The third semi final of the Maltese selection for the 2010 Eurovision Song Contest is about to be held. Six acts will compete to be among the top 20 that will eventually reach the grand final.

Webcast

You can follow the show via webcast here.

The line-up

Composer/Lyricist in brackets.

1. Miriam Christine – Beautiful contradiction
   (Miriam Christine/Gerard James Borg)
2. Thea Garrett – My dream
   (Jason Paul Cassar/Sunny Aquilina)
3. Tiziana Galleja – Words are not enough
   (John David Zammit/Paul Callus)
4. Eleanor Spiteri – Velvet ocean
   (Paul Abela/Joe Julian Farrugia)
5. Francesca Borg – I surrender
   (Dominic Cini/Mario J Caruana)
6. Eleanor Cassar – Choices
   (Paul Giordimaina/Fleur Balzan)

LIVE

The semi final will be held during tonight's edition of the weekly show L-Isfida, which is being aired at the moment. The performances of the Eurosong candidates will start around 22:15 CET.

The performances are starting.

1. Miriam Christine – Beautiful contradiction

Miriam Christine represented Malta in the Eurovision Song Contest 1996 and finished 10th with the song In a woman's heart. She also competed in the national selections in 1995 and 1998 and after a long absence, she returned last year with her own composition Mama that finished 15th in the first round of the final. This year she is back and again she composed the music to her song but the lyrics were written by Malta's universal answer Gerard James Borg.

After a very classic ballad last year, the singer goes for something compeletely different this time. The song starts with a sort of laid-back jazzy feeling but quickly turns into an up-tempo song somewhere between pop and R&B. The song is catchy but slightly repetetive. The performance is very confident and Miriam Christine sells the song in a very charming but still professional way.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nMzPgmMv5mw

2. Thea Garrett – My dream

My dream is a Eurovision ballad as classic as it can be. It might not be called original but it has the nostalgic charm many fans like in Eurovision entries as was proven this year by the UK entry. The dark atmosphere and the simple performance suit the song very well and the vocal performance is rather strong.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4bFHSQyhEB0

3. Tiziana Galleja – Words are not enough

Tiziana Galleja is a Malta Eurosong newcomer, which might be the reason why she seems to be rather nervous on stage. The vocals are pretty shaky throughout the whole performance which doesn't help the catchy, but very simple pop song. This might not be a winner.

4. Eleanor Spiteri – Velvet ocean

Eleanor Spiteri has previously participated as part of the group Trilogy in 2006, 2007 and 2009 achieving their best result in 2007, when they finished second behind Olivia Lewis with Starlight. Her song was composed by Paul Abela, who composed the Maltese entries in 1991, 1996 and 2001 and also served as a conductor in 1991, 1992 and 1996.

The song starts with a dramatic strings arrangement which probably sounds promising to those who are missing the orchestra in Eurovision. The rest of the mid-tempo song is somehow catchy but the whole concept seems slightly chaotic. The singer goes off-key many times making it probabably one of her weakest vocal performances in the Maltese selections so far. However, with a different arrangement and a stronger vocal performance this song might gain popularity.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ojmSXEuxhLs

5. Francesca Borg – I surrender

Francesca Borg had her Malta Eurosong debut last year but did not make it past the semi finals with her song Falling in love. This year, she presents a ballad, but one that is not in the most classical Eurovision style but has more of a rock feeling. The vocal performance is not flawless, but the blue notes suit the song perfectly. The song itself would probably be even more authentic with a more pure and more simple arrangement, but this one could definitely become a dark horse for those who want to see Malta sending something different than usual to Oslo.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1fQrxSIkCAc

6. Eleanor Cassar – Choices

Eleanor Cassar has been among the most frequent Malta Eurosong contestants in recent years. She took part in 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2008 and 2009 achieving her best result last year when she finished second with Someday. COmposer Paul Giordimaina represented Malta as a singer in 1991.

We stay in the rock genre, but this time more in an up-tempo pop kind of style. The song is simple but catchy and regarding the full package, this is one of the most professional efforts so far this year. Eleanor Cassar's vocal performance is very strong and at some points it seems that she is even trying too hard to belt out the notes. However, it's still a strong performance that is likely to reach the final.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=locGAIY2P7U