In a report published by the German broadcaster, NDR, Cascada’s entry to the 2013 Eurovision Song Contest Glorious has been deemed free of plagiarism.
Since Cascada released a preview of their song Glorious, comparisons have been frequently observed with Loreen’s 2012 winner, Euphoria. NDR had the report commissioned after this public discussion about likenesses between the two songs began.
To summarise [the report], “Glorious” and “Euphoria” have no similarities which breach copyright, says Matthias Pogoda, an expert who has been dealing with plagiarism claims by music companies since 1992. They are merely stylistically similar, and only show superficial parallels in arrangement.
The report also found that the songs differ in several major ways. The report examines both songs in terms of vocal melody and arrangement, and concludes that whilst both songs are arranged in a similar style; using commercial sounds and keyboard accompaniments, the vocal work was significantly different. In his conclusion of the report, Pogoda writes: In my opinion, a justified accusation of plagiarism should have detailed similarities of a long passage and for further accompanying components to accurately match. This here is not the case.
The producers behind Euphoria have acknowledged the report, and have gone as far as to wish Cascada good luck with their performance in Malmö.
Germany will participate in the Grand Final of the Eurovision Song Contest 2013, on 18 May.
