUXEMBOURG 2024

The Luxembourgish act and song was chosen on January 27tth during the selection show "Luxembourg Song Contest". There were two rounds of voting. In the first round, the ranking of an international jury was combined equally with that of a national televote to create a top 3. The vote was then reset - the juries and televote reopened with the scores combined to find a winner. Going to Malmö is Tali performing the song "Fighter".

Tali Goldergant was born to an Israeli mother and Peruvian father and Spanish was the language she spoke most at home. At the age of 7 her family settled down in Luxembourg where young Tali learnt French and English. From a young age she was interested in songwriting, acting and playing the piano. She went to school in the International School of Luxembourg then went on to study musical theatre at Marymount Manhattan College in the city of New York and now lives there. She has also been touring her home borough with her band called Blue Stripes. She has been releasing music onto streaming sites since 2020.

Tali is joined on stage 6 dancers - 4 male, 2 female - and they are all dressed in a kind of strappy leatherette/mesh clothing. The visual look is a little distant from the song's meaning but is at least a cohesive look. The song starts with a close up of Tali's face which is being manipulated cleverly by her dancers' hands. The song is mainly sung in French with part of the chorus and a small bridge at the end in English. The English part gives the song a memorable earworm while the French parts have a nice rhythm and uses some familiar French word endings/rhymes. This is a mid-tempo song with a slight Mediterranean feel without feeling too much like it should come from a certain country or culture.

The stage was very simple with a long video screen runway. Throughout her song, the screens showed various pulsing geometric shapes varying in shades of colours. I feel like the inconspicuousness of this makes one focus on is what is happening on the stage. The dancers frame Tali, who moves well but does not do a lot of the group choreography. I don't think this matters too much as the sweeping camera shots gives the visual more depth and movement, The visuals will need some tightening up. They will need to drop a dancer and ensure the choreo is purposeful throughout. Personally I'd like to see the dancers used to create levels i.e. standing on them like a staircase or being lifted up in the air. Tali needs to keep the focus on her vocal. During the fast part of the chorus you could hear her struggle to catch up and catch her breath.; if she cannot do this part properly then an alternative solution needs to be found. Overall this comes from a good starting point but needs to have laser-focused direction in a contest that is already looking to be a diverse one.

ARTIST - Tali

SONG - Fighter

WRITING/PRODUCTION CREDITS - Dario Faini, Silvio Lisbonne, Manon Romiti, Ana Zimmer