| Bosnia and Herzegovina in the Eurovision Song Contest 2009 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Eurovision Song Contest 2009 | ||||
| Country |  Bosnia and Herzegovina | |||
| Selection process | Internal selection | |||
| Announcement date | Artist: 12 January 2009 Song: 1 March 2009 | |||
| Competing entry | ||||
| Song | "Bistra voda" | |||
| Artist | Regina | |||
| Songwriters | Aleksandar Čović | |||
| Placement | ||||
| Semi-final result | Qualified (3rd, 125 points) | |||
| Final result | 9th, 106 points | |||
| Participation chronology | ||||
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Bosnia and Herzegovina participated in theEurovision Song Contest 2009 with the song "Bistra voda" ( inEnglish" Clear water") written by Aleksandar Čović. The song was performed by the bandRegina. On 12 January 2009, the Bosnian broadcasterRadio and Television of Bosnia and Herzegovina (BHRT) revealed that they had internally selected Regina to compete at the 2009 contest in Moscow, Russia. Their song, "Bistra voda", was presented to the public during a show entitledBH Eurosong Show 2009 on 1 March 2009.
Bosnia and Herzegovina was drawn to compete in the first semi-final of the Eurovision Song Contest which took place on 12 May 2009. Performing as the closing entry during the show in position 18, "Bistra voda" was announced among the 10 qualifying entries of the first semi-final and therefore qualified to compete in the final on 16 May. It was later revealed that Bosnia and Herzegovina placed third out of the 18 participating countries in the semi-final with 125 points. In the final, Bosnia and Herzegovina performed in position 12 and placed ninth out of the 25 participating countries, scoring 106 points.
Prior to the 2009 contest, Bosnia and Herzegovina had participated in the Eurovision Song Contest fourteen times since its first entry in1993.[1] The nation's best placing in the contest was third, which it achieved in2006 with the song "Lejla" performed byHari Mata Hari. Following theintroduction of semi-finals for the2004 contest, Bosnia and Herzegovina has, up to this year, managed to qualify on each occasion the nation has participated and compete in the final. Bosnia and Herzegovina's least successful result has been 22nd place, which they have achieved in1996.
The Bosnian national broadcaster,Radio and Television of Bosnia and Herzegovina (BHRT), broadcasts the event within Bosnia and Herzegovina and organises the selection process for the nation's entry. BHRT confirmed their intentions to participate at the 2009 Eurovision Song Contest on 18 November 2008.[2] The broadcaster had selected the Bosnian entry through an internal selection process since2006, a selection procedure that was continued for their 2009 entry.
On 15 November 2008, the broadcaster opened the submission period for artists and composers to submit their entries up until 20 December 2008.[3] Artists were required to be citizens of Bosnia and Herzegovina, while songwriters could be of any nationality.[2][4] 79 submissions were received at the closing of the deadline, including an entry from2006 Bosnian Eurovision entrantHari Mata Hari.[5][6] On 12 January 2009, BHRT announced that they had internally selected the bandRegina to represent Bosnia and Herzegovina in Moscow with the song "Bistra voda" which was written by band member Aleksandar Čović.[7][8] Band member Davor Ebner previously attempted to representBosnia and Herzegovina in the Eurovision Song Contest 2001, performed together with Grunti Bugli in the national final and placing joint seventh with the song "Ko mi te uze".[9] The seven-member selection committee that determined Regina and the song to be performed at the contest consisted of Dejan Kukrić (Bosnian Head of Delegation at the Eurovision Song Contest), Jasmin Ferović (music editor atBH Radio 1), Adnan Mušanović (music producer of MP BHRT), Goran Kovačić (musician), Miroslav Maraus (composer and arranger),Damir Imamović (musician) and Mahir Sarihodžić (producer).[10]
"Bistra voda" was presented during a television special entitledBH Eurosong Show 2009 on 1 March 2009, which was held at the BHRT Studio A inSarajevo and hosted by Dejan Kukrić, Maja Čengić and Aida Halilović.[11] The show was broadcast onBHT 1 andBH Radio 1 as well as streamed online via the broadcaster's websitebhrt.ba and the official Eurovision Song Contest websiteeurovision.tv.[12] In addition to the presentation of the song, the show featured guest performances by1964 Yugoslav Eurovision entrantSabahudin Kurt,1998,2005 and2009 Maltese Eurovision entrantChiara,2004 and2009 Greek Eurovision entrantSakis Rouvas,2006 Macedonian Eurovision entrantElena Risteska,2008 Bosnian Eurovision entrantLaka,2009 Macedonian Eurovision entrantNext Time,2009 Montenegrin Eurovision entrantAndrea Demirović,2009 Slovenian Eurovision entrantsQuartissimo andMartina Majerle,2009 Turkish Eurovision entrantHadise and2009 British Eurovision entrantJade Ewen.[13][14] ABosnian language version,English language version andRussian language version of the song were prepared, with the song being performed in Bosnian at the Eurovision Song Contest.[15]
Regina made several appearances across Europe to specifically promote "Bistra voda" as the Bosnian Eurovision entry. The band appeared during the final of the Macedonian Eurovision national finalSkopje Fest 2009 on 21 February and performed "Bistra voda" during the semi-final of the Serbian Eurovision national finalBeovizija 2009 on 7 March.[16][17] Between 10 and 12 April, the band performed as a special guest for1999 Bosnian Eurovision entrantDino Merlin's concerts that were held inGothenburg andMalmö, Sweden as well as inHorsens, Denmark.[15] On 18 April, Regina performed during theEurovision in Concert event, which was held at the Amsterdam Marcanti venue in Amsterdam, Netherlands and hosted byMarga Bult andMaggie MacNeal.[18] The band also took part in promotional activities in Albania, Croatia, Montenegro, Slovenia and Turkey which included several television and radio appearances.[15][19]
According to Eurovision rules, all nations with the exceptions of the host country and the "Big Four" (France, Germany, Spain and the United Kingdom) are required to qualify from one of two semi-finals in order to compete for the final; the top nine songs from each semi-final as determined by televoting progress to the final, and a tenth was determined by back-up juries. TheEuropean Broadcasting Union (EBU) split up the competing countries into six different pots based on voting patterns from previous contests, with countries with favourable voting histories put into the same pot. On 30 January 2009, a special allocation draw was held which placed each country into one of the two semi-finals. Bosnia and Herzegovina was placed into the first semi-final, to be held on 12 May 2009.[20][21][22] The running order for the semi-finals was decided through another draw on 16 March 2009 and Bosnia and Herzegovina was set to perform last in position 18, following the entry fromMalta.
The two semi-finals and the final were broadcast in Bosnia and Herzegovina onBHT 1 andBH Radio 1 with commentary by Dejan Kukrić.[23][24][25] The Bosnian spokesperson, who announced the Bosnian votes during the final, wasLaka who representedBosnia and Herzegovina in the Eurovision Song Contest 2008.
Regina took part in technical rehearsals on 4 and 8 May, followed by dress rehearsals on 11 and 12 May. The Bosnian performance featured the members of Regina being joined on stage by two drummers. During the climax of the song, all performers moved to the front of the stage with one of the drummers displaying a red flag in the air using a wind machine. According to the band, the performers' white costumes emphasized Russian aristocracy, while the predominantly red staging symbolised Russia and the message of "Bistra voda" being a love revolution.[26][27] The creative director for the Bosnian performance wasBoris Miljković.[9] The two drummers that joined Regina were: Danijela Večerinović and Elma Selimović.[28]
At the end of the show, Bosnia and Herzegovina was announced as having finished in the top 10 and subsequently qualifying for the grand final. It was later revealed that Bosnia and Herzegovina placed third in the semi-final, receiving a total of 125 points.[29]
Shortly after the first semi-final, a winners' press conference was held for the ten qualifying countries. As part of this press conference, the qualifying artists took part in a draw to determine the running order for the final. This draw was done in the order the countries appeared in the semi-final running order. Bosnia and Herzegovina was drawn to perform in position 12, following the entry fromAzerbaijan and before the entry fromMoldova.[30]
Regina once again took part in dress rehearsals on 15 and 16 May before the final, including the jury final where the professional juries cast their final votes before the live show. The band performed a repeat of their semi-final performance during the final on 16 May. At the conclusion of the voting, Bosnia and Herzegovina finished in ninth place with 106 points.[31]
The voting system for 2009 involved each country awarding points from 1–8, 10 and 12, with the points in the final being decided by a combination of 50% nationaljury and 50%televoting. Each nation's jury consisted of five music industry professionals who are citizens of the country they represent. This jury judged each entry based on: vocal capacity; the stage performance; the song's composition and originality; and the overall impression by the act. In addition, no member of a national jury was permitted to be related in any way to any of the competing acts in such a way that they cannot vote impartially and independently.
Following the release of the full split voting by the EBU after the conclusion of the competition, it was revealed that Bosnia and Herzegovina had placed seventh with the public televote and twelfth with the jury vote in the final. In the public vote, Bosnia and Herzegovina scored 124 points, while with the jury vote, Bosnia and Herzegovina scored 90 points.
Below is a breakdown of points awarded to Bosnia and Herzegovina and awarded by Bosnia and Herzegovina in the first semi-final and grand final of the contest. The nation awarded its 12 points to Turkey in the semi-final and to Croatia in the final of the contest.
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The following members comprised the Bosnian jury:[34]
| Draw | Country | Results | Points | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jury | Televoting | Combined | |||
| 01 |  Lithuania | ||||
| 02 |  Israel | 12 | 12 | 8 | |
| 03 |  France | 10 | 10 | 6 | |
| 04 |  Sweden | 2 | 2 | ||
| 05 |  Croatia | 8 | 12 | 20 | 12 |
| 06 |  Portugal | 6 | 6 | 1 | |
| 07 |  Iceland | 4 | 4 | ||
| 08 |  Greece | 7 | 7 | 5 | |
| 09 |  Armenia | 3 | 3 | ||
| 10 |  Russia | ||||
| 11 |  Azerbaijan | 6 | 6 | 3 | |
| 12 | Bosnia and Herzegovina | ||||
| 13 |  Moldova | ||||
| 14 |  Malta | ||||
| 15 |  Estonia | 3 | 3 | ||
| 16 |  Denmark | ||||
| 17 |  Germany | 4 | 2 | 6 | 2 |
| 18 |  Turkey | 1 | 10 | 11 | 7 |
| 19 |  Albania | 5 | 5 | ||
| 20 |  Norway | 5 | 8 | 13 | 10 |
| 21 |  Ukraine | ||||
| 22 |  Romania | 1 | 1 | ||
| 23 |  United Kingdom | 7 | 7 | 4 | |
| 24 |  Finland | ||||
| 25 |  Spain | ||||
