Spain was represented at the Eurovision Song Contest 1961 with the song "Estando contigo", composed by Augusto Algueró, with lyrics by Antonio Guijarro, and performed by Conchita Bautista. The Spanish participating broadcaster, Televisión Española (TVE), selected its entry through a national final. This was the first-ever entry from Spain in the Eurovision Song Contest, and the first-ever entry performed fully in Spanish in the contest.
| Eurovision Song Contest 1961 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Participating broadcaster | Televisión Española (TVE) | |||
| Country |  Spain | |||
| National selection | ||||
| Selection process | National final | |||
| Selection date(s) | Semi-final 13 February 1961 Final 14 February 1961 | |||
| Selected artist(s) | Conchita Bautista | |||
| Selected song | "Estando contigo" | |||
| Selected songwriter(s) |
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| Finals performance | ||||
| Final result | 9th, 8 points | |||
| Spain in the Eurovision Song Contest | ||||
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Before Eurovision
editNational final
editThe national final took place at the studios of Radio Nacional de España (RNE) in Barcelona on 13–14 February 1961, hosted by Federico Gallo, Jorge Arandes, and María del Carmen García Lecha, and was aired through Radio Nacional. Ten songs competed over two shows, with the winner song being decided upon through jury voting.[1]
Competing entries
edit| Artist | Song | Composer(s) |
|---|---|---|
| Angelita Baidez | "Tempranito" | José Solá |
| Conchita Bautista | "Estando contigo" | Augusto Algueró, Antonio Guijarro |
| Coralito de Jaén | "Con los ojos, no" | Máximo Baratas |
| Jorge Miranda | "Betsabé" | Manuel Martínez Remis, Roberto García Morillo |
| José Cercós | "Serenata" | Mario Sellés |
| Ramón Calduch | "Carita morena" | Jorge Domingo |
| "Eva María" | Rafael Ramírez | |
| Santy | "La tormenta" | Josep Capell |
| "Sigo caminando" | Josefina Güell, Juan José Umbert | |
| Víctor Balaguer | "Ba be bi bu bá" | José Pal Latorre |
Semi-final
editThe semi-final took place on 13 February 1961. The ten competing songs were presented, and six of these songs went forward to the national final. The jury consisted of ten members, five music experts and five plain citizens. The music experts were:
- Sebastià Gasch – Journalist at RNE, writer, art critic
- Diego Ramírez Pastor – Journalist, president at Asociación de la Prensa de Barcelona
- Arthur Kaps – Producer at TVE
- Alfonso Banda Moras – Director of current affairs at RNE for Barcelona
- Carlos Moltó Arniches – Delegate at Sociedad General de Autores y Editores for Barcelona
The plain citizens were Alberto Rovira, María Amparo Gascón, Carmen Navarro, Joaquina Navarro and Pilar Agudo Villegas.
| Draw | Artist | Song | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Coralito de Jaén | "Con los ojos, no" | Eliminated |
| 2 | José Cercós | "Serenata" | Eliminated |
| 3 | Víctor Balaguer | "Ba be bi bu bá" | Qualified |
| 4 | Santy | "La tormenta" | Eliminated |
| 5 | Santy | "Sigo caminando" | Eliminated |
| 6 | Jorge Miranda | "Betsabé" | Qualified |
| 7 | Conchita Bautista | "Estando contigo" | Qualified |
| 8 | Angelita Baidez | "Tempranito" | Qualified |
| 9 | Ramón Calduch | "Carita morena" | Qualified |
| 10 | Ramón Calduch | "Eva María" | Qualified |
Final
editThe final took place on 14 February 1961, with the same hosts and jury members. The winner, "Estando contigo" performed by Conchita Bautista, was selected through jury voting, which she won by just one point.[2][3]
| Draw | Artist | Song | Points | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ramón Calduch | "Eva María" | 32 | 4 |
| 2 | Angelita Baidez | "Tempranito" | 13 | 6 |
| 3 | Conchita Bautista | "Estando contigo" | 49 | 1 |
| 4 | Jorge Miranda | "Betsabé" | 25 | 5 |
| 5 | Víctor Balaguer | "Ba be bi bu bá" | 48 | 2 |
| 6 | Ramón Calduch | "Carita morena" | 43 | 3 |
At Eurovision
editThe Eurovision Song Contest 1961 was held on 18 March 1961 at the Palais des Festivals et des Congrès in Cannes, France. Conchita Bautista performed "Estando contigo" first in the running order, preceding Monaco. Rafael Ferrer conducted the event's orchestra performance of the Spanish entry. At the close of voting the song had received eight points, placing Spain ninth of the sixteen entries. The Spanish jury awarded its highest mark (3) to the United Kingdom.[4]
Voting
editEach participating broadcaster assembled a ten-member jury panel. Every jury member could give one point to his or her favourite song.
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References
edit- ^ "Edición del martes, 14 febrero 1961, página 18 - Hemeroteca - Lavanguardia.es". hemeroteca.lavanguardia.com. Retrieved 1 January 2022.
- ^ del Amor Caballero, Reyes (4 May 2004). "Preselecciones españolas para Eurovisión, primera parte". eurovision-spain.com (in Spanish). Retrieved 1 March 2008.
- ^ "Spain National Final 1961". natfinals.50webs.com.
- ^ ESC History - Spain 1961
- ^ a b "Results of the Final of Cannes 1961". Eurovision Song Contest. Archived from the original on 28 March 2021. Retrieved 28 March 2021.