Israeli paper Ma'ariv posted this weekend an interview with David D'Or, the country's entrant to the 2004 Eurovision Song Contest in Istanbul. In the interview, D'Or reflects on his Eurovision experience, today when he is very successful in the far east.
David D'Or represented Israel in the very first semifinal of the Eurovision Song Contest, back in 2004 in Istanbul. The mission of passing through the first ever semifinal was given to D'Or by IBA, hoping his unique voice will do the job. Eventually D'Or finished 11th in the semifinal with his song "To Believe", only few points away from qualifying to the final. Not many people know that during the days and moments in Istanbul, D'Or's heart and thoughts were not all dedicated to succeeding in the contest. During Eurovision week, his father, who was suffering from diabetes, was rushed to hospital, where one of his legs had to be amputated. This might give a better explanation why D'Or left Istanbul and went back to Israel for 2 days during rehearsals week. D'Or's father passed away a couple of years ago.
Putting aside his father's tragedy, D'Or also regrets his participation in the Eurovision Song Contest for other reasons. "Before the contest I had a vision of a musical contest, like the ones I used to watch when I was a child. Nowadays there's no musical value to the songs and winnersof the contest. The winners are the ones with masks or brilliant choreographies. When I realized I have made a mistake, it was too late to back down. I went to Eurovision for patriotic reasons, I wanted to represent my country. My mistake was that I treated the mission like the Olympic games. My wife (and manager) tried to talk me out of taking part, I should have listened to her", says D'Or to Ma'ariv.
Today David D'Or is quite successful in the far east countries: China, Singapore, Taiwan and other countries around the world. This is mainly after working with Peter Gabriel in the Womad Festival, which brought him the breakthrough.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2ymqgGaNcWg&rel=0&ap=%2526fmt%3D18