Eurovision 2016: The groovy grand final

 Hello!

 After sharing my thoughts on the first and second semi-final and Sweden and the Big 5, as well as my brother's thoughts on the contest as a whole, it is time to finish my Eurovision 2016 round-up with my opinion of the grand final.

 I enjoyed the flag parade - having it double as a fashion show was an interesting twist. I was pleased to see the musicians looking quite relaxed and happy as they strolled across the stage.

 As for our hosts, Petra and Måns... where do I begin? I've heard so many people who aren't even into Eurovision saying that they loved them and they should host every year.

 I found them a breath of fresh air, especially the brilliant Petra. She was even funnier and more charismatic than in 2013, which I hadn't thought would be possible. I love how the crowd chanted her name as she walked onto stage and how moved by it she seemed.

 I think the postcards could have been slightly more innovative. I like how they showcased the artists' countries instead of just Sweden, but I do think they could have jazzed them up a little.

 I did appreciate the cool things they did with the name of each country at the end of each postcard (different fonts and colours).

 I enjoyed Graham Norton's commentary. He seemed a little less bouncy this year, but I guess that could be linked to Terry Wogan's death. I wish he could have spoken over Petra and Måns less, though as he says every time that he has to, I suppose he must. Still, it was frustrating.

 I could very easily have done without Justin Timberlake and his patronising comments to the contestants. He clearly didn't realise many of them were top musicians in their country and internationally, and treated them like they were talent show newbies.

 His performance wasn't amazing either; I've since grown to quite like the song but that rendition didn't catch my attention. Måns and co. on Segways also looked a bit cheesy and clumsy. He can do a lot better than that.

 However, we all know the real interval act that night was Love Love Peace Peace, Måns and Petra's homage to, and parody of, modern-day Eurovision.

 The song itself is amusing, but it was their performance that made it. Especially Petra, considering she is a comedian first and foremost and not a singer like Måns. I've re-watched it more than most of the night's actual entries. Again, I've heard non-Eurovision fans praise it repeatedly.

 I don't think it quite matches Norway's 2010 flashmob, which in my view is the best interval act ever. But it was better than most we've had in recent years.

 I had my doubts about the new way of presenting the votes. However, it worked okay. It certainly made things more exciting - and tense! - at the end.

 I voted for Sweden and was glad to see they got a point from the UK public vote. To be honest, I expected more than one - Frans has a similar style to some artists who are doing well here at the moment, such as George Ezra, Tom Odell and James Bay. 

 Still, one was better than none and I was happy to see Sweden make the Top 5 - just!

 As for the winner, I think musically it was dull but vocally it was amazing and quite haunting. I won't comment on the politics, as is my general policy with Eurovision songs. 

 I would have been happy with any out of Lithuania, Australia, Sweden or Belgium winning - or the UK, of course!

 Overall, this was one of the best-hosted and generally most enjoyable contests I've watched. Sweden has such respect for Eurovision, which plays a big part in their success both as contestants and hosts. 

 I hope future host nations incorporate some elements of Sweden's two recent contests. (But not Justin Timberlake or Segways!)

 I hope you've enjoyed sharing this year's Eurovision experience with me. Here's to next year!

 Thanks for reading.

 Liz x

Jonas Kaufmann: An Evening With Puccini

 Hello!

Photo: Gregor Hohenberg - The Telegraph

 My parents are huge fans of German tenor Jonas Kaufmann and his concert DVD You Mean the World to Me is often played in our house. Although until a few nights ago I was not too familiar with opera, I could tell his voice was amazing.

 So when last week Arts Alliance asked if I would like to see his new film, An Evening With Puccini, I was of course delighted. It was to be shown at, among many other places, the Odeon in the Printworks, Manchester, which was handy for me.

 Chinese New Year having just gone, Manchester city centre was a sea of red lanterns, setting the scene for an exotic and exciting night. I navigated the maze of escalators in the Odeon and settled down, ready to be enchanted.

 Before the concert we were treated to a brief interview between Kaufmann and Clemency Burton-Hill, in which the tenor explained how he chose to devote an evening to Puccini as the latter was so expert in conjuring up and playing with human emotion. They also hinted at a surprise to come.

 The film proper begins with Jonas striding purposefully through Milan to dramatic music, which could have been very cheesy but somehow works. He arrives at the La Scala opera house and is visually moved by its golden majesty, charged atmosphere and six levels of seating.

 He introduces the conductor, Jochen Rieder. The amiability and mutual respect between the two men is one of the strongest elements of the film. We meet the orchestra, who play a prelude, over which Jonas tells the life of Puccini. His love for the composer is very evident.

 Kaufmann then walks on-stage to rapture from the audience and performs his first aria. His voice is strong and confident, his acting solid and his joy at telling the story, of sharing something he loves, is radiant.

 The show proceeds fairly methodically: the orchestra will perform an instrumental piece, then Kaufmann will take the stage and perform an aria, then there will be another instrumental and another aria. However, methodical as it is, the evening feels very natural and rings with emotion.

 A range of operas are covered, with pieces from Manon Lescaut, Tosca, Madama Butterfly and La fanciulla del West.

 Of course, he has to end with Nessun dorma, which he performs with gusto. Having heard it many times, I was pleasantly surprised that his version made me feel something I hadn't previously. On the last notes of "I will win", I felt such a power and determination coming from his voice, from him, that it filled me with hope and the idea that maybe I could win, too.

 Finally, of course, come the numerous encores including the surprise hinted at earlier. While I won't spoil it, I will say I'm glad that it was left in the film and that instead of putting Kaufmann off as it could well have done, he embraced it and made it work in quite a positive way.

 The film ended quite abruptly but left me feeling like I had been transported to another place and time - to the point where on my way out, I honestly kept having to remind myself I was in Manchester and not Milan.

 It was a unique experience which has inspired me to watch and listen to more opera and to see more event cinema.

 Thanks for reading,

 Liz x

Eurovision 2014: What I thought

 Hello!

Cakes and flags made by my talented brother

 As you will know if you follow this blog or my Facebook page, I am a huge Eurovision fan. It is quite possibly the highlight of my year. I just love the sense of together-ness, of people all over Europe watching and enjoying the same spectacle.

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The host nation:

 One thing I like about Eurovision is learning about the host nation, and in this way I felt slightly let down this year, as I found there wasn't much information about Denmark, or Copenhagen as a city.

 The only thing that had anything to do with Danish culture was the performance of Hans Christian Anderson's The Ugly Duckling in one of the semi-finals. I would have liked more of that sort of thing, especially in the final.

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The hosts:

 I thought the show was well-hosted, though I preferred Petra Mede last year. I think some of the hosts' humour was perhaps lost in translation, as I didn't find some things funny that I think I was supposed to.

 I also didn't really get the continual China references - was that an in-joke of some kind? Overall, though, it was better hosted than a lot of past contests.

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The venue:

 I was amazed when I saw pictures of the venue from the outside - it is a pair of former shipping containers, and looked so different from more glamourous past Eurovision venues. Yet inside, it looked wonderful; I liked the stage design and how it matched the gem theme of the contest.

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The theme:

 When I first encountered the gem theme, I thought it too simple and ordinary. However, it really worked on the night and looked quite arty. The tagline, "#Join us," is too similar to Norway's 2010 slogan, "Share the moment," and I feel that Norway captured the sentiment better with their flashmob. But it is a nice sentiment to have in the first place.

 I could have done without the hash tag, though. Not all of us use Twitter, and those of us who don't can still be part of Eurovision.

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The songs:

 I thought the standard of songs this year was really good - probably the best overall quality across all the songs that I remember seeing at Eurovision. However, for me there were few really excellent songs. I voted for Malta and the Netherlands, my favourites by a long way. 

 I also quite liked Spain's song. But that was it. While many other songs were good, they just didn't blow my mind.

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The winner:

 I like how Conchita's victory was a victory of sorts for equality. Also, Tom, the guy whose character she is, seems really nice in interview. However, I don't really like the song - it just seems to be about three other songs pasted together and generally dull. 

 The ideal situation for me would have been for Conchita to have come second, which would still have made a stir and a statement, and for the Netherlands to have won because they had the better song and it is a song contest at the end of the day.

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 I hope you enjoyed reading my thoughts on the show. Congratulations to Conchita and to Austria, and thank you to everyone who was involved in making Eurovision 2014 such a great success.

 Here's to Eurovision 2015 in Austria!

 Thanks for reading! I have also written an article about Eurovision for my university's student newspaper, if you would like to check it out.

 Liz x

Songs: Coming Home - Firelight - 2014

Calm After the Storm - The Common Linnets- 2014