Moldova: The Final National Final of 2013

After months of difficult selections and two semi-finals squeezed in the same week as the Final, the Moldovan jury and public have chosen the 14 songs that will compete for the title of “O melodie pentru Europa” winner on Saturday.

This is the running order, as drawn by the performers onstage at the end of the two shows:

1. Cristina V & Glam Girls – “Celebrate”
2. Boris Covali – “Runaways”
3. Cristina Croitoru & Karizma – “Never Fall Again”
4. Svetlana Bogdanova – “Conquer My Heart”
5. Nicoleta Gavrilita – “Freaky Thong”
6. Aurel Chirtoaca – “Iarta-ma”
7. Irina Kitoroaga – “L.o.v.e. Love”
8. Anna Gulko – “Somebody Else”
9. Vitalie Negruta – “You’ll Be Mine”
10. Cristina Scarlat – “I Pray”
11. Doinita Gherman – “Planeta e un rai”
12. Tatiana Heghea – “A Brighter Day”
13. Felicia Dunaf – “Codename Felice”
14. Aliona Moon – “A Million”

As you can see, your main favourites, including Aliona Moon, Cristina Croitoru & Karizma, Tatiana Heghea, Nicoleta Gavrilita, Svetlana Bogdanova and Irina Kitoroaga, have all advanced to the final.

There were no major surprises from the contest point of view. Pasha Parfeny opened the first semi-final with a happy-go-lucky rendition of his Eurovision 2012 song “Lautar”. However, the first semi-final was musically dominated by Zdob si Zdub, who gave a smashing interval recital, while Eurovision Moldova 2008 representative and 2013 jury member Geta Burlacu gave a very entertaining show during the second semi-final, which included covers of Tina Turner, Lady Gaga, and Lena’s hit songs. Russian Eurovision representative Dina Garipova also took the stage to deliver a flawless – which made many fans wonder if it was playback, and I’m still on the fence about this one – performance of the new version of “What If”.

Back to the Moldovan semi-finalists, the four frontrunners were Boris Covali with “Runaways” (20 points), Aliona Moon with “A Million” (19 points), Cristina Croitoru & Karizma with “Never Fall Again” (20 points) and, last but not least, Cristina Scarlat With “I Pray” (20 points) – who came out of nowhere with an impressive performance of her difficult ballad, stealing the biggest marks from the jury. The four acts will compete for supremacy and it is very likely that one of them will be crowned the winner of “O melodie pentru Europa” tomorrow.

Let’s watch their performances during the semis:

Boris Covali – “Runaways”: The singer performed with a leg cast – that’s why he was so static. I was surprised that he did not use any dancers. It’s not like he can’t afford it!

Aliona Moon – “A Million”: You might spot songwriter Pasha Parfeny at the piano. Her performance was great, apart from a shaky high note towards the end.

Cristina Croitoru & Karizma – “Never Fall Again”:
The two best friends and former Eurovision Moldova contenders joined forces for 2013.

Cristina Scarlat – “I Pray”: She used dancers from the TV show “Dancing With The Stars” to make it more dynamic. (She’s the diva in pink-and-purple at the very top of this post).

Moldova is the last country that will select its Eurovision representative in 2013. The National Final will be broadcast live online on TV Moldova 1 and on the Eurovision.tv player tomorrow, 16 March, starting 19:00 CET.

So who is your favourite to win “O melodie pentru Europa”? Who do you think should represent Moldova in Malmö?