The first semi final of the 46th edition of the Festival i Këngës is about to take place. A webcast will be provided, you can watch the show by following link below. Tonight's live coverage will be provided by Roni Klein of OGAE Albania and John Nielsen.

WEBCAST(working now for most people)

RADIO WEBCAST(Radio Kosova live, works with winamp media player)

This article will be constantly updated.

The show will start in a few minutes.

The show has started. Unfortunately, the webcast is not working (yet), hopefully this will be sorted out soon. At the beginning, Elsa Lila performs a song herself with Pirro Kako playing the piano.

Elsa Lila has just stated that 30 songs will compete – 15 today and 15 tomorrow, therefore rumours that Blero has withdrawn from the competition are unlikely to turn out to be true.

1. Arber Arapi– Malli(Nostalgia)

Malli is a sad ballad. The stage is simple but effective appearing in blue and silver colours with many light effects. The melody is very nice but there is a long instrumental break, which makes it probably not one of the favourites tonight. It was one of the shorter songs, as typical Albanian songs of the genre are usually very long.

2. Besiana Mehmedi– Di te jetoj (I know how to live)

Besiana is wearing a glittering dress with four dancers behind her. Her entry is a very ethnic songs and the drums remind of Ledina Celo's entry in the 2005 Eurovision Song Contest, Tomorrow I go, although it is less powerful. It's one of the songs that are more likely to reach the final. It's another one that was shorter than three minutes.

3. Ani Cuedari dhe Mateus Frroku– Testament dashurie (The will of love)

Mateus is wearing a shinig black suit while Ani wears an elegant black dress… glitter must be fashion in Albania now, Ani's dress has indeed some. Mateus' vocal performance is by far better than Ani's. It's the third song in a row that lasts shorter than three minutes!

The jury is introduces now. There is a very warm applause when Alban Skenderaj, last year's entrant is mentioned. Elsa asks Alban Skenderaj, if it is strange that more women than men are competing as singers – he answered that it is because most guys are interested in sports.

4. Juliana Pasha– Nje qiell te ri (The new sky)

Juliana has a strong voice. Her entry is a pop song with a very little rhythmic refrain. It is definitely the most catchy song so far and very likely to reach the final.

The medley of the first four songs is performed now.

5. Produkt 28– 30 sekonda (30 seconds)

One of the three guys has already tasted Eurovision as a backing singer for Luiz Ejlli in Athens. It's an r'n'b song, the lyrics are about men who treat women badly. The style is obviously not everyone's cup of tea, especially not among Eurovision Song Contest fans although it gets more lively and catchy in the refrain. As it turns out, the maximum lenght of the songs has been set to three minutes after all.

6. Adela Bezhani– Mos thuaj jo (Don't say no)

The audience applauds a lot as the singer enters the stage. There are three female backup singers and she is wearing another glittery black dress; it is longer than the almost identical one of the background singers. The song is bit monotone while the singer is doing her best even if she is not very experienced.

There is an interval act performance by the children band Thimjalteza. This song – even if very catchy – is not in the running!

7. Sajmir Cili– Ninull per ty (A lullaby for you)

Ireland could not have done it better as the song starts with a cryin baby. The song would have probably been more interesting without this sound effect and the overusing of the violins. Overall a rather repetitive entry.

8. Rovena Dilo– Perjetesisht (Eternity)

Rovena Dilo is one of the big names in the selection. The song is produced by Darko Dimitrov, who has also produced Ninanajna, the Macedonian entry in the 2006 Eurovision Song Contest. Her voice is very powerful, more powerful than the orchestra, and the song is pretty ethnic. This song is very likely to qualify for the final.

The second medley is performed by the very popular sisters Eranda & Irma Libohova and their performance uplifts the four songs a lot.

9. Evans Rama– Drita e henes (Moonlight)

The song probably has too many instrumental parts but is still pretty catchy. Although there are two female background singers, the cameras mainly focus on the lead singer. Nevertheless, the outfits probably need a second thought.

10. J.A.Fejzo dhe Alesio– K’te nate te ty (This evening together)

Only J. A. Fejzo is performing, it's not a duet as previously announced. There are four dancers, one of them is his daughter. The girls wear very much revealing tops (reminding of Alsou in 2000, but in black) – when they bow,almost more can be seen than would be allowed on the Eurovision Song Contest stage. Although the song is very catchy, it does no really suit the singer's age and he tries to look younger than he actually is.

There is a short break. Elsa Lila states that she has missed Albania, she realised that when she came back. Pirro Cako performs a song about the feeling of missing something, he is also palying the piano.

11. F. Kralani& D. Disha– Jeta kerkon dashuri (Life seeks for love)

These are two artists from Kosovo. The song was composed by Edmond Zhulali, who wrote AnjezaShahini's entry in the 2004 Eurovision Song Contest.The girls look a bit like Baccara – but younger. Theirentry is an up-tempo song, a very catchy one that combines pop music with ethnic elements, indeed suitable for the Eurovision Song Contest.

12. Eneda Tarifa– E para leter(The first letter)

It's a ballad with a tune and a performance that can be bestdescribed as "nice". It's a typical Eurovision Song Contest entry and it's outcome can hardly be predicted.

It's time for the third medley, which is performed by Liliana Kondakci, Eli Bozo and Aferdita Zonja.

It's time for a short break again. Tonight's guest stars are Elita 5, they have just entered the stage. The band is from F.Y.R. Macedonia but also very popular in Albania. They perform a medley of their best known hits. Right now, they are performing their biggest hit Al Capone and the audience is singing along.

13. Teuta Kurti– Qyteti i dashurise (The city of love)

Teuta is another singer from Kosovo. She is wearing a black designer dress which is very elegant. There is no glitter. She isalone on stage and she obviously needs no one to join her asthe up-tempo song is very poppy and catchy. She has a strong voice (maybe too strong at the end) and she is very likely to reach the final.

14. Rosela Gjylbegu– Po lind nje yll (A star is rising)

A very pleasant tune. The singer looks very good on stage and she has a nice voice. Another song the outcome cannot be predicted of.

Now the Eurovision tune is played while Elsa and Pirro come on stage. RTSH is focussing on the Eurovision Song Contest much more than in recent years and the hosts asked the jury to be fair and vote for a good song for Belgrade.

15. ManjolaNallbani– Kjo bote merr fryme nga dashuria (This world's breaths of love)

Manjola is a big name who is returning to the festival. She comes on stage in a beutiful white dress making her almost look like a bride. The song has a slow start and an ethnic tune in the background. Her voice is powerful and the entry turns into an opera song towards the end (of course reminding of Slovenian entrant Alenka Gotar in Helsinki).It is very likely that she will reach the final, especially because of her popularity as a singer.

This was the last song and therefore the last medley is about to start.It is performed by Erti Hizmo, Marsida Saraci and Tergita Gusta.

The finalist will be announced at the beginning of the national final on 16th December (this Sunday). The show is over, the hosts say goodbye and so do we! Thank you for enjoying the the show with us.

Tomorrow, the second semi final will be aired.