The Eurovision Young Musicians 2008 was the fourteenth edition of the Eurovision Young Musicians, held at the Rathausplatz in Vienna, Austria on 9 May 2008.[1] Organised by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) and host broadcaster Österreichischer Rundfunk (ORF), musicians from seven countries participated in the televised final. This was the second time that the competition was held on an open-air stage and was the beginning of the annual Vienna Festival. Austria and broadcaster ORF previously hosted the contest in 1990, 1998 and 2006.[1]
A total of sixteen countries took part in the competition therefore a semi-final was held at the Theater an der Wien on 4 and 5 May 2008. All participants performed a classical piece of their choice accompanied by the Vienna Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Aleksandar Marković.[1]Serbia (as an independent nation) and Ukraine made their début while Germany returned. Five countries decided not to participate, they were Belgium, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, and Switzerland, while Serbia and Montenegro had ceased to exist since 2006.[1]
Dionysios Grammenos of Greece won the contest, with Finland and Norway placing second and third respectively. Grammenos is the first woodwind player to win the competition (previous winners have played piano, violin or cello). A new feature in 2008 was the audience prize, voted for by television viewers in the host country via SMS. The third prize winning Norwegian violinist Eldbjørg Hemsing was the winner of this public vote.[2]
Location
The final was held on the opening night of Vienna Festival 2008.
Rathausplatz, a square outside the Wiener Rathaus city hall of Vienna, was the host location for the 2008 edition of the Eurovision Young Musicians final. The Theater an der Wien, a theatre in Vienna, Austria, hosted the semi-final round.[1]
Format
Kirchschlager performing on stage
Lidia Baich [de] and Christoph Wagner-Trenkwitz [de] were the hosts of the 2008 contest. The interval act was Angelika Kirchschlager performing "One Life to Live" alone and "We Dream Together" with the Vienna Boys' Choir.[1]
Results
Semi-final
A total of sixteen countries took part in the semi-final round of the 2008 contest, of which seven qualified to the televised grand final.[1]
1) The Strolling Fiddler for Violin solo, from the Suite (George Enescu) 2) Impressions from childhood in D Major Op.28 (George Enescu) 3) Introduction and Rondo Capriccioso in A Minor, Op.28 for Violin and Piano (Camille Saint-Saëns) 4) Miniature for Violin and Piano (Gheorghe Neaga)
1) Fantasie Brillante sur Gounod's "Faust" op.20 (Henryk Wieniawski)
Failed to qualify
Final
The 2008 winner, Dionysios Grammenos from Greece
Awards were given to the top three countries. The table below highlights these using gold, silver, and bronze. The placing results of the remaining participants is unknown and never made public by the European Broadcasting Union.[2]
The competition was transmitted live over the Eurovision Network by 18 broadcasters. Iceland and Lithuania broadcast the contest in addition to the competing countries.[3]
^ abcdefgh"Eurovision Young Musicians 2008: About the show". European Broadcasting Union. Archived from the original on 5 August 2016. Retrieved 5 October 2014.
^ ab"Eurovision Young Musicians 2008: Participants". youngmusicians.tv. European Broadcasting Union. Archived from the original on 5 August 2016. Retrieved 5 October 2014.
^"Eurovision Young Musicians - Final Press Release". youngmusicians.tv. EBU. 12 May 2008. Archived from the original on 12 May 2008. Retrieved 3 May 2018.
External links
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Eurovision Young Musicians 2008.
Official website
Pictures from the Eurovision Young Musicians 2008 Finale in Vienna