Intervision Song Contest 1977

The Intervision Song Contest 1977 was the debut edition of the Intervision Song Contest held between the 24–27 August 1977 in the Forest Opera, a venue located in the Polish city of Sopot.[1]

Intervision Song Contest 1977
Dates
Grand final	24–27 August 1977
Venue	Forest Opera, Sopot, Poland[1]
Presenter(s)	Irena Dziedzic, Marek Gaszyński, Jacek Bromski
Participants
Number of entries	14 entries (from 6 countries).
Debuting countries	Bulgaria  Cuba  Czechoslovakia  Hungary  Soviet Union  Spain
Vote
Winning song	Czechoslovakia "Malovaný džbánku"

History

The first Sopot International Song Festival was initiated and organised in 1961 by Władysław Szpilman, assisted by Szymon Zakrzewski from Polish Artists Management (PAGART).[2] The first three editions were held in the Gdańsk Shipyard hall (1961–1963), after which the festival moved to the Forest Opera (Opera Lesna). The main prize has been Amber Nightingale through most of its history.[3]

Between 1977 and 1980 it was replaced by the Intervision Song Contest, which was still held in Sopot. Unlike the Eurovision Song Contest, the Sopot International Music Festival often changed its formulas to pick a winner and offered many different contests for its participants. For example, at the 4th Intervision Song Festival (held in Sopot August 20–23, 1980) two competitions were effective: one for artists representing television companies, the other for those representing record companies. In the first the jury considered the artistic merits of the songs entered; while in the second, it judged the performers' interpretation."[4] The festival has always been open to non-European acts, and countries like Cuba, Dominican Republic, Mongolia, New Zealand, Nigeria, Peru, South Africa and many others have been represented in this event.[3]

The contest lost popularity in Poland and abroad in the 1980s, declining further during the 1990s, and the rather unconvincing organisations by TVP made the authorities of Sopot give the organization of the 2005 Sopot International Song Festival to a private TV channel, TVN. Since 1999, there was no contest. TVP chose to invite well-known artists instead, featuring the likes of Whitney Houston or The Corrs. In 2005, TVN was expected to bring the competition back. In 2006 TVN invited Elton John. The Sopot International Song Festival is usually considered bigger than the Benidorm International Song Festival because of its ability to attract star performers. In 2010 and 2011, the festival did not take place due to renovation of the Forest Opera. Since 2012, it is called Sopot Top Of The Top Festival and is broadcast annually by Polsat. The festival also provided opportunity to listen to international stars. In the past, it featured Charles Aznavour, Boney M, Johnny Cash, and more recently: Chuck Berry, Vanessa Mae, Annie Lennox, Vaya Con Dios, Chris Rea, Tanita Tikaram, La Toya Jackson, Whitney Houston, Kajagoogoo, and Goran Bregovic,[1][3] Anastacia.

Location

The Forest Opera is an open-air amphitheatre located in Sopot, Poland, with a capacity of 4400 seats, the orchestra pit can contain up to 110 musicians. Each year, starting from 1964 (with some interruption in the early 1980s), the Sopot International Song Festival took place at the Forest Opera, events being organized by the Ministry of Culture and Art in cooperation with the Polish Artistic Agency (PAGART).[2] The Forest Opera played host to the first Intervision Song Contest, between 24–27 August 1977.[1]

Participants

The following countries confirmed their participation in the first edition of the contest:

Draw	Country[1]	Language	Artist[1]	Song[1]	English translation	Place[1]
01	Hungary	Hungarian	Kati és a Kerek Perec	"Egy dal neked"	"A song for you"	2
02	Soviet Union	Russian	Rosa Rimbajewa	"Ozarenie"	"Insight"	2
03	Bulgaria	Polish	Bisser Kirov	"W moim śnie"	"In my dream"	2
04	Cuba	Spanish	Farah Maria	"El Recuerdo de Aquel Largo Viaje"	"Memory of That Long Journey"	2
05	Hungary	Hungarian	Kati Kovács	"Elégia"	"Elegy"	2
06	Spain	Spanish	Nubes Grises	"Marinero"	"Sailor"	2
07	Czechoslovakia	Czech	Helena Vondráčková	"Lásko má já stůňu"	"I am ill my love"	2
08	Hungary	Hungarian	Kati és a Kerek Perec	"Hinta"	"Swing"	2
09	Soviet Union	Russian	Rosa Rimbajewa	"Tabuny"	"Herds"	2
10	Bulgaria	Polish	Bisser Kirov	"Koniec lata"	"End of Summer"	2
11	Cuba	Spanish	Farah Maria	"Un cuento"	"A Tale"	2
12	Hungary	Hungarian	Kati Kovács	"Ha legközelebb látlak"	"If I see you again"	2
13	Spain	Spanish	Nubes Grises	"Nace el sentimiento"	"The feeling is born"	2
14	Czechoslovakia	Czech	Helena Vondráčková	"Malovaný džbánku"	"Painted jug"	1

See also

• Eurovision Song Contest

References

1. "Sopot Festival '77" (in Polish). bart.sopot.pl. Retrieved 31 May 2014.
2. Szpilman, Wladyslaw (1 December 2005). "Songs composed by Wladyslaw Szpilman". szpilman.net. Retrieved 30 May 2014.
3. "Sopot Festival history". bart.sopot.pl. Baltic Artistic Agency (BART). Retrieved 22 June 2014.
4. Waschko, Roman (1980-09-06). "Finn Singer Triumphant At Sopot Contest". Billboard. Nielsen Business Media. p. 65. Retrieved 2011-04-05. Two competitions were held at the 4th Intervision Song Festival in Sopot August 20–23, 1980: one for artists representing television companies, the other for those representing record companies. In the first the jury considered the artistic merits of the songs entered; while the performers' interpretation was judged in the second. The outcome was a victory for Finnish singer Marion in the first contest, "Where Is the Love?" taking the Grand Prix. Six year ago, the same artist won Grand Prix at the Sopot International Song Festival. First prize was shared by Czech performer, Marika Gombitová with "Declaration", and Russian Nikolai Gnatiuk for the song "Dance on a Drum". (in English)