since 1998 - The Maltese no.1 in Eurovision information

Updated - 28/05/02

Sun 23rd March 2001
What do you think of the remix version of the Maltese song and the video?

Sun 18th March 2001
Faniello at the Amitex Fair

Fri 16th March 2001
Launch of official CD and video - Fabrizio for ITN

Fri 16th March 2001
Fabrizio launches CD, signs sponsorship deal

Wed 7th March 2001
Maltese Song is the undisputed favorite on the Net.

Wed 21st February 2001
Fabrizio 'very well received' in Denmark.

Mon 5th February 2001
Fabrizio Faniello going to Germany this week.

Mon 5th February 2001
Fabrizio Faniello: public's choice for Eurovision.

Sun 4th February 2001
Faniello for Euro contest.

What do you think of the remix version of the Maltese Song and the video? (by the Webmaster - Sun 25th March)

Now that you can listen to the remix version of the song what do you think of it? Personally I think it is good although it has a slower rhythm which somehow makes it slightly inferior than the original version. As regards to the video, I think it could have been better and compared to last year; it is a disappointment. However one should not go to extremes and say that it is rubbish. Maybe next year they will be more careful in choosing  the storyline. You can now give your opinions on all this by clicking this link to the Faniello messageboard. 

Faniello at the Amitex Fair (by the Webmaster - Sun 18th March)

Fabrizio Faniello was at the Amitex (Air Malta International Travel Exhibition) Fair yesterday evening and gave a 30 minute performance to a sizeable audience performing pop songs and at the end, the remix version of "Another Summer Night". After the performance he took time to sign autographs and sell his Eurovision CD. Here are the photos:

Fabrizio launches CD, signs sponsorship deal (by Fiona Galea Debono - The Times, Fri 16th March)

Yesterday was an eventful day for Eurovision hopeful Fabrizio Faniello. He launched his CD single and video 'Another summer night' as well as signing a year's sponsorship with Michele Peresso Ltd and the Malta Song Festival's Committee.

The Eurovision Song Contest will be held in Copenhagen, Denmark, in May.

Malta Song Festivals organising committee chairman Charlo Bonnici said Fabrizio's promotional tour around Europe would now kick off. It will include television and radio interviews and performances in Germany, Sweden, Greece, the UK, Ireland and Spain.

Fabrizio was to appear on a popular Channel 5 breakfast show in the UK on April 19, he said.

The singer has already performed to two million TV viewers at the Danish song for Europe festival in Denmark.

Mr Bonnici spoke of the importance of improving the marketing strategies and promotional campaigns of the winning songs outside Malta, in line with the constant improvement and increase in popularity and professionalism of the international contest itself.

Michele Peresso Ltd managing director Emanuel Peresso, operators of Eurosport, said the commercial retail company would be providing both the committee and Fabrizio with financial assistance for the promotion of the song overseas, as well as kitting out its members and the singer in Adidas, Kappa and Skechers clothing and footwear.

Thousands of posters and postcards for Fabrizio's promotional campaign have already been printed.

Mr Peresso said his company had always supported sports institutions, clubs and athletes, and was now branching out into the artistic field in an attempt to promote and export Malta's "impressive" talent.

The company has also just extended its sponsorship of the Malta Basketball Association, which would for the first time be participating in the European championships, he announced.

The video to the catchy tune, which was composed and written by Paul and Georgina Abela, depicts "another summer night by the ocean under the palm trees... walking on the beach beneath the moonlight" as the "poetic" lyrics suggest.

It is estimated that 300 million viewers around Europe would see the video, produced by Carmel Tanti from Visual Impact, Mr Bonnici said.

Around 48 hours of footage were shot and 36 hours of editing were required to create the three-minute-long video, which includes scenes of sailing yachts and sports cars, moonlit beaches and Fabrizio dancing the night away.

The video is obligatory, according to Eurovision regulations. It is to be sent to the European Broadcasting Union to be distributed to participating countries.

Organising committee secretary Robert Cefai said the CD single, which was fine-tuned at Caps Sounds Studio, and had just arrived in Malta, also includes three other versions of the song: The Blue Lagoon mix; the extended disco mix, which lasts over five minutes; and the instrumental version.

Prior to the launch, Mr Peresso responded to the filing, earlier this week against Michele Peresso Ltd, of the National Commission Persons with Disability's first case of discrimination since the Equal Opportunities Act was introduced.

Mr Peresso said that both the EuroSport and Europharma outlets in Psaila Street, Birkirkara, had adequate access for persons with disability.

He said 15 feet of the prime-site building had been used to construct a ramp to create access for persons with disability, while the lift, which was equipped with Braille buttons, was also accessible via a ramp.

Launch of official CD and video - Fabrizio for ITN breakfast (by Josanne Cassar - The Malta Independent, Fri 16th March)

Eurosport, which usually offers sponsorships to athletes, yesterday signed a sponsorship agreement with the Malta Song Festival Committee, in which it agreed to sponsor singer Fabrizio Faniello as well as the committee. The sponsorship includes cash as well as clothes and footwear for Fabrizio and the officials who will be accompanying him to Denmark when he represents Malta in the Eurovision on 12 May. 
Emanuel Peresso, Eurosport's chief executive, said that the decision to sponsor Fabrizio came after he had seen him perform in the musical production Beatlemania. "When I saw how much local talent there is, I felt that our company needed to support cultural events as well as sporting activities and athletes. My one piece of advice to Fabrizio is to remain down-to-earth, as he is, and not to let his popularity go to his head," he added. 

Organising committee chairman Charlò Bonnici announced that from next week the Maltese singer will be embarking on a promotional tour of major European cities in Germany, Sweden, Greece, England, Ireland and Spain. 

A major breakthrough will be Fabrizio's appearance as the main guest during a breakfast show on ITN, one of England's top TV stations. 

While thanking Eurosport for its generous sponsorship, the committee also thanked their other major sponsors, Airmalta, Maltacom and Nescafè Gold Blend. 

Yesterday's press conference also served to launch the official CD of Malta's entry, Another Summer Night, which includes four versions of the track. The CD, which had literally arrived in Malta a few hours before, will be on sale for the public as from tomorrow. 

Finally, the media were given a sneak preview of the video, which will be shown in all the participating countries. Produced by Carmel Bruno, of Visual Impact, it sets just the right mood of sun, sand and Malta's nightlife, as Fabrizio is shown interpreting the song in various locations, surrounded by lovely girls. 

The importance given to the video of the Maltese entry each year is twofold. First, it serves to promote the song itself as well as the personality of the singer; and second, it is a golden opportunity for our tourist industry, as millions of Europeans are given a glimpse of what Malta has to offer. 

This year's video, with its shots of Fabrizio driving a sports car and on a boat, and romantic couples lounging in hammocks "beneath the moonlight" once again depicts Malta to its best advantage. 

Maltese song is the undisputed favorite on the Net (by Webmaster - Wed 7th March)

This may sound good news but in actual fact, it ISN'T. The Maltese song "Another Summer Night" is currently occupying first places in ALL Eurovision polls (amongst whom; being conducted by various websites. Never has any country been first place in all the polls at the same time. Malta has never been at the top of these polls except for once, in 1997, when it occupied first place for a short period of time in Jarno Pentilla's poll. That year, Debbie Scerri came a disappointing 10th place with the song "Let me fly". 

This year the Maltese song has the advantage of being performed at the end of the contest, just after Estonia and before Greece and Denmark. The Estonian song is much like last year's German song, not really good music, more of a show. The Greek entry is pretty good, with a nice steady rhythm but the English language throughout the song is poor.  Denmark, the host country, is the last to perform, and  the song, though nothing special, will almost certainly bring the house down. Other songs which stand out are Sweden with "Listen to our heartbeat" (carbon copy of Abba's songs and Sweden 1999 "Take Me to Your Heaven"), Ireland with "Without Your Love" (A typical Irish ballad), and Slovenia with "Ne, ni res" (A Balkan uptempo song) .

Those songs which are placed as favorites in the polls very rarely win the contest with the notable exception of Israel in 1998. So it may not be so encouraging that our song is top in the polls. In fact, it's the complete opposite.

Fabrizio 'very well received' in Denmark (by Ariadne Massa - The Times Wed 21st Feb 2001)

Fabrizio Faniello is making ground in the popularity stakes for the Eurovision Song Contest and was "very well received" at Denmark's festival last Saturday.

Organising committee chairman Charlò Bonnici said that Fabrizio had been invited by Morten Carlsson, the head of the Denmark delegation for Eurovision and executive producer of their local festival.

Mr Carlsson expressed his interest in Fabrizio singing as a guest at their festival while he was judging the Song for Europe Festival, which saw Fabrizio voted the winner and getting Malta's representation at Eurovision, Mr Bonnici said.

Last Saturday, Fabrizio left his mark on an audience of 5,000 people and another two million television viewers as he sang his rhythmic song Another Summer Night, accompanied by four Danish dancers.

Mr Bonnici said that last week the German television station RTl broadcast the first in a number of interviews with Fabrizio lined up before the Eurovision contest on May 12.

In April, the 19-year-old singer will be travelling to various Eurovision countries to promote his song.

Ever since he won the Song for Europe Festival, Fabrizio's life has been a whirlwind of exciting events.

Last week he returned from Germany where his song was enhanced by Manfred Holz, managing director of Cap Sounds. A few days later he was on the plane to Denmark.

Mr Bonnici said the CD of Fabrizio's song, composed by Paul Abela and written by Georgina Abela, is expected to be launched in about three weeks' time.

The CD, which will include an extended version of the song, as well as an instrumental version, will then start being aired on radio stations in the participating countries.

Back in Malta, Fabrizio is now busy with the shooting of his video, which started in earnest yesterday afternoon in the sheltered beach of Little Armier.

Carmel Bruno, director and producer of the video, which is being shot by Visual Impact, said the video would consist of two separate stories that would be fused into one.

The first story will feature some of Malta's attractions, such as Valletta, and shots of a large wooden yacht sailing through the Blue Lagoon.

The second story revolves around Fabrizio who drives around a village in a convertible to pick up two of his friends before going to a party at Little Armier.

Once there, he joins 15 of his friends and the fun begins. Fabrizio sings as he moves around different scenes on the beach and as dusk sets in, lanterns, fjakkoli and a big bonfire are lit.

Meanwhile, the yacht sails close to the party on the beach and the girl on board looks on enviously. She decides the party is more fun than the yacht and swims ashore to join Fabrizio. The video ends with Fabrizio singing surrounded by friends.

Mr Bruno said this schedule, which will take about three days of shooting, might change depending on the weather.

Fabrizio Faniello going to Germany this week (by Karen Bicker - The Times Mon 5 Feb 2001)

Fabrizio Faniello yesterday signed his first record contract with German record publication and production company Cap Sounds.

The contract was signed within hours of Fabrizio winning the Malta Song for Europe Festival on Saturday night, which will take him to Copenhagen in May, to represent his country in the Eurovision song contest.

Fabrizio told the press yesterday that he was "tired but very excited" with his success.

Last Saturday's result means that Fabrizio Faniello is the first solo male since Mike Spiteri in 1995 to win the Malta Song for Europe Festival. Female singers like Claudette Pace, Times Three, Chiara, Debbie Scerri and Miriam Christine Borg have ruled the roost over the last years, beating male performers to secure first place.

Nineteen-year-old Fabrizio will be travelling to Germany with composer Paul Abela and author Georgina Abela on Friday for his hit 'Another Summer Night' to be produced.

Cap Sounds have signed contracts with each of the Malta Song Festival winners over the last six years.

The one-year contract with Cap Sounds means Fabrizio and his team will hand over the production to the German record company, who will produce the song "without changing it" said Cap's managing director, Manfred Holz.

"We will work closely with both the artiste, the composer and the author of the song to ensure that the final result will be to everyone's liking. We are not going to change the song, we are going to enhance it," said Mr Holz.

"We will record Fabrizio's voice on Saturday, and during the following few days we will do photo shoots for the cover of the CD, publicity and public relations.

"The video director will present scripts and ideas for the video and song production, then we will prepare for the release, marketing and promotion of the song in as many countries as possible," said Mr Holz.

Fabrizio yesterday looked extremely pleased and still slightly dazed from his win on Saturday night, when he competed with 10 other singers.

The 16 songs had been chosen from the 229 originally submitted.

"I have entered the festival four times, and twice before I came second. I am very happy to have won and excited to be representing Malta in the Eurovision Song Contest," he said.

"I would like to thank all my fans, the fantastic audience who were present at the festival and all the people who voted for me through the televoting system. Without them, I would not be here. The best response for me was from the people," he said.

The young star was lucky to attend the festival at all. Fabrizio had been unwell during the week leading up to the concert, and only recovered on the night before his big performance.

"The video will be produced by a local company," said Malta Song Festival secretary Robert Cefai.

"We have a lot of faith in Maltese companies, that is why we plan to have the video produced locally. Cap Sounds will give the song as much exposure as possible in all the countries participating in the Eurovision," said Mr Cefai.

Fabrizio won with 154 points and over 17,000 of the 46,000 televotes; Ira Losco came second with 122 points for her song 'Spellbound' and Lawrence Gray seized third place with 116 points for his song 'Count on me'.

Fabrizio Faniello: Public's choice for Eurovision (Josanne Cassar - Malta Independent - Mon 5/Feb 2001)

After the excitement of Saturday evening when he was declared this year's winner of the Song for Europe, Fabrizio Faniello yesterday faced his first of many press conferences. 
Though he radiates self-confidence while he is performing, the 19-year-old is rather shy and soft-spoken when he is off-stage. 

This, perhaps, is one of the reasons why the organising committee have asked PBS veteran Joe Galea to take the young singer in hand from now until the night of the Eurovision Song Contest, in order to prepare him for what was described as the 'mental shock' of participating in this large-scale event. The Eurovision this year is taking place in Copenhagen in a covered stadium and will be transmitted live via 32 cameras. 

Describing himself as Fabrizio's parrinu (godfather), Mr Galea explained that he will be involved not only with the singer's image, but he will also be acting as a liaison with the Danish organisers to ensure that the Maltese entry is given the best treatment possible. 

"In the past we have had to deal with technical problems at the last minute, but this time we hope to be able to correct any mistakes as soon as they crop up," Mr Galea said. 

Committee chairman Charlò Bonnici added that in previous editions even the choice of outfit caused a headache because there were "too many captains", and the final result was not always the best one. This year it is hoped that with just one person coordinating everything, this pitfall will be avoided. 

The next few months are going to be quite hectic for Fabrizio, with the usual whirlwind of recording the song for the CD, filming the music video as well as the inevitable rounds of TV and radio appearances which have become part and parcel of the Eurovision experience. 

As usual, the song will be released under the German Cap records label, while the concept and scripting of the video is also being given to a German consultant. "However, we would like to point out that the filming and editing of the video is being done entirely by Maltese personnel," Robbie Cefai assured the press. 

Despite his age, Fabrizio is not the youngest Maltese song representative to have gone to the Eurovision; Miriam Christine Borg was just 16 when she went, as was one of the Times Three, Diane Stafrace. 

The public swell of support for the good looking, green-eyed singer was evident at the Mediterranean Conference Centre, and was equally evident in the public's votes - out of the 46,320 who cast their votes, over 17,000 voted for Fabrizio. 

The committee denied that Fabrizio had an advantage because he co-hosts a TV programme and thus has more exposure than the other singers. "In the Broadcasting Authority survey, his programme Niltaqghu is-Sibt did not do well in the ratings, so TV exposure has nothing to do with it," it was pointed out. 

This year's decision to allow the televoting result to count as the 'eighth judge' (representing 14 per cent of the final vote) seems to have worked, and the organising committee were pleasantly surprised at the huge response by the Maltese public. "Although we haven't discussed it officially, I believe the system should be retained next year," Mr Bonnici said. "The public's vote and the judges' vote were clearly on the same lines so we are confident that the best song won." 

Asked to reveal the way each judge voted by name, Robbie Cefai confirmed that this would be done as soon as the foreign judges had left the island "in order to avoid any potential embarrassment for them". 

As happens each year, the winning song has already started being compared with the music styles which are popular at the moment. 

Parallels are being drawn between Fabrizio's song Another Summer Night (written by Paul and Georgina Abela), and similar songs by Latin heartthrobs Enrique Iglesias and Ricky Martin. 

Fabrizio's own gyrating performance, coupled with his entourage of sexy female dancers has further underlined the similarity. Asked to comment, Fabrizio simply smiled and said, "Well, if people are comparing me to Ricky Martin, I can't complain!"

Faniello For Euro Contest ( Ariadne Massa Sunday Times - 4th Feb 2001)

With his piercing blue eyes and charming looks Fabrizio Faniello yesterday mesmerised the judges who voted his rhythmic song, Another Summer Night, the winner of the Song for Europe Festival.

Fabrizio was visibly moved by his triumph and in between trying to regain his breath and stopping to kiss his supportive fans, he thanked his family and friends for standing by him.

"I was so thrilled and excited when I saw the results," Fabrizio said backstage.

Fabrizio secured first place in the festival with 154 points. His song was composed by Paul Abela with lyrics by Georgina Abela.

The 19-year-old will go on to represent Malta in the Eurovision Song Contest which will be held in Copenhagen on May 12.

Meanwhile, young stunner Ira Losco who last night sang four songs, placed second with 122 points with her song Spellbound, composed by Philip Vella with lyrics by Gerard James Borg.

Lawrence Gray, no newcomer to the scene, placed a close third with 116 points for his beautiful, romantic song Count on Me, composed by Paul Abela with words by Philip Vella

But the spotlight was on Fabrizio who, accompanied by four dancers, stirred the audience with the rhythmic tune which had a dance beat to it.

This is the fourth time that Fabrizio participated in the festival. His first appearance was back in 1998 when he had placed second, after Chiara, with his song More Than Just a Game.

Fabrizio is recovering from a near bout of bronchitis and last week he feared that he might have to drop out of the show. His prayers were answered and he recovered just in time.

Last night's jury was made up of seven judges, while the eighth 'judge' was the public's vote through the televoting system.

Organising Committee chairman Charlò Bonnici said the public had been extremely supportive and over 46,000 people voted through the televoting system.

The streamlined stage and the beautifully-co-ordinated lighting system made yesterday's show a visually pleasant experience.

Joe Galea was responsible for co-ordinating the technical aspects, while Frans Lia was entrusted with visual direction.

The stage design was in the hands of Pierre Portelli and Vince Briffa, two leading installation artists. The organising committee has also secured the services of one of Britain's leading lighting designers, Simon Corder.

Towards the end of the evening, last year's winner Claudette Pace sang her winning song Desire as well as a few other numbers which had been submitted for the festival in the past.

The winners of last year's Eurovision Song Contest, the Danish Olsen Brothers, added some spice to the evening and gave the audience a taste of their music from their album Wings of Love.

The evening which was broadcast live on TVM, was presented by 'Charlie's Angels' - Louise Tedesco, Antonella Vassallo and Claire Fabri.

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