The second heat of the German performer selection for the Eurovision Song Contest 2010 is about to take place. Ten acts will compete for five spots in the national final.
How to watch?
There will be no official webcast, but all performances will appear on the official website shortly after the show. A full live report will be provided here on esctoday.com.
Pro 7 is available on satellite. You can find detailed information on how to receive the channel here.
The participants
The ten contestants are being kept a secret until the live show tonight.
LIVE
The show has started.
Sabine Heinrich and Matthias Opdenhövel enter the stage and the welcome the audience. A recap is shown of the five singers that qualified last week. The procedure of the show is once again is explained before the jury is instroduced.
Head judge and creator of the programme Stefan Raab is introduced first. The two guest jury members are Sarah Connor (who is introduced as "the German voice of Soul music") and Peter Maffay (who is introuced as "THE German hit titan").
Sarah Connor was already a guest judge in the last Stefan Raab talent search in 2008. Peter Maffay is being told that his new album will enter the German charts at number one this Friday, something that the singer did not know himself.
1. Jennifer Braun
Jennifer still goes to school. She performs I'm outta love by Anastacia.
Despite being the youngest contestant, Jennifer rocks the stage with the popular pop/rock song by Anastacia. The style of the music suits her voice very well and the vocals are strong throughout the performance. The performance is energetic and she gets a very positive reaction from the audience.
Peter Maffay says that it was an excellent performance and that she has the music "in her blood".
Sarah Connor says that it was a great performance and that the song was very hard to sing.
Stefan Raab says that it was "shocking", "shockingly good". He could hardly find any wrong notes and he thinks that the performance was authentic.
2. Benjamin Hartmann
Benjamin Hartmann is an upcoming financial expert. He performs Better together by Jack Johnson.
Benjamin performs with his acoustic guitar and he delivers a flawless and very relaxed performance of the Jack Johnson song. The style seems to suit im very well and although his voice might lack a certain recognition value, he might profit from the fact that this music style is not expected in a televised talent search. The overall impression might still be a tad too forgettable to reach the next round, especially as he had to perform that early tonight.
Stefan Raab syas that Benjamin had a very good timing at the guitar but he missed something in the voice.
Sarah Connor thinks it was a very good performance and she hopes that he will come back to perform another song. She also noticed that he should look into the camera more often.
Peter Maffay agrees with Stefan Raab and thinks that the guitar work was better than the vocals. He also said that Benjamin could be more self-confident.
Commercial break now.
3. Maria-Lisa Straßburg
Maria-Lisa Straßburg is a Musician. She performs Saving my face by KT Tunstall.
Maria-Luisa shows what her profession is and she delivers a very authentic performance of this rather unknown song. She sells the song as if it were her own. She is another singer wo appears with her guitar on stage and the overall style is perfect for her.
Sarah Connor says she enjoyed the performance and that she would like to see her represent Germany.
Peter Maffay says that he hardly could sit still and that he would like to see her reach the next round.
Stefan Raab says that he is happy to see some female contestants far from the "chick girl" cliché and that he enjoyed the edges in the performance. He also highlights the flawless performance and the sound of her voice.
4. Behnam Seifi
Behnam Seifi is a dental technichan. He performs Save room by John Legend.
Another performance of a rather unknown song. The vocal performance is not as strong as the rpevious ones tonight and the "raunchy" atmosphere in his voice seems a bit forced. Nevertheless and interesting effort that could profit from the fact of being different.
Sarah Connor says that he sounded similar to the original performer. She notes that there were some problems with the intonation and that he really needs "the balls" to perform this song.
Peter Maffay says that it was a powerful performance.
Stefan Raab agrees that there were some problems with the intonation and that he would like to find out how his voice what his voice would sound like when he sings higher notes.
5. Sharyhan Osman
Sharyhan Osman is an upcoming actress. She performs I have nothing by Whitney Houston.
Sharyhan is also a songwriter and she performed on of her own compositions during the original casting. Just like Meri Voskanian, she competed in the German Pop idol in 2006 and in fact, she was eliminated in the same show as Meri. After some rather unknown songs, a real classic follows. Sharyhan sounds a bit insecure during the first notes but her voice gains power as the song proceeds. A rather strong performance, although a more intimate and subtle song might suit her voice better than this dramatic ballad.
Stefan Raab says that usually terrible things happen, when contestants perform Whitney Houston songs during talent searches. However, he thinks that Sharyhan's performance was very professional and close to perfect.
Sarah Connor would prefer a different hairstyle but she agrees that it was a flawless performance. She would still perform a more dramatic performance.
Peter Maffay says that he was "carried away" by the performance and that she wouldn't have needed the microphone rack to hold on to.
Commercial break now.
6. Alex Senzig
Alex Senzig is studying law. He performs Wherever you will go by The Calling.
Alex seems very nervous and while he is able to overshadow it with his coolness at the beginning he seems to entirely loos his nerves during the chorus. He is off-key throughout the whole performance and the mumbling style is a little disturbing. He might not stand the comparison with the other male contestants wo performed songs in a similar style.
Peter Maffay says that he likes this kind of songs. He still thinks that it might some more edges and more power.
Stefan Raab had the impression that the singer was very concetrated and that he was hiding behind his guitar. He also think that there were to many false notes.
Sarah Connor disagrees with Stefan Raab and she says that he came across very well on screen. She also says that the song makes it possible to hide some flaws.
7. Jana Wall
Jana Wall is a singer. She performs Who knew by Pink.
Jana delivers a confident performance during the first verse but she goes off-key during the chorus. She seems to get more and more nervous from that part onwards and the rest of the performance is rather shaky. She still has "star appeal" the way she comes across on screen.
Sarah Connor says that Jana has a "monster body" and a "monster glance". She also says that she brings "chick girl" style on stage.
Peter Maffay says that Jana is a reason why music is not only for listening but also for looking.
Stefan Raab that Jana had good timing and she was very present in stage. He also liked her style. He still found some problems when it comes to the intonation.
Commercial break now.
8. Franziska Weber
Franziska Weber is an upcoming cosmetician. She performs Love foolosophy by Jamiroquai.
Franziska wears a blonde wig, which she does to hide her nervosity, as she says. Generally, she is one of the most interesting and unusual performers so far. The choice of song suits her and she has a very strong voice that can show its potential during the more energetic second half of the song.
Peter Maffay says that he likes the hair and that she did not show any nerves.
Sarah Connor enjoyed the performance and she says that Franziska does not have to hide.
Stefan Raab says that he is more euphoric than his fellow judges. He says that he found the way she "unfunked" the song very charming and that the timing was very good. He also likes the colour of her voice.
9. Leon Taylor
Leon Taylor performs Der Weg by Herbet Grönemyer.
Leon really seems to enjoy his time on stage and he might even be a bit too happy to perform the melancholic song. It is the first song performed in German so far, which will definitely be an advantage in the voting. The vocal performance is both strong and emotional and his voice sounds remarkable both in the calmer and the louder parts of the song.
Stefan Raab likes that Leon did not try to impersonate the original artist. He also thinks that it was a good idea to perform a song in German.
Sarah Connor was enchanted by the performance. She says that she would buy his record.
Peter Maffay liked the emotions and the way he connected with the audience.
10. Christian Durstewitz
Christian Durstewitz is a musician. He performs Faith by George Michael.
Christian performs the 1987 George Michael classic in a more contemporary style that suits him perfectly. He lives the song and delivers a very professional but still authentic performance. An energetic effort that has high chances of qualifying for the next round.
Sarah Connor enjoyed the confident performance and the groove.
Peter Maffay liked that Christian was having a party on stage and that he would like to hear more songs by him.
Stefan Raab says it was great and that he liked the attitude.
The jury is now telling who is most likely to qualify:
Peter Maffay: Jennifer, Maria-Lisa, Sharyman, Leon and Christian
Sarah Connor: Leon, Christian, Maria-Lisa, Franziska, Alex
Stefan Raab: Christian, Leon, Franziska, Maria-Lisa, Jennifer – least likely: Alex, Benjamin
The lines are now open. A recap is shown with all ten performances.
The lines are closed and the results are about to come in.
Sharyhan Osman to the next round!
Maria-Lisa Straßburg to the next round!
Jennifer Braun to the next round!
Christian Durstewitz to the next round!
Leon Taylor to the next round!
